MSW Management November/December 2015

NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2015 www.mswmanagement.com

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November/December 2015 / Vol. 25 / No. 7

EDITOR

[ www.mswmanagement.com ]

John Trotti – jtrotti@forester.net

MANAGING PRODUCTION EDITOR

18

Brianna Duncan

IT/ONLINE SUPPORT

Steven Grimaud

WEB EDITOR

David Rachford

WEBMASTER

Nadia English – nenglish@forester.net

ASSISTANT EDITOR

Arturo Santiago

DIRECTOR OF ONLINE MEDIA & IT

John Richardson

BRAND MANAGERS

Shane Stevens, Glenys Archer, Suzy Shidlovsky, Laine Wilkinson, Campbell Baker

Features 18

SENIOR BRAND MANAGERS

Mark Gersten, Geoff Solo, Eileen Duarte

Survey of MSW Generation and Disposition in the US The per capita generation of MSW in the US is substantially higher than in countries with nearly the same GDP per capita.

BY NICKOLAS J. THEMELIS AND DOLLY SHIN

26

SENIOR GRAPHIC DESIGNER

DIRECTOR OF CIRCULATION

Steven Wayner – swayner@forester.net

BY BOB BRICKNER

MARKETING COORDINATOR, EDUCATION & TRAINING

Advanced Materials Recovery

PRODUCT MARKETING MANAGER, EDUCATION & TRAINING

Phil Johnson – pjohnson@forester.net Hayley Hogan – hhogan@forester.net

BY JAMES R. MILLER

DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION & TRAINING

Landfill Liners and Covers

ACCOUNTANT/CHAIR, LOVE & HAPPINESS COMMITTEE

One of the biggest challenges landfill designers face is containing the trash and its byproducts until the cows come home.

AR/AP

Beth Tompkins – btompkins@forester.net Courtney Keele Keith Rodgers

FINANCE & HR MANAGER

BY CAROL BRZOZOWSKI

John Pasini – jpasini@forester.net

OFFICE ADMINISTRATOR

Is Privatization the Answer?

Kathy Martin

You need to consider several factors before making the decision.

PUBLISHER

Daniel Waldman – dw@forester.net

BY MARC J. ROGOFF, KARL MOYERS, MICHELLE LEONARD, AND ROBERT GARDNER

60

Doug Mlyn

Judith Geiger

MWP: Do You Doggie-Paddle to It or Swim Free Style?

Is this the next step towards achieving zero waste?

56

Tyler Adair

PRODUCTION MANAGER ART DIRECTOR

Plunging the waste processing pieces into the pool (Part 4 of 4)

48

Adam Schaffer – aschaffer@forester.net Deja Hsu

The Brains of the Outfit—Software for Truck Scale Systems

BY DANIEL P. DUFFY

42

Carmody Cutter

DIRECTOR OF ADVERTISING SALES GRAPHIC DESIGNER

It is not an either/or choice between human direction or automated controls; both elements complement each other to maximize performance.

36

SALES & MARKETING COORDINATOR

Collection Vehicle Lubrication You’ve heard it before. It’s been said a million times. The environment in which trash trucks operate is one of the toughest, dirtiest, and most demanding.

BY LORI LOVELY

Departments

26

Editor’s Comments 6

ShowCase 70

Guest Editorial 8

Marketplace 72

SWANA News 10

Advertiser’s Index 73

Spotlight 66

Reader Profile 74

White Paper: Questions to Ask Before Buying a Material Handler 67

COVER PHOTO: BHS

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by Forester Media Inc., 2946 De la Vina Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93105, 805-682-1300, fax: 805-682-0200, e-mail: publisher@forester.net,Web: www.foresternetwork.com. Periodicals postage paid at Santa Barbara, CA, and at additional mailing offices. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced in any form without written permission from publisher. Entire contents ©2015 by Forester Media Inc. POSTMASTER: Please send address changes to MSW Management, 440 Quadrangle Drive Ste E, Bolingbrook, IL 60440. Changes of address can be completed online at www.cdsreportnow.com/renew/now?msw or mailed to 440 Quadrangle Dr., Ste. E, Bolingbrook, IL 60440; please provide your mailing label or old address in addition to new address. Include ZIP code or postal code. Allow two months for change. Editorial contributions are welcome. All material must be accompanied by stamped return envelopes and will be handled with reasonable care; however, publishers assume no responsibility for safety of artwork, photographs, or manuscripts. Every precaution is taken to ensure accuracy, but the publishers cannot accept responsibility for the correctness or accuracy of information supplied herein or for any opinion expressed.The publisher states that all editorials and opinions, including those that express the opinion or policy of the publisher or editor, do not necessarily represent the opinion or policy of SWANA. Subscription Rates: seven issues of MSW Management are $76 per year in the US ($95 in Canada, $160 elsewhere). Send the completed subscription card with a check to 440 Quadrangle Dr., Ste. E, Bolingbrook, IL 60440. Reprints: All editorial material in MSW Management is available for reprints. Call 805-679-7604 or e-mail reprints@ forester.net for additional information. List Rentals: 1-800-529-9020 ext. 5003, dfoster@inforefinery.com. Articles appearing in this journal are indexed in Environmental Periodicals Bibliography. Back issues may be ordered (depending on available inventory) for $15 per copy in the US ($20 in Canada, $35 elsewhere). Send written requests for back issues along with check or money order in US funds payable to MSW Management, P.O. Box 3100, Santa Barbara, CA 93130, USA. Provide address for where copies should be shipped. Allow six weeks for delivery.

25th

FORESTER ANNIVERSARY

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EDITOR’S COMMENTS I BY JOHN TROTTI Editorial Advisory Board

Meeting the Infrastructure Challenge

“I

believe that this nation should commit itself to achieving the goal, before this decade is out, of landing a man on the moon and returning him safely to the Earth.” – President John F. Kennedy, May 25, 1961, before a joint session of Congress Today’s pundits would have you believe that President Kennedy’s challenge to the American public was grandstanding rhetoric to get us to heat up the cold war, but to me as a eager young Marine aviator sitting in the ready room, the gauntlet our Commander-in-Chief tossed down fairly sizzled in its brilliance. What a sensational concept . . . not that I for a moment believed it was possible. “Two decades, maybe,” I thought; but in 1961 when the best we could toss into orbit could fit in a suitcase, this was right off the charts.

Now, I believe, is the time for us to do something equally mind-boggling—rethink and then reinvest in critical infrastructure that will allow our towns and cities to work in a healthy, safe, sustainable, and affordable manner.

Questioning a System Run Amok Maybe you just like commuting for umpteen hours a week, windows rolled up and doors locked to keep all the advantages of urban life at bay . . . but I doubt it. While we’ve been humping our tails off to be able to enjoy “the good life,” doesn’t it seem that the goal has moved further and farther to the right . . . almost to where we have to ask whether it’s even possible to get there from here? While it’s not an acceptable situation, it’s one we live with however much it begs the question, “What do we do about it?”

I don’t pretend to know what to promote because there is no single answer to the situation. Instead let me take a different tack and suggest that we need to ask questions—a lot of them—about why we chose to live the way we do, and how this stacks up against our expectations. The questions are endless, but even before you’ve gone too far you’re struck by recurring issues: safety, congestion, health, convenience, opportunity, etc. So why don’t we do something about them?

Allow me to offer a couple of thoughts here. First, urbanization and the spectacular

growth of our cities is a rather recent phenomenon for which there were few if any guideposts to mark the way; second, to the extent we’ve done urban planning, most often it takes the form of exclusionary zoning practices more apt to consider land values than long range utility; and third (but by no means last), the diversification of our society along racial, ethnic, and cultural lines has become a major driver in the continued press toward suburbanization and its resultant —you’re not going to like this—ghettoization of our various sub-populations.

The point I want to make here is that the forces that we’ve allowed to shape the growth and development of our cities have little to do with their utility or habitability. Worse still, these factors have in many instances mutated or migrated over the years, leaving behind a legacy of legal and territorial entanglements that are no longer applicable and certainly not fiscally sustainable.

Changing the Experiment As waste managers our rightful focus is on society’s material discards, but as caretakers of a public trust we have an obligation to our communities to work toward the common good. As such, it’s time to go back and challenge the assumptions on which the myriad infrastructure and planning decisions and ordinances in our cities are based.

Then we’ve got to weigh their validity in terms of what it will take to attract private investment back into areas blighted not merely by age and neglect, but faulty, politically motivated, and all too often fraudulently initiated public programs.

If there’s a major city in the country that isn’t in crisis with crumbling infrastructure, social unrest, and inadequate service delivery, please inform my ignorance, but the time is fast approaching when limited government budgets will be unable to respond to these deteriorating situations. The longer we wait to remove the politically enacted impediments to private investment in our communities the worse the situation will become.

Our cities need rebuilding, so let’s set for ourselves that goal. It’s time to convince our elected representative to get out the political agenda business and let the market economy do its job. MSW

Laurie Batchelder Adams President LBA Associates Denver, CO

David Biderman

Executive Director Solid Waste Association of North America Silver Spring, MD

Sara L. Bixby

Deputy Executive Director Solid Waste Association of North America Silver Spring, MD

Frank Caponi

Head, Air Quality Engineering Los Angeles County Sanitation Districts Whittier, CA

John Carlton

Senior Vice President Gershman, Brickner & Bratton Inc. Fairfax, VA

Steven P. Christman

QEP, Executive Director Northeast Indiana Solid Waste District Ashley, IN

Tim Flanagan

General Manager Monterey Regional Waste Management District Marina, CA

Anne Germain, P.E.*

Director of Waste and Recycling National Waste & Recycling Association Washington DC

Victoria Johnson Director of Solid Waste Charlotte, NC

Kevin Kiernan

Division Director King County Solid Waste Division King County, WA

Allen Lynch

Manager, North Shore Recycling Program North Vancouver, BC, Canada

Tony Miano Solid Waste Manager City of Tempe, AZ

Michael Michels

Vice President Cornerstone Environmental Group Plymouth, WI

Jeffrey S. Murray, P.E., BCEE Senior Project Manager HDR Inc. Raleigh, NC

Chuck Peterson

Senior Environmental Specialist The World Bank Washington DC

Alfred Rattie

Director of Market Development US Composting Council Bethesda, MD

Paul Sgriccia, P.E.

