10 Draft Integrated Waste Management Plan - City Council - City of ...

2012 Davis Integrated Waste Management Plan
Executive Summary
The primary goal of this document is to develop a plan to achieve a waste reduction target (75% diversion
equivalent) as estimated by CalRecycle, based on per capita disposal, by the year 2020, while keeping the cost
of service as low as possible. The waste reduction target is a waste weight-based calculation, so the City’s
priority is to focus on heavier weighted materials for maximum diversion. The waste reduction target will be
achieved through five major components: composting, outreach, Davis Waste Removal Company (DWR)
contract updates, solid waste rates and solid waste policy. This section provides a summary of these five major
components, which are discussed in more detail within this plan.
Composting
In order to meet the year 2020 waste reduction target, perhaps the most obvious item on the checklist is to begin
collecting food scraps and food soiled paper for composting from all businesses and residents.
According to the California Department of Resources, Recycling and Recovery, food scraps make up 15.5% of
the overall total waste stream that is currently landfilled, and when combined with food soiled paper and other
non-recyclable organic materials, comprise over 30% of our currently disposed materials. Collecting all the
food scraps, food soiled paper and other non-recyclable organic materials from all customers (businesses and
residents) would be the most effective means for the City to meet the year 2020 waste reduction target.
The City began a pilot commercial food scrap collection program in 2011, but this program is still in its infancy.
No such program exists yet for the residential sector. Yard material is currently collected from all customers
and is shipped to a local compost facility. Many jurisdictions have encouraged customers to include food scraps
with their yard material for weekly collection. However, due to the loose-in-the-street method that is currently
in practice in Davis, this is not possible. In order to collect food scraps from customers, the City would need to
distribute a separate food scrap collection container (that would be set out at the curb once a week for
collection) or would need to issue a large cart for collecting combined yard materials and food scraps. To
maximize efficiency, minimize cost, promote bike safety, decrease visual blight and for numerous other
reasons, this Plan supports the option of issuing a large cart for combined yard materials and food scrap
collection.
DRAFT
Containerization of yard materials is not a new concept. In fact, is it estimated that anywhere from 95-98% of
California jurisdictions that offer yard materials collection have yard material carts. Davis is one of the few
remaining jurisdictions that offers loose-in-the-street collection of yard materials. An extensive community
outreach program would need to be implemented before such a change could be enacted, and it may take a year
to achieve complete participation in the new collection program. Containerizing yard materials would also
allow the City to decrease the frequency of street sweeping (currently done weekly) and allow residents and
businesses to place food scraps in with yard materials for collection.
The down side of containerized plant trimmings collection is that the recovered materials are likely to be more
contaminated.
Expanding solid waste services to include containerized food scrap collection and yard material collection will
require a long-term, cost-effective composting solution. Therefore, a composting feasibility study is proposed to
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