Principal US Waste Market Sector Leader Golder Associates Wixom, MI

Brian Tippetts

Business Manager Hilltopper Refuse and Recycling Service Onalaska, WI

Eugene Tseng, J.D. President E. Tseng, and Associates Agoura Hills, CA

James D. Warner

Chief Executive Officer Solid Waste Management Authority Lancaster County, PA

Ana E. Wood

Solid Waste Director City of Jacksonville, FL *Board Certified Environmental Engineer

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GUEST EDITORIAL I BY JEFFREY S. MURRAY

So Your Diversion Rate Is Stagnant—Now What?

I

am currently leading a project team that is facilitating a waste reduction task force for a community that has seen its solid waste diversion rate plateau. This community has implemented comingled automated collection of recyclables and has weekly curbside collection of yard waste that is put to beneficial use, but has been unable to move the needle beyond the 40% range. Community leaders and the solid waste department understand there is significant room for improvement and are working hard to identify the next steps required to increase the diversion rate.

The community’s regulatory agency calculates waste diversion on a per capita waste generation basis as compared to a base year. Like many others, I believe this type of calculation is most appropriate, as it captures not only the success of recycling programs, but also the community’s waste reduction and reuse efforts, whether planned or market-driven. It has become apparent that market-driven changes away from printed newspaper and magazines, the reduction of the quantity of plastics in liquid containers (“light-weighting” of plastics), and other alternative packaging programs, will continue to affect both the quantity of waste generated and recycled, and the ability of communities to improve the calculated diversion rate for those that use a percentage of total waste generated as the measuring stick.

The community’s existing comprehensive plan identifies a number of practices to be considered for implementation, including: • Pay-As-You-Throw (PAYT) • Waste-to-Energy demonstration • Environmentally friendly product use • Mandatory recycling • Alternative waste disposal techniques (e.g., mixed waste processing) • Retrofits at multifamily and commercial locations to facilitate recycling (design changes) The task force is considering additional practices or strategies to improve waste reduction efforts, including: construction and demolition debris recycling strategies, organics (food scraps) recycling, alternative collection strategies (i.e., weekly organics and recyclables, biweekly waste), extended producer responsibility, and greater emphasis on swap shops for hard to recycle materials. The task force has reviewed a number of case studies and will develop specific actions and timelines for consideration by community leaders to move these forward. It will be up to the community leaders to more fully assess the impact these strategies will have on their operations, costs, and potential for success.

The waste reduction task force is a great example of how to provide outreach and assess a community’s appetite for advancing its waste reduction programs. It includes representatives of local environmental groups, downtown business, restaurant and lodging, neighborhood and apartment associations, the chamber of commerce, appearance commission, and environmental advisory boards. A number of these task force members had previously expressed interest in solid waste issues and will be relied upon to champion their recommendations to community leaders and their peers. Working with the task force, I have come to realize that people outside of our solid waste profession have a good understanding of how important the community’s solid waste

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program is to their health and safety, environment, community aesthetics, and economic vitality. They are very mindful of the collection, processing and disposal costs of various alternative practices and how they may impact overall program costs should they be implemented.

Not all diversion strategies are right for every community, and in many cases, the costs far exceed the avoided cost of disposal, requiring careful consideration of other justifications.

In my own home, trends from print to electronic media, use of refillable water bottles, and bulk food purchasing has certainly impacted the quantity of waste my family generates. I don’t think either of my teenage daughters has ever read an actual newspaper, and of course they get all of their relevant information through Instagram, Twitter, or Snapchat.

(If we could only obtain waste diversion credit for the reduction in actual spoken words, as they prefer to communicate with one another via the keypad.) Whether intended or not, my daughters’ choices on how to communicate with one another, obtain information, eat what they put on their plate, or even occasionally enjoy a good book on their tablet, is contributing to reduction in waste.

SWANA is doing its part to help communities deal with reduced waste diversion. In its 2014 strategic plan, SWANA revised its mission to commit to elevating solid waste management to resource management. I believe this new focus is in step with many of its members and the communities and companies they represent. Changing our way of thinking, and acting with the understanding that “waste is not waste until it is wasted”—that what we routinely discard are in fact resources—is necessary in order to transition to a more sustainable society. The extent to which communities can afford to implement additional waste diversion strategies over the next decade will be based in large part on the regional cost of disposal, political leanings, public demands, and successful public and private partnerships. SWANA provides a wonderful platform to share stories of innovative resource management strategies that have been implemented across North America, making it easier for other communities to evaluate and implement similar strategies. I look forward to learning more about successful organics diversion, energy and fuel from waste technologies, PAYT programs, mixed waste processing, and resource parks, and sharing these with my colleagues and clients.

As you ponder what you can do differently with your community’s solid waste resources, I encourage you to collaborate with community leaders and government representatives to establish an advisory committee or task force, to take an unbiased look at waste diversion strategies and potential program improvements that may be affordable. This review should not just be a paper exercise as part of a solid waste master plan that just sits on a shelf, but can and should be an open discussion of how best to improve your resource management program. Don’t wait for program innovation to work its way to your community; start the dialogue now and don’t be afraid to step out of the blue bin. MSW Jeffrey S. Murray, P.E., BCEE is a senior project manager with HDR in its Raleigh, NC, office and is currently serving as treasurer of the SWANA International Board of Directors.

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NEWS FROM THE SOLID WASTE ASSOCIATION OF NORTH AMERICA

CONTENTS • SWANADVOCATE • YP SPOTLIGHT

SWANAdvocate— Latest Legislative News Impacting the Solid Waste Industry

• WORKER SAFETY IN COLLECTION • SWANA’S PRESENCE AT ISWA

EPA proposes new emissions guidelines, lowered NSPS threshold.

By Jesse Maxwell, Advocacy & eLearning Program Manager, SWANA

I

n August 2015, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) proposed new Emission Guidelines (EG) for existing landfills, a major rule that will have effect across the MSW landfill industry. This is the rule’s first major update since its promulgation in 1996. At the same time, the EPA also released a supplement to its previously proposed air rule for new landfills, making further reductions to its emissions threshold.

EMISSION GUIDELINES One of the farthest reaching changes in the proposed EG is the reduction of the emissions threshold to only 34 metric tons (megagrams). This is nearly a third lower than the current standard of 50 Mg/yr., and is likely to bring more landfills into the rule.

The EPA did not reduce the design capacity threshold, which remains at 2.5 million Mg. Although the EG applies to all landfills built between November 8, 1987, and July 17, 2014, landfills closed before that July 17 date will remain under the 50 Mg/year threshold.

The EPA is considering extending this exception to landfills closed within 13 months after that date as well. The issue of bringing closed landfills into the new EG was concern raised by many in the industry.

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Remaining unchanged is the definition of the Best System of Emission Reduction (BSER). This remains a well-designed and well operated landfill gas control and collection system that achieves 98% NMOC reduction by weight.

A positive change for landfill operators is the removal of wellhead operating limits for oxygen, nitrogen and temperature. This will reduce liability of wellhead exceedances and provide greater operational flexibility. The EPA will now only require operation under negative pressure, along with monthly monitoring. The new rule will also allow more flexibility for beneficial use of landfill gas by defining treatment in terms of the end-use.

The rule will also clarify that treated LFG is not limited to use in stationary combustion devices. Both changes should be helpful in expanding beneficial reuse.

The proposed rule also includes an alternative site-specific emission threshold determination (Tier 4), and alternative criteria for capping/removing gas collection and control systems (GCCS). These changes could help more landfills avoid entering the rule unnecessarily, and help sites with low gas production get out more easily.

One area of concern is the rule’s require-

ment that GCCS plans be revised within 90 days of expansion to an area not covered under the previous plan. The increased cost and uncertainty of this requirement, without obvious benefit, will add additional burden to landfill operators. Similarly, the rule requires that all penetrations and open areas must be monitored, which again will increase the burden without an equal amount of benefit.

UPDATED NSPS A supplemental proposal to the new source performance standards (NSPS) was also released by the EPA that would lower the emissions threshold to 34 metric tons (megagrams) a year. This keeps it in line with what is proposed in the EG. The new NSPS will apply to landfills constructed, modified, or reconstructed after July 17, 2014.

The original NSPS proposed in 2014 suggested lowering the threshold to 40 Mg/ yr. According to the EPA’s supplemental proposal, it is reducing the threshold further, “based on additional data we have reviewed that indicate greater potential for reductions in methane emissions from these sources than we originally estimated that can be achieved at reasonable cost.”

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NEWS

YP Spotlight T

he SWANA Young Professionals group continues to grow and expand across the country, with more than 300 members busy this past year speaking at SWANA events, leading teams, mentoring students, and making strides in every aspect of the industry.

Meet Our Featured YP:

ing an all-time career hits leader for the Bucknell University baseball team. He was also appointed to the Zoning Hearing Board for his local municipality.

Ben has been a member of SWANA since 2012. He has attended the local SWANA Keystone chapter’s annual conference every year since joining SWANA. He attends a majority of the other Keystone chapter meetings (e.g., mini-tech seminars) throughout the year and has assisted the Keystone chapter with administrative tasks at the request of the chapter’s Vice President. Ben was also part of a team that was awarded the Bronze SWANA Excellence Award for Landfill Re-Use in 2012 for the South Hadley Landfill Vertical Expansion.

WHEN ASKED ABOUT HIS EXPERIENCE AS A SWANA YP MEMBER, HE SAYS: "Being part of the SWANA Young Professionals group has been instrumental in my career development by allowing me to make connections within the solid waste industry.

The Young Professionals group allows me to keep in contact with my peers and to stay up-to-date with new technologies as the solid waste industry continues to evolve.” ____________________________________ Submit your YP of the Month submissions to Shelby Truxon, Membership Program Manager, at struxon@swana.org.

Ben Allen, P.E. Project Engineer ARM Group Inc.

Ben Allen, with ARM Group Inc., has several accomplishments, including completing and permitting the first Settlement Accommodation Plan (SAP) in the state of Pennsylvania. Ben was also involved with the design, permitting, and construction of the first mechanically stabilized earth (MSE) berm founded on waste. He has been qualified as an expert witness in landfill design and incorporated renewable energy systems into several landfill projects. Some of Ben’s personal accomplishments include becom-

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Worker Safety in Solid Waste Collection

By Marc J. Rogoff, Ph.D., Project Director, SCS Engineers and David Biderman, Executive Director, SWANA

Ferdinand Rivera, City of West Palm Beach, Florida

reduced workers compensation costs, decreasing disability claims, decreasing the number and cost of light duty assignments, and reducing salary fringe benefit costs in the future.

For the estimated 130,000 men and

Marc J. Rogoff

David Biderman

S

generate an increasing number of injured staff. Exposure to certain chemicals and biological materials can result in musculoskeletal, dermal, respiratory, and gastrointestinal problems. In addition, solid waste collection workers are exposed to safety risks associated with vehicular traffic, containers/ dumpster, and being struck or run over by their own truck.

A fully automated collection program enhances worker safety and comfort, minimizes manual lifting and exposure to possible hazards in the waste such as sharp objects.

Fully automated collection eliminates heavy lifting, walking between setouts and frequent steps on and off the truck. The mechanical arms on modern, fully automated trucks are typically operated by the driver using a joystick control. Rather than slogging through rain and high temperature environments, operators of automated refuse collection systems spend their shifts in climate controlled comfort. The reduced physical requirement increases the diversity and longevity of the workforce that is able to collect waste. Automated collection has proven to significantly reduce collection worker injuries resulting in

Ferdinand Rivera, City of West Palm Beach, Florida

olid waste collection workers are potentially exposed to health, environmental, and safety risks due to the weight of the waste to be collected and various chemical and biological materials sometimes present in the waste stream. Typical rear-loader operations require manually lifting materials into the collection vehicles.

Statistics from such programs suggest that collection crews lift on average, over six tons (13,000 lbs.) per worker per day. In general, this heavy, repetitive, manual lifting combined with an aging workforce tends to

Manual collection increases the risk of a variety of safety incidents.

Many communities, like the City of West Palm Beach, Florida, switched to residential automated collection service as a means to improve levels of service, while at the same time reducing worker injuries.

women involved in the U.S. solid waste collection industry, refuse collection is a sometimes thankless job that affords outdoor work, physical activity, a certain measure of independence, and satisfaction of knowing that it is something that is important. It is also a job that has hazards literally around almost every corner.

Solid waste collection is often viewed as one of the more dangerous jobs due to the number of fatal and non-fatal occupational accidents (Exhibit 1). For 2013, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) reported that “refuse and recyclable material collectors� in the United States experienced 33.0 fatalities per 100,000 workers, and that these employees work in the occupation with the fifth highest fatality rate in the United States.

This is more than a twenty percent increase in the collection fatality rate experienced by the industry in 2012, and statistically, is 10 times higher than the overall national average for all U.S. workers and four times higher than construction-related fatalities.

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NEWS Exhibit 1. America’s Most Dangerous Professions, 2014 2014, a driver was killed in New York City when the container he was unloading fell on him. In April 2015, a driver was killed when the rear boom on 2 Fisherman 80.8 his truck struck and overpass, causing the truck to 3 Aircraft Pilots 63.2 overturn. June 2015, a driver in the Florida Keys was killed while emptying a dumpster. All three 4 Roofers 46.2 of these recent examples involve workers at small 5 35.8 Solid Waste Collectors hauling companies, which typically have higher 6 Farmers, Ranchers 26.0 fatality and injury rates than larger companies or 7 Steel Workers 25.2 sanitation departments.

Some industry safety advocates suggest the 8 Truckers 23.4 steady and substantial decrease in the previous 9 Powerline Installers 19.2 decade was likely due to a number of critical fac10 Construction Laborers 17.9 tors. First, an increasing number of both private Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, National Census of Fatal Occupational Injuries (CFOI) Report, 2014 companies and public agencies are replacing manual rear-loader waste collection vehicles with automation utilizing rolling cart systems, which almost completely eliminates the need for solid waste collection workers to According to the National Institute for Occupational Safety and lift containers, and the consequential risk of exposure to unsafe trash Health (NIOSH), workers in solid waste collection were also in the and distracted drivers. Second, the renewed emphasis on safety by top three job classifications to have the highest number of nonfatal the industry’s leading trade associations, its largest companies, and injuries and illnesses, most caused by overexertion, being struck, senior management, safety managers, and others in the solid waste striking against, or being compressed in equipment. The majority profession played an important role in these gains, in an effort to of worker’s compensation claims nationally are typically attributed decrease the high costs of workers compensation claims, third party to repetitive stress injuries associated with lifting refuse containers personal injury claims, and property damage claims, and litigation. or getting in/out of the collection vehicle. Also problematic are the It is important to note that in addition to worker fatalities, the waste contents of refuse: broken glass, chemical waste, pool chemicals, and industry averages nearly two third-party fatalities each week, and has needles and other medical wastes, which results in cuts, lacerations, thousands of accidents annually, and according to the Federal Motor punctures, bruises, illnesses and contusions. Vehicular traffic and repeated lifting while on the run produces thousands of injuries each Carrier Safety Administration’s 2013 Large Truck and Bus Crash Facts report, nearly 1,900 accidents each year in which a vehicle year. Some injuries stem from constantly repeating awkward moveneeds to towed away ments, such as jumping in and out of the back of collection vehicles, and lifting heavy or oversized containers.

Although workplace safety in the solid waste collection industry SAFETY PROGRAMS improved substantially between 2001 and 2010, more recent data Current OSHA regulations do not specifically address solid waste suggests the industry’s progress in reducing fatalities, workplace collection vehicles or employees, although OSHA will inspect solid injuries and accidents over the past few years has slowed, and by waste employers in response to a fatality, worker complaint, or some measures, is being reversed. In 2001, BLS calculated solid waste if the establishment is in its site-specific targeting program. The collectors had a fatality rate of 55.4. By 2007, the BLS fatality rate for American National Standards Institute (ANSI) has published Safety this category had declined to 22.8. The number of waste collection Standards for Mobile Refuse Collection and Compaction Equipemployees killed declined from 73 in 2003 to 39 in 2007. A similar ment, which address safe operation and construction of the equipdecline occurred in employee injuries and illnesses, with waste colment and includes recommendations for riders and pedestrian lectors experiencing a decline in their injury rate from 8.0 per 100 safety (ANSI 2014). These standards, which are updated frequently, full time employees in 2006 to 5.4 in 2010. As noted above, however, include the following important recommendations: those improvements have not continued into the current decade, • Ride only in the vehicle cab or on steps specifically designed as the fatality rate has increased to 33 (in 2013) and the injury and for riding. illness rate for waste collection workers in 2013 was 6.3 per 100 • Remain inside the vehicle cab until the vehicle is completely stopped. employees, compared to 5.4 in 2010.

• Ensure that riders are NOT using the riding steps when the The last few months of 2014 and first half of 2015 have seen vehicle is backing, exceeding 10 miles per hour, or traveling more a steady barrage of tragic accidents in which waste collection and than 0.2 miles. other industry workers have been killed. For example, in November • Ensure that no one rides on the loading sills or in hoppers.

Ranking 1

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Profession

Deaths Per 100,000 Workers

Loggers

109.5

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The National Waste and Recycling Association (NWRA)1 has developed comprehensive national safety practices for workers engaged in solid waste collection. NWRA’s Manual of Recommended Safety Practices, contains detailed procedures for backing safety, acting as a spotter during vehicle backing, and working around vehicles.

These procedures include the following standard procedures: • Maintaining visual contact between the driver and workers on foot when working close to the vehicle and when backing.

• Checking both side mirrors when backing.

• Using a reliable spotter to see both the driver and any blind spots behind the driver and any blind spots behind the vehicle when backing.

• Using standard hand signals when backing.

• Stopping the truck if the spotter must change positions.

• Immediately stopping the maneuver if visual contact with the spotter is lost.

• Remaining clear of the rear of the vehicle when the backup lights are on or the alarm is sounding.

Organizations have determined that by focusing efforts on eliminating unsafe behavior, worker injuries and accidents can be reduced. In recent years, both private and public solid waste operations have elevated the importance of safe work behavior by creating safety committees, adopting new work rules and employee policies, and implementing training regimens to effect a change in employee behavior. The City of Mesa, AZ regularly updates their Solid Waste Division Work Rules, Procedures, and Safety Guidelines, which begins appropriately with “No short cuts or alibis in Safety,” highlighting the importance of safe work behavior.

Recognizing that the cost of risk, in both dollars and human lives, was having an impact on their business, Waste Management, Inc. (WM), the nation’s largest solid waste company, began a comprehensive safety initiative to change the way the company conducted its business. In 2001 a “Mission to Zero” (M2Z) tolerance was begun, vowing that if a work practice was deemed unsafe in any way, that it would not be attempted until the unsafe condition was eliminated, even if that meant losing a customer to protect the safety of WM employees or the public. As the industry leader, WM has more than 42,000 employees and operates over 32,000 trucks each day. M2Z impacts every employee: • Initial multi-day training of the WM Operations and Safety Rules Book • The Rule Book is a comprehensive, leather bound manual of safe work practices for every collection job function.

• Every employee is required to have the Rule Book with them at all times.

• The Rule Book should be used to assist employees in identifying potential risks and providing the correct work procedure.

• Regularly conducted safety meetings

• Safety metrics are reviewed (OSHA injury rates, and accident frequency rates).

• Injuries and accidents are reviewed, root cause investigated, and preventability discussed.

• Daily Safety Briefings • Supervisor Safe Driver/Helper Observations • Repeat Offender Program (ROPE) • WM identified that a small percentage of employees were involved in the majority of accidents or injuries.

• Employees allowed no more than three preventable accidents or injuries in a 12-month period.

• Employees must complete retraining after preventable incidents and are subject to progressive discipline.

• WM determined that by correcting repeat offender behavior, safety metrics improved.

• As a result of these M2Z efforts, WM has reduced their OSHA recordable injury rate by 70 percent, and the number of vehicle accidents by 35 percent in a four year period.

Both Republic Services, Inc., the second largest waste company in the United States, and Waste Connections, Inc., have focused on common root causes of accidents and injuries, such as backing and rear end collisions.

In 2003, The Environmental Research and Education Foundation (EREF) obtained a grant from the Department of Labor to develop safety training tools for the solid waste collection industry. This effort resulted in the development of four “Be Safe, Be Proud” videos that show real life solid waste workers and equipment, highlighting specific safety issues involving waste collection. In addition, EREF and the National Solid Wastes Management Association (NSWMA) promoted the “Slow Down to Get Around” program, an educational program aimed at motorists to try and get them to drive slower and more carefully around garbage trucks. This effort expanded upon a similar program initiated by Rumpke Consolidated Companies, Inc., in 2003, one of the nation’s largest privately-owned waste hauling firms. Since 2003, more than 1,200 videos have been issued, many to public solid waste collection agencies. As part of this effort, NSWMA also developed radio and television ads with support from OSHA. A variety of local governments have also developed different types of safety incentive programs for their employees. Typical is a safety program developed by the City of Clovis, CA for their solid waste collection staff. Under its program, the City pays a safety bonus to those employees who have not a job related injury, lost time from work from a job-related injury, or an at-fault accident within the last two years. The program is pursuant to an agreement with the City union.2

IMPACT OF AUTOMATION ON WORKER SAFETY In the late 1990s, the City of Dunedin, Florida (pop. 37,000, Pinellas County) transitioned operations from traditional rear load [ www.mswmanagement.com ] MSW MANAGEMENT

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NEWS collection to one-man, manual side load collection. The City made this change in an effort to control escalating costs and forego rate increases to City residents. As a result, staffing levels were drastically reduced and the City recognized savings in both labor and workers compensation claims. However, the reduction in claims were a direct result of the reduction in staffing, and not the conversion to Exhibit 2. Reduction in workers compensation costs after conversion from manual to automated collection manual side load collection.

Although production levels increased because of the new manual Although SWANA has held a Safety Summit at WASTECON® for side load application, worker injuries continued to occur, forcing several years, the 2015 Safety Summit in Orlando was expanded to the City investigate other methods to increase worker safety. include five separate sessions over three days, plus a truck inspecIn 2001, the City piloted and subsequently introduced a tion on the show floor. The topics covered at the Safety Summit, citywide containerized automated collection program, replacing which includes well known safety experts from both the public and the manual side load collection program. The City immediately private sectors, included: (1) Can We Improve Safety by Looking at recognized a reduction in worker injuries and a subsequent savings Other Industries; (2) Safety Improvements at the City of Clearwain worker compensation claims. Since implementing their autoter, Florida; (3) Fires: A Burning Issue in Trucks, at Landfills and at mated collection program, the City of Dunedin has recognized a 77 Other Facilities; (4) OSHA and DOT Compliance Issues; and percent reduction in residential workers compensation costs, and a (5) Safety Issues for Municipal Solid Waste Workers.

52 percent reduction in workers compensation costs for the entire SWANA also is exploring holding additional safety webinars and solid waste division. Exhibit 2 illustrates this reduction in worker classroom safety sessions in late 2015 and 2016, and has met with compensation claims. representatives from the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) concerning temporary workers, who have an elevated fatality and injury rate. There are thousands of temporary workers SWANA’S WORKER SAFETY PROGRAM who work in the waste and recycling industry on a daily basis.

Over the past few months, SWANA has expanded the quality and the quantity of safety resources it is making available to its members and others in the waste and recycling industry. This expansion CONCLUSIONS is likely to continue into 2016, as safety is one of the top priorities Solid waste collection is currently the fifth most dangerous job in in SWANA’s Strategic Plan. the United States due to the number of fatal accidents involving SWANA has added a new “Safety Matters” section to its monthly employees. In addition, solid waste workers suffer thousands of newsletter that it distributes to its more than 8300 members. This reported injuries and illnesses annually, and waste collection vehicles section highlights recent accidents in the industry and upcoming are involved in thousands of accidents each year. As a result, the solid SWANA safety programming. SWANA has also started to commuwaste industry has developed safety education programs for workers nicate directly to its chapters regarding safety. and also for the general public. These have been generally been well SWANA held a webinar in June 2015 on how to reduce accireceived. In recent months, SWANA has expanded the quality and dents and injuries. The webinar attracted more than 140 regisquantity of these programs to its members and the industry. These trants, and focused primarily on collection-related issues. Also programs will improve the variety of safety training available. in June, SWANA applied to the Department of Labor for a Susan 1 Harwood grant to provide safety education and resources, starting National Waste and Recycling Association website, in 2016. If approved, SWANA will provide classroom training for https://wasterecycling.org/blog/2014/09/02/nwra-and-ansi-standardsmanagers and supervisors at several locations around the United helping-equipment-manufacturers-be-more-effective, American National States, including at SWANA conferences. The grant application Standards Institute, http://www.ansi.org.

2 also includes an internet-based component for personnel unable to Personal communication with Mr. Luke Serpa, Unities Director, City of attend classroom training.

Clovis, CA, April 8, 2014.

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SWANA’s Presence at ISWA

S

WANA was well-represented at the International Solid Waste Association’s (ISWA) General Assembly and World Congress that took place in Antwerp, Belgium, in September 2015.

SWANA President Michelle Leonard, Executive Director David Biderman, and other staff and members, including several Young Professionals, were among the more than 1,200 attendees at the ISWA event. President Leonard and Biderman were the official US and Canadian representatives at the ISWA World Congress, where ISWA Board members were elected, future ISWA venues were selected, the 2016 budget was approved, and important reports on new ISWA activities were discussed.

The ISWA World Congress included numerous technical sessions, workshops, and tours of nearby industry facilities. One of the best attending sessions featured an astronaut, Jacque Cousteau’s son, and a polar explorer, who provided unique perspectives on how population growth, climate change, and waste disposal are affecting our planet. ISWA also included numerous networking opportunities that allowed SWANA’s

representatives and others to meet with their global counterparts from all of the world.

One of the principal reasons for SWANA's increased participation in this year's ISWA conference was to start promoting the ISWA 2017 conference, which will be held in conjunction with WASTECON in September 2017 in Baltimore. SWANA showed a short video at the ISWA World Congress highlighting SWANA’s expertise and the Baltimore-Washington area. The video was favorably received, and SWANA’s representatives at ISWA spent a substantial amount of time encouraging attendees to come to the ISWA conference in Baltimore. Many attendees from Europe, Latin America, and Asia are excited about the opportunity to attend the ISWA conference in 2017. ISWA has not been in North America for nearly 20 years.

SWANA will be establishing a committee to supervise its preparations for the 2017 ISWA event in Baltimore. If you are interested in serving on this committee or helping to organize the event, please contact Meri Beth Wojtaszek at mwojtaszek@swana.org.

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ADMINISTRATION

Survey of MSW Generation and Disposition in the US The per capita generation of MSW in the US is substantially higher than in countries with nearly the same GDP per capita. BY NICKOLAS J. THEMELIS AND DOLLY SHIN Summary

T

he Columbia 2013 Survey of Waste Generation and Disposition in the US is a continuation of Journal’s State of Garbage in America (SOG) surveys, initiated by BioCycle in 1989.

From 2002 to 2010, BioCycle conducted the State of Garbage in America survey and report with the Earth Engineering Center (EEC) of Columbia University.

The Columbia 2013 Survey of Waste Generation and Disposition in the US compiled and analyzed 2011 data provided by the waste management agencies of the 50 States of the Union. The Survey questionnaire was first reviewed by EPA’s Office of Resource Conservation and Recovery, and their comments were incorporated in the final edition submitted to the states. The Survey showed that in 2011 the US generated a total of 389 million short tons of municipal solid wastes (MSW), corresponding to a per capita generation of 1.3 short tons. Of the total MSW generated, 22.6% was recycled, 6.3% composted, 7.6% used as fuel in waste-to-energy (WTE) power plants, and 63.5% was landfilled.

An interesting finding was that, in comparison to 2008, landfilling decreased by about 20 million tons, while recycling increased by nearly the same amount. An estimated 247 million tons of solid wastes were landfilled in MSW landfills, i.e., 113 million higher than EPA estimate. This difference is believed to be due to several wastestreams that are deposited in MSW landfills but are not included in the EPA definition of MSW, such as packaging of imported goods, automobile shredder residue, ash residues, paper residues from wastewater treatment plants, and some construction and demolition debris. The Columbia Survey considers that all recyclable, compostable, or combustible materials that are discarded in MSW landfills represent a loss of valuable 18 MSW MANAGEMENT

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Figure 1. The hierarchy of waste management

resources and an unnecessary use of land; therefore, they should be included in the national account of waste management.

Introduction All states and municipalities provide waste collection and disposal services to their citizens. However, an accurate account of how much of the MSW is directed to materials or energy recovery facilities is essential for planning and policy decisions. All tonnages in this paper are in short tons (1 metric ton = 1.1 short ton). In the hierarchy of waste management (Figure 1), the highest priority is to reduce the waste generation per person.

However, this metric depends on economic development and culture, as witnessed by the fact that the per capita generation of

MSW in the US is substantially higher than in countries with nearly the same GDP per capita, such as Austria, Switzerland, and the Netherlands. Waste reduction is not within the control of MSW managers who have at their disposal four broad methods: Recycling, composting, thermal treatment with energy recovery, and landfilling. Landfills range from the preferred sanitary landfills to the non-regulated waste dumps that are still used in many parts of the developing world (Figure 1).

Several states have adopted various source reduction programs. For example, Minnesota has an exchange service that connects organizations with unwanted goods to others who may need them (iWasteNot Systems Inc.). Some cities in California,

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ADMINISTRATION

Figure 2. Methods of managing MSW in the 10 EPA Regions in 2011

Iowa, Massachusetts, New York, Washington, and Wisconsin have instituted pay-as-you-throw (PAYT; USEPA 2012). Some of these systems are also called Volume-Based-Waste-Fee (VBWF) programs. For example, the town of Sandwich, MA, has implemented a program whereby citizens have to purchase labeled trash bags at local stores at prices of 24 cents to $1.20 for 8- to 30-gallon bags. This measure resulted in a 42% reduction of MSW to the WTE plant and a 74% increase in the collection of recyclable streams (Abrashkin 2015).

There are four methods of collecting recyclable materials in the US: Curbside collection, drop off, buy-back, and deposit/refund. The collected materials include paper fiber (office paper, newsprints, and cardboards), metals (aluminum cans, ferrous and non-ferrous metals), plastic containers, consumer electronics, and tires. In general, the collected recyclables are transported to material recovery facilities (MRF) or to transfer stations and then to MRF. At the MRF, the recyclables are sorted to marketable streams and a residue that is sent to a WTE, a cement plant, or is landfilled. Reporting of materials treated and marketed by MRF to the state agencies is not uniform.

Also, some homogeneous streams—such as paper, cardboard, and aluminum cans—may go directly to recycling companies to be used as part of their feedstock.

Organic wastes can be broadly divided into two categories: Yard or green wastes (grass clippings, leaves, etc.) and food wastes. Sourceseparated yard wastes are usually processed in open-air windrows to 20 MSW MANAGEMENT

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produce a soil conditioning compost. Food wastes are not usually composted in open-air windrows because they emit unpleasant odors. Therefore, the preferred method is “anaerobic digestion” in dedicated chemical plants or in biodigesters of wastewater treatment plants. A detailed analysis of the present state of composting in the US was published recently in BioCycle (Themelis and Arsova 2015); about 50% of the US yard/green wastes are processed, mostly in open air windrows, while collection and anaerobic digestion of food wastes is less than 10% of the US food wastes.

The 2014 Survey Questionnaire From 2002 to 2010, the EEC of Columbia University conducted, in collaboration with BioCycle journal, BioCycle’s biannual survey of national waste statistics called “State of Garbage in America”. The 2014 EEC survey was based on 2011 data provided by the waste management agency of each state (Shin 2013). The excel-format survey included questions on all means of waste management in the state. The sum of reported MSW recycling, composting, combusting, and landfilling is equal to the total MSW generated.

The recycling section of the survey asked for tonnages of recyclables going to single-stream and dual-stream MRFs, as well as those sent directly to recycling plants. Estimated tonnages of individual recycled commodities were separate questions. Additional questions were on existing PAYT and VBWF programs. The

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composting section asked for municipalities and populations provided with curbside collection of yard and food wastes and number of composting facilities in the state. In the energy recovery section, the survey requested the number of municipalities served by WTE facilities, MSW tonnage processed and gate fee paid, electricity and heat supplied, and tons of metals recovered. The landfill questions were on number of landfills, tons landfilled, gate fee, volume of landfill gas (LFG) generated, and tons of MSW exported to or imported from other states.

State Responses to Survey Nine states, representing 13% of the US population, were not able to participate in the 2013 Columbia survey. For these states, their 2008 Survey data (Themelis and Musche 2014) were used, after adjusting for population growth between 2008 and 2011. The most accurate data reported in the Survey were for MSW disposed in landfills or combusted with energy recovery in WTE plants because trucks in and out of these facilities are weighed and the data are reported to the state. Since there is no reporting requirement for recycling facilities, 10 states could not provide recycling data (AL, GA, IA, ID, IL, IN, MS, NE, TX, and WI). Twenty-six states provided complete data on recycled tonnages of individual commodities. Eight states could not provide information on the number of municipalities providing curbside collection or the number of MRFs in the state. For the few states which did not provide recycling data, the 2008 Survey data were used, adjusted for population growth.

Composting facilities are also not required by states to report processed tonnages. Six states only provided combined total tonnages of yard and food wastes. Most of 21 states reporting composting tonnages provided tons of yard (“green”) waste composted.

Eleven states provided tons of food waste composted while and eight states (AR, DE, KS, KY, NC, ND, RI, and WY), and Washington DC reported that they only compost yard waste. The composting results of the Survey are discussed in a recent BioCycle article (Themelis and Arsova 2015).

Only some states provided the average gate fee for landfills.

Table 1 compares the landfill gate fees of 11 states (2011 data) with the WTE gate fees for the same states in the 2010 BioCycleColumbia survey (2008 data). It can be seen that, on average, WTE Table 1. Landfill and WTE Gate Fees at 11 States States

Landfill Gate Fee

WTE Gate Fee

US$/Ton (2011)

US$/Ton (2008)

Alabama

40

29

Connecticut

57

64

Florida

44

53

Iowa

38

64

Massachusetts

79

69

Minnesota

42

55

New Hampshire

78

68

New Jersey

75

85

New York

46

72

Washington

65

98

Wisconsin

54

51

Average of 11 states

56

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ADMINISTRATION gate fees were a few dollars higher than landfill fees. Thirty-four states reported the number of biogas collecting landfills, and 17 of them provided the total amount of LFG collected.

Results of the Columbia 2014 Survey of 2011 Data National Overview

in the following estimates: • All paper fiber: 34 million tons • All metals: 36.2 million tons • All plastics: 2.3 million tons • Glass: 3.8 million tons The quantity of recycled plastics (2.3 million tons) is a relatively small fraction of the nearly

34 million tons of waste plastics generated in the US annually (EPA 2011). This number is very close to the American Chemistry Council report of 1.82 million tons of recycled nondurable plastics plus the EPA report of 0.39 million tons of recycled durable plastics (EPA 2011, American Chemistry Council 2011).

The Survey showed that in 2011, the United States generated a total of 389 million tons of MSW, and that the per capita generation of MSW was 1.3 tons (1.19 metric tons). Of the MSW generated, 22.7% was recycled, 6.3% composted, 7.6% was combusted with energy recovery at WTE facilities, and 63.5% was landfilled. The amounts of MSW recycled, composted, combusted, and landfilled in each state are shown in Tables 2 and 3. (Tables 2–4 are available online at http://foresternetwork. com/msw-management-magazine/ ms-waste/administration.)

Figure 2 shows the percent disposition of MSW generated with the states divided into the 10 EPA regions. Combustion with energy recovery (WTE) is most prevalent in the East Coast (Regions 1–4), with Region 1 having the highest fraction of MSW disposed by WTE (41%). In the other regions, less than 4%, or none, of the MSW is disposed at WTE facilities. The mid-western regions (Regions 5–8) are still very reliant on landfilling and have the lowest recycling rates.

The West Coast states (Regions 9 and 10), lead in recycling with over 30% rates. Composting activity is highest in Region 6, with Regions 8–10 following closely.

Figure 3 shows how the 50 states compare with regard to fraction of their MSW landfilled.

Recycling of Commodities Twenty-one states and the District of Columbia (total population: 123 million) provided data on the various commodities recycled within the state. Prorating the tonnage of each commodity recycled from MSW in these states (e.g., 13.4 million tons of paper fiber) to the entire US 2011 population resulted 22 MSW MANAGEMENT

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Figure 3. Percent disposition of MSW in the 50 States

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MSW Management Trend in Period 2002–11 The BioCycle-Columbia Surveys of MSW generation over the past decade (Figure 4) show that from 2002 to 2006, the MSW generation increased at about 5-6%; in 2008, there was a 5% decrease and in 2008, to 2011 when there was a slight increase of 0.3%. This pattern roughly follows the US GDP trend over the same period.

When policy makers and businesses are looking for national MSW data and trends, the most cited works are EPA’s “MSW in the US: Fact and Figures” and the past BioCycle-Columbia Surveys. The two reports use different estimating methods and the landfilling numbers vary considerably. (See Table 4 online.) This section discusses the reasons for this difference.

Since 1960, EPA has been using a materials balance method to estimate the amount of different commodities discarded and how they are managed. The generation numbers are derived from data gathered from sources such as industrial associations, major companies, and government (i.e., Department of Commerce). Adjustments are made to reflect imports and exports of goods. In order to determine the amount of MSW generation, EPA assigns lifetimes to various commodities and products. Since food and yard waste data cannot be estimated from materials flow methods, EPA uses data from various sampling and weighing studies.

However, most of the US landfills are not perfectly categorized as MSW-only or as non-MSW landfills. While there are separate C&D, or industrial landfills with permits specifically for non-MSW wastes, many sanitary landfills accept what is called “subtitle D” wastes, which may include wastes of nonmunicipal origin. Therefore, many wastes that are not included in the EPA definition of MSW, e.g. road kill, automobile shredder residue, residues from MRFs, residues from paper-recycling plants, and residential home renovation projects end up in MSW landfills.

The EPA Facts and Figures have been published since 1960 and provide a consistent picture of the trends in MSW management in the US. However, EPA reports consistently underestimate the tonnage landfilled by over 100 million tons.

The difference in landfilling numbers is due to the fact that Columbia Survey considers that all recyclable, compostable, or combustible materials that are discarded in MSW landfills represent a loss of materials or energy, and also unnecessary use of land;

therefore, they should be included in the national accounting of waste management.

The Columbia Survey method is a bottomup approach, where the MSW generation information is provided by state agencies and is added up to generate the national picture. Instead of focusing on how much of the waste generated is MSW or non-MSW, the method relies on how much waste enters in what are supposed to be MSW landfills.

These actual numbers are a more reliable measure, for example, in planning for future allocation of land for landfilling.

The weakness of the Columbia Survey is that, in contrast to WTE and landfilling facilities, there is no national policy, and in many cases no state regulation, for reporting recycling and composting tonnages.

Even when tons of recyclables to MRFs are tracked by the state, they do not include the tonnage of recyclables collected by private haulers and sent directly to plants using recyclable feedstock. However, even with incomplete recycling and composting data, the Columbia Survey provides the only consolidated report of state-by-state waste

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ADMINISTRATION management data. Some of the reasons for the 112-million-ton difference between this Survey and EPA estimates of landfilling are: • Construction and demolition debris that is not acceptable at C&D landfills and non-recycled industrial waste residues end up in MSW landfills. Similarly, wastes produced from residential remodeling projects (e.g., wood, PVC pipes, paint containers, roof tiles) enter the MSW stream.

• Recycling of used cars involves removal of useful and hazardous materials and shredding of the car body. Ferrous and non-ferrous metals are removed by magnetic or eddy current separation.

The remaining “fluff ” is called automotive shredder residue (ASR) and is mostly landfilled in MSW landfills. EPA estimates that annually about 5 million tons of ASR are generated in the US. • Moisture in MSW: Tchobanoglous et al.

(1993) reported the moisture content of various materials in MSW. Excluding the obvious carriers of moisture (food, yard, and wood wastes) the moisture content of other materials in the MSW stream can represent as much as 30 million tons.

• Statistically “invisible” wastes: These include packaging material coming to the US with imported products, illegal goods, etc.

It is interesting to note that, as of 2009, the EPA department that has to estimate the greenhouse gas (GHG) impacts of managing wastes, uses the BioCycle-Columbia data on landfilling.

Conclusions This Survey was based on 2011 data and showed that the principal changes from 2008 were that landfilling decreased by about 20 million tons while recycling increased by nearly the same amount. In contrast to the most advanced nations in Europe and Asia, the US continues to landfill about 63% of its MSW while recycling and composting about 30%. The state of Connecticut is at the top of the waste management “ladder” by landfilling only 7.7% of its MSW. The survey showed that it has become increasingly difficult for the states to collect and compile reliable recycling and composting data, especially since the economic downturn of 2008 has reduced state budgets and resources. For states to sustainably manage waste and plan ahead to accommodate for increasing waste generation, 24 MSW MANAGEMENT

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Figure 4. US MSW generation, 2002–2011; Discussion of the difference between the survey and EPA estimates of MSW generation

timely collection and accurate analysis of recycling and composting data are essential.

The environmental agencies of some states need to develop a systematic data reporting process for all types of waste managing facilities.

This study identified, semi-quantitatively, several types of wastes that, according to the EPA definition, are not considered to be MSW and yet, for lack of other alternatives, are disposed in MSW landfills. Further study is required to quantify the annual generation of these wastes and use this information to devise strategies for reducing landfilling and increasing the recovery of materials and energy from MSW. The authors are grateful to the USEPA Office of Resource Conservation and Recovery for reviewing the Survey questionnaire and making valuable suggestions for improvement. Support of this study by the American Chemistry Council and the SEGUE program of the National Science Foundation is gratefully acknowledged.

References Abrashkin, J. 2015. “Increasing recycling by means of Volume Based Waste Fee.” M.S. thesis for Columbia University.

American Chemistry Council: 2011 United States National Post-Consumer Plastics Bottle Recycling Report, 2011. iWasteNot Systems Inc. (n.d.). About Minnesota Material Exchange. Retrieved January 15, 2013, from www.mnexchange.org.

For related articles: www.mswmanagement.com

Jody, B. and E. Daniels. 2006. End-of-Life Vehicle Recycling: The State of the Art of Resource Recovery from Shredder Residue.

Argonne National Laboratory, Energy Systems Division.

Kaufman, S. M., and N. J. Themelis. 2009.

“Using a Direct Method to Characterize and Measure Flows of Municipal Solid Waste in the United States.” Journal of the Air & Waste Management Association.

December 2009. pp. 1386–90.

Shin D., MS thesis, Columbia University 2013. www.seas.columbia.edu/earth/ wtert/sofos/Dolly_Shin_Thesis.pdf.

Tchobanoglous, G., H. Theisen, and S. Virgil, “Integrated Solid Waste Management,” McGraw Hill (1993).

Themelis, N. J. and L. Arsova, “Calculating Tons to US Composting.” BioCycle. Feb. 2015, No. 2, Vol. 56, No. 2, p. 27.

Themelis, N. and C. Musche. 2014. “Energy and economic value of MSW and nonrecycled plastics.” American Chemistry Council, July 2014.

USEPA. 2012. 2006 PAYT Program. November 15, 2012. www.epa.gov/epawaste/conserve/tools/payt/states/06comm.htm.

USEPA, Facts and Figures, Plastics 2011. www.epa.gov/osw/nonhaz/ municipal/pubs/MSWcharacterization_508_053113_fs.pdf.

Van Haaren, R., N. J. Themelis, N. J., and N. Goldstein. 2010. 17th Nationwide Survey of MSW Management in the US: The State of Garbage in America. BioCycle Journal. October 2010, pp. 16–23. MSW Professor Nickolas J. Themelis is director, and corresponding author. Dolly Shin is a research associate with the Earth Engineering Center, Columbia University, in New York City.

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The Brains of the Outfit— Software for Truck Scale Systems Carolina Software

It is not an either/or choice between human direction or automated controls: both elements complement each other to maximize performance.

BY DANIEL P. DUFFY

E

ven the most sophisticated machine needs direction. The optimum control systems eases the burden of human operators while keeping them in the decision making loop. Truck scales may not be the first machinery that comes to mind when discussing sophisticated controls, but these systems employ some of the most advanced software systems available to the transportation industry.

How Truck Scales Work Truck scales begin with load cells. These mechanisms are the heart of any tuck scale operation whether it’s an in-ground model, or integrated into the truck body. Load cells directly measure the weight of the applied loads. They do this by physically deforming under the resultant pressure. The loads are transmitted to the cells at the points where the cell is directly attached to the truck’s body frame or to the structural framework of an in-ground scale. Scale technology has advanced to the point where onboard truck scales are accurate enough to provide certification for billing from in-motion scales.

The actual measurement of deformation is performed by the transducer located at the heart of the load cell. The load cell itself is constructed of materials with known stress strain characteristics. All materials (metals, plastics, etc.) deform to some degree while subject to a load. Stress is a measure of applied force divided by the cross sectional area of the object being deformed, pounds per square inch (psi) being a typical measurement. The cross section is always perpendicular to the direction of the force.

So, a load applied to the top of a cylinder shaped object at its very center would have a 26 MSW MANAGEMENT

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stress value dependent on the circular cross section of the cylindrical object.

Strain is a measurement of deformation, and compares initial length paralleled with the direction of the applied load with the resultant lengths along the same axis. The same cylinder would deform to a shorter length (compressive strain) than its initial length as a result of the applied load. A load in the opposite direction would tend to pull the cylinder apart, resulting in increased cylinder length (tensile strain). The materials used in the manufacture of loads cells do not permanently deform. After the load is removed, the load cell returns to its original pre-load dimensions.

It is this strain that gets measured by the transducer. Standard transducers include strain gauges connected to the core or frame of the load cell. The strain induced in the gauge alters the cross-sectional width of the strain gauge. As a result, the electromagnetic characteristics (resistivity and frequency) of the gauge are altered. In turn, an electronic signal or electrical current passing through the gauge responds to the gauges new physical characteristics and gets altered proportionally. In addition to this basic type of load cell there are several variations used for different functions.

Vibrating wire load cells utilize a vibrating wire sensor. This consists of a wire

tension mounted between a pair of anchor blocks, one at each end of a cylinder structure. As the main cylinder deforms under applied stress, the distance between the vibrating wire anchors changes, which further changes the vibrating frequency of the tension wires. Initial and changed resonance frequencies are tested by an electromagnetic coil, which in effect “plucks” the wires. A computer in a readout device attached to the load cell via a signal cable translates the frequency resonance change into applied load for purposes of measurement. Having several wires per cell reduces the effects of eccentric loading by averaging the measurements of each wire.

Some load cells utilizing the compression of a working gas or fluid to measure resultant strain. For example, air-pressure load cells measure weight by gauging the increase in air pressure as a result of the applied loads. While this may seem like a less sophisticated approach, better quality air-pressure load cells can measure even minimal weight changes while compensating for environmental factors, like ambient temperature, that can indirectly affect air pressure.

In-ground scales can use a wide variety of load cells including compression cylinders that operate as air pressure load cells, tension linked load cells integrated into heavy-lifting equipment like cranes or pulleys, and general

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VEHICLES purpose S-Type beams. More specialized load cells include single end beams that are side mounted to the framework of floor scales, platform scales, hopper scales, and tanks scales. Instead of being side mounted, double end shear beams are center mounted for measuring loads on heavy-duty truck and railroad scales.

Scales not built into the truck frame itself are classified as in-ground scales. In-ground does not necessarily mean flat or below grade. The term also applies to tank scales, crane scales, and scales attached to pulleys. For the most part, in-ground scales are those scales comprising a sturdy framework over which a deck is laid for trucks to drive on to be weighed. As a safety measure, the more expensive concrete decks (6–8 in. of precast concrete) used by in-ground scales are roughened to prevent skidding. Easier-toinstall flat top steel decks consist of 12-gaugeor-thicker steel plating bolted or welded in place. The underlying frame is designed to confine the load deflection to the frame itself to maximize scale accuracy. To minimize interference with the weight reading by the load cells, the scale frame should have a deflection ratio of at least 1:850.

The in-ground scales that trucks can drive on can either be installed above grade (with approach ramps) or constructed below grade (with the deck flush with the ground surface). High profiles allow for ease of maintenance while low profiles make approach easier. Above-grade scales tend to be temporary, while permanent belowgrade scales are placed in shallow pits. Being at ground surface maximized safety for approaching trucks.

The Function of Scale Software Scale software translates physical deformation into usable data. Its job is to read and interpret the stains induced to the load cells and evaluate this physical change into an accurate weight measure. The software then takes these individual weight readings and provides useful context in the form of reports for the scale operator to interpret the data. This data primarily consists of weight records showing truck serial number, name of driver, time and date of weighing, accumulated totals, etc. Based on this data, the scale software can automatically issue payment tickets to the driver and prepare monthly billing statements to

customers using the scale. More advanced software systems allow for automated truck loading systems and allow for automated truck loading and manage automated truck loading operations. This involves automated control of the actual loading and unloading process.

The hardware systems run by scale software can be extensive. In addition to automated load management systems, the software runs hardcopy printers for priming out reports and issuing load tickets, coordination with the landfill’s management information system, interfacing with radio frequency identification (RFID) chips imbedded in the truck or its load, self-diagnostics that allow for regular calibration of the entire truck scale system, optimizing truck routes and schedules, and higher level administrative reports writing and record keeping.

The point of using scale software to automate the weighing process, reduces—if not completely eliminates—human labor from the operational loop. There would be no need for a scale attendant, and no need for manual updates of truck hauling data.

No need for visual confirmation of driver and truck identify, this is accomplished by use of an RFID chip. Regulation of the truck queue can also be performed by scale software, with it automatically operating traffic signals and sensing truck locations. Built-in security codes prevent fraud. The whole package eliminates human error and reduces operational costs.

The Solid Waste Industry So what does a scale software system have to offer the solid waste industry? Like any other business, a landfill is in business to make money. Landfill operators are continuously faced with increased fuel, equipment, and labor costs. Anything that saves money on the operational budget can give a landfill operator that competitive edge he needs to stay afloat. In addition to the direct cost savings described above, the accurate data recorded by a truck scale system positively affect the rest of the landfill’s operation. Accurate, real-time data of tonnages received and types of loads accepted by the landfill allows the operator to better coordinate disposal and compaction operations out on the working face.

The maximizes in-place density of disposed waste, minimizing he need for daily cover, and delays the need for capital expenditures associated with constructing the next disposal cell.

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In an evermore competitive industry environment, truck scale data can lead to greater customer satisfaction, even as customer demands for quality service and reduced costs continue to increase. Customer communication is improved with automated billing. The software allows for differentiating between residential and commercial customers, ensuring timely pickups, or at least the prompt notification of blocked dumpsters or missed pickups. Route optimization features would lead to more efficient and timely hauling operations while improving driver safety.

And it’s not just customers who are pressuring landfill operators. The local community groups and government officials exert their influence on the landfills. Both can be the source of legal and political accusations.

Both can make demands on an operator that can greatly increase his operating costs over and above those required by legal statutes and regulatory standards. Complete and detailed record keeping is the first line of defense for any landfill operation. That record keeping begins with the data accumulated by, and the reports generated by, scale software systems.

Major Suppliers Air-Weigh produces the LoadMaxx onboard truck scale that combines advanced hardware and software technology that accurately measures and displays steer and drive axle group weights, gross vehicle weights, and net payload weights. Weight information is shown on an in-dash display monitor and can be simultaneously trans-

That record keeping begins with the data accumulated by, and the reports generated by, scale software systems. mitted to the truck’s database. From there it can be used by other vehicle applications or transmitted directly to the truck’s fleet headquarters. The system can be used by refuse vehicles, dump trucks, cement mix-

ers, and other types of trucks. Additional features include two alarm outputs with warning/overweight thresholds, an optional date/time printer, an optional inclinometer, and enhanced self-test diagnostics.

Carolina Software’s WasteWORKS and WasteWIZARD software solutions are the primary transaction processing systems for facilities that utilize scales. This includes landfills, transfer stations, recycling facilities, mulch yards, etc. WasteWORKS is the core product, on which everything else is based. This provides the facility operators with a point-of-sale ticketing interface for processing vehicles, a fully integrated billing module and comprehensive reporting.

WasteWIZARD provides automation and unattended capabilities for the processing of transactions. A vehicle is either automatically scanned with an RFID reader, or a driver is presented with a keypad interface to identify the vehicle and enter additional information about the type of load, etc. The rest of the transaction, including weighing and printing, happens automatically. There are many different combinations of interface solutions and peripheral options available, and these can be customized to provide the

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streamlining transaction processing. The software is highly configurable, so the operator has the ability to toggle program options on and off. This creates a site-specific transaction processing environment where a ticket can be created with the minimum number of steps, while still collecting the critical data required for a complete, billable, reportable transaction.

WasteWORKS has a wide range of tools for built-in (or stock) reports, custom reports, and automating report delivery.

Microsoft’s SQL Reporting Services and Crystal Reports are leveraged for ad-hoc and custom reporting duties, and the WasteWORKS Auto-Email Module allows customers to automate the delivery of reports, tickets, and bills to customers and internal staff.

Mettler Toledo’ DataBridge SS vehicle scale software automates truck scale operations by organizing records, speeding up transactions, simplifying scale operators tasks, and eliminating costly errors. DataBridge can be easily installed on a personal computer that runs on Windows 7 having a minimum 4 GB of RAM, a 2-GHz processor, 10 GB of HDD, video driver support,

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and DVD ROM. Not only does DataBridge reduce scale operator workload, it speeds up transaction time, while reducing errors associated with manual entry systems.

MotionLink provides integrated solutions for managing all vehicle operation associated with waste management facilities including, data, vehicles, drivers, containers, custom work orders, special requests, route planning, and schedule optimization.

The system allows the operator to manage these requests by distributing and completing work without need of a paper trail.

Scheduling resources and optimizing routes and schedules is made possible by advanced algorithms and configurable constraints that leverage system data. The results are work orders that schedule resources along the most optimal routes. The data can be used to extrapolate future needs allowing for accurate demand forecasting, shift planning, and manpower allocations.

To monitor the dynamic optimization of work, routes and schedules the system provides for driver and vehicle tracking and monitoring. This includes real time automatic vehicle location and playback along with vehicle health monitoring to manage

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most appropriate setup for a particular site’s operational needs.

There are many different scenarios where automation can be useful. A facility with two inbound scales and one outbound scale, for example, can dedicate one of the inbound lanes to being an “express” lane.

This minimizes the need for additional manpower (a second weigh master) and allows the existing weigh master to concentrate on the customers who need more attention. WasteWIZARD is also great for after-hours traffic. During the day, a site’s weigh masters can use WasteWORKS to process vehicles, and at the end of the day the weigh master can shut down WasteWORKS and open WasteWIZARD. This provides for automatic, unmanned processing during the night when no weigh master is present.

And WasteWIZARD system works seamlessly with WasteWORKS. Transactions can be started with WasteWIZARD and finish it with WasteWORKS, and vice versa.

WasteWORKS comes with a long list of features, covering almost every operational scenario for a landfill, transfer station, or recycling facility, but the focus continues to be on creating operational efficiency and

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maintenance needs. The loads themselves can be tracked and subject to data capture via ruggedized tablets and RFID readers. The system operates with geo-fences that provide driver behavior alerts and notifications.

Driver notifications can be made with twoway communications (e-mail and SMS text messaging). Overall performance is improve with improved billing accuracy, container, and bid pick up verification via RFID, automated work order completion and verification, comprehensive reports and analytics, and real-time monitoring of performance and productivity. All in all, the end product is useful and actionable business intelligence.

Paradigm Software LLC’s CompuWeigh System is a data management, integrated accounts receivable and aging, truck tracking, transaction, report writing and posting (to external and optional integrated accounting packages), and shift totals management tool. Ease of use is provided by standard user interface that utilizes user controls at the bottom of the page of all edit windows. These controls provide a database interface that allows users to easily search, filter, save, and browse their data.

The search function provides access to specific data relating to the current search field and information based on any field in the database. Filter control allows a user to focus on a particular data type of field (or multiple fields) such as customer zip codes or specific bill cycles. Saving and browsing allows the user to maneuver through the database, moving forward and backward or returning to the starting point within the database with ease.

In addition to user access, the system allows for data management and reporting.

Account Edit allows updates and revisions to data associated with individual customers (company name, address, phone number, types of waste hauled to the site, specific rates, account defaults, accounting limits, and ability to add notices that appear on the scale display screen) allowing each customer to be set up with unique rates and billing configurations. Customer communications are facilitated by the ability to create letters, forms, and envelopes, allowing mail merge directly from within the software. It further helps organize mailers to inform customers of changes operations, rates, etc.

In addition to customer Account Edit, the system allows for the management of a parallel truck form via Truck Edit. This allows the operator to control and track the use of individual vehicles. Truck specs are

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provided including the tare weight. System default criteria can be assigned to particular trucks to speed up their processing at the scale house. Records of truck tare weights can be updated by a simple operation within the system based on a customer defined tare expiration date, requiring trucks to obtain new tare weights at specified intervals. The system can assign truck specific functionality such as default values, assignment of RFID tags, and display notes to inform the driver and system operator of issues associated with that particular truck.

The Transaction Edit window details all information about the transaction as it occurred at the scale house. Within this display are all of the data entry field associated with the transaction being processed.

Modifications can be made (within established parameters and appropriate rights) by the system user. It also provides a signature capture module that displays the driver signature to the system user. Feedback is also provided that ensures that the transaction has been reported to accounting.

Lastly, the Reporting section provides the user with a virtually unlimited number of reporting capabilities where the user can create reports at will. These adhoc reports can be created from any field in the database and allows the user to input selection criterion and sorting for each report. In addition to detailed reports, summary total reports are also available from within the application.

Qv21 Technologies, Inc. produces its LogisticsFramework dispatch/logistics software (which performs scale calculations as a feature) software package with unique features specific to the waste management industry. Its database management capabilities include the ability to track trailer numbers from transfer station or landfills, track and record municipal solid waste tonnage, track transfer station weight contracts, and flag any underweight loads. Demurrage, a charge payable to the owner of the truck in respect of failure to load or discharge the truck within the time agreed, can be entered at the transfer station or landfill. Scale ticket information can be captured in real time without manual inputs, and the ticket entry recorded at the landfill by the driver simultaneously with his dispatcher.

Vulcan On-Board Scales produces a refuse body scale system without mounting brackets designed to work with all refuse bodies that tip to dump. It can also be modified for units that tip only for service.

The scale system measures gross vehicle, net

payload, and individual commercial pickup weights. It comes with the Vulcan V600 meter, 15-inch super-beam end connectors, six lead VSL Vulcoder. The V600 works with existing Vulcan load cells and sensors and can interact with applications that require more than two channels, set points, recording weight information, or operators who wish to mix tractors and trailers. The V600 meter includes a serial interface, which allows communication of data to on-board computers, GPS systems, printers, and other devices. In addition, set point module options provide the ability to trigger events when programmed weigh points are reached.

Cardinal Scale offers one of the most diversified truck scale hardware and software product lines in the industry. An innovator who built the first all steel truck scale, Cardinal makes a wide variety electronic and hydraulic truck scales with concrete, steel, and pit type decks. Operating systems include wireless truck scales for data transmittal to peripheral equipment. Sizes range from models used at standard loading docks to the Yukon off-road scale for heavy-duty mining industry applications.

Their WinVRS weight recording system can be configured for use at power plants, sand and gravel quarries, concrete mix plants, asphalt plants, warehouses, recycling facilities, transfer stations, and landfill operations. Weight records recorded on PCs include vehicle and customer histories, material loads, and driver information. Its file utilities menu allows data export to other applications and files. The WinVRS-TOUCH version includes touch screen capabilities with larger fonts and buttons for convenient touch screen navigation. This high-speed software ensures that truck queues are minimized as it keeps traffic moving in and out of a facility.

Capable of communicating with up to 20 weight indicators, their WinDDE weight software can record measurements and send this data spreadsheets, databases, and automated industrial controls. Using standard serial ports of Ethernet, it can send data to Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Access, Wonderware InTouch, Automation Direct, Lookout Direct, and Rockwell Automation RSView.

Core Computing Solutions Inc. provides EnCORE, a software package designed for billing, route management, and productivity tracking. Combined with eMobile for Android, it provides a system that covers billing, routing, inventory, scales, live dispatching, collections, fleet management,

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paperless DVIR, paperless routes, route performance, and online payments. Since the system can use The Cloud, purchasing and maintaining IT infrastructure is optional.

Their redundant server infrastructure is continuously monitored and updated as hardware ages.

Creative Information Systems, Inc. produces SMSTurbo scale operating software designed to increase scale ticketing, reduce operating costs, and automate the billing process. This system increases transaction accuracy, reduces theft, and loss. Together, these advances result in increased profitability. It can differentiate between MSW and hazardous waste, accurately record specific items received as well as track outgoing materials. It can also handle ticketing for weighted and non-weighted items (measuring them individually, by the yard, etc.), runs daily totals, and warns operators when daily tonnage limits are reached. (This is especially important for landfills with maximum daily tonnage allowances.)

Operational security is provided its ability to restrict access to customers and approved residents according to RFID, permit ID or driver’s license, or can create new customers and provide them access.

Billings is supported by electronic signature capture, bar code reading and touchscreen displays, and the ability to accept payment in multiple forms (cash, check, credit cards, and debit cards). Report writing formats are available for internal operational review and for reporting to local government and regulatory agencies. SMSTurbo offers many different accounting interfaces so that, in many cases, one can use a current accounting solution to save time and money on implementation. CIS also offers an unattended or a remote-attended scale kiosk solutions. In the world of self-service gas stations and banks, the scale house can now be automated as well to increase productivity. The trucker can do the ticket themselves, or a single person can monitor many scale sites or even do the ticket remotely and print the ticket locally saving the cost of having a person at each scale site. SMSTurbo has a solution to completely automate the security, ticketing, reporting, and billing of the scale ticketing process.

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VEHICLES Creative Microsystems Inc. makes the LoadMan LM400 on-board computer for fork-based, commercial refuse trucks. The complete system includes the LoadMan LM400 on-board computer with the Route Assistant application for waste and recycling, LoadMan Load Management back-office software and LoadMan on-board scale technology for accurately weighing loads in motion. The LoadMan LM400 with the Route Assistant application utilizes GPS geocoding or an RFID reader and can be tagged with customer name, service type, commodity code, date and time stamp, bin and net vehicle weight, truck number, and driver. Its Proximity Mode feature uses geodata to show the driver customer pick-ups within a 300-foot radius of the truck’s position. Its management software allows automatic uploading of records to filter, sort, and analyze data.

Fairbanks Scales’ Interact Data Management Software Suite is designed to provide flexibility, data storage, data reporting, and data networking capabilities. This software package is Windows XP, Windows Vista Business, and Windows 7 Professional compatible, and runs on most PCs, including Fairbanks’ new FB3000 Solution Series Instrument. Though designed for truck-weighing applications, it also can be used for railroad track scales for those sites that rail haul waste. Interact is available in three versions with varying levels of data management capabilities, allowing the operator to customize his system.

Infoview Systems Waste Management point-of-sale (POS) solution is designed for use for truck scales located at transfer stations, landfills, compost sites, and material recovery facilities (MRFs). Easily scalable, it can be used by commercial or residential facilities. The software connects to electronic scale indicators to

automatically capture gross and tare weights. The back office module provides invoicing, reporting, and file maintenance capabilities.

It is capable of weighing multiple items (containers, boxes, and trailers); storing tare weights; and setting their expiration dates, price by location or rates. Transactions can be tracked by origin, hauler, customer, or destination. Its POS system can hook directly into other ODBC compliant systems or its own back office module.

The Interface Logic Systems (ILS) ScaleQ Scale Management and Control Systems manage solid waste transactions at landfills and transfer stations in both the commercial and municipal sectors.

Interface Logic Systems was founded in 1986 by a group of weights and measures professionals who recognized the growing need for accurate and efficient data collection and management. ILS management personnel represent over 75 years of combined experience in weighing technology.

ILS Software can process both operator-attended and unattended scale transactions, relating weights to information about the truck, customer, refuse, origin, and destination. ScaleQ can be found in small, independent facilities, as well as multiple-scale and multiple site operations in both the public and private sectors.

A typical configuration will process transactions from multiple transfer stations and a regional landfill, synchronizing the databases with a central administrative office. Regulatory, operational, administrative, and accounting reports can be run by location or with data consolidated from all locations. ILS ScaleQ is available in two versions: ScaleQ Foundation—which is a full-featured application featuring a standard, detailed SQL database—and ScaleQ Exclusive, which supports application-specific customizations for

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unique client-specific requirements, especially for enterprise customers. Both applications feature user-configurable category and text fields, and file and field labels, offering clients flexibility and expandability without the need for custom software development.

Both cash and credit transactions can be processed. When necessary, operators can create non-weighed quantity tickets or add additional quantity items, such as tires or white goods, to a weighed transaction, resulting in a detailed, multi-line ticket showing all items. Automated Vehicle Identification, by means of Radio Frequency ID, Proximity or Barcode Scanners and Driver’s License scanning contribute to improved productivity and profitability, especially in high-volume facilities. ScaleQ may be interfaced with Radiation Detection equipment to suspend transactions and alert operators that inspection and approval is required. In unattended applications, ScaleQ can be configured to send SMS (text) and e-mail messages to supervisors when their involvement is required.

Digital Signature Capture, Video Image Capture, and Biometric Identification offer an enhanced level of fraud protection.

Loadman manufactures load cell sensors that can be installed on most commercial vehicles from 25-yard refuse trucks to 400ton mine dumps. They operate at 99% accuracy and provide their information to drivers on in-cab computer monitors and display screens. And this is a complete set of driving weight information including axle loads and payloads for both trucks and trailers.

Combined with Loadman Load Management Software, Loadman’s On-Board Scales fully automate the waste measurement and tracking process. The LoadMan solution automates measurement of even individual carts and bins, with wireless connectivity provided for both GSM cell modems and Bluetooth. Data management features allow for filtering, analysis, and reporting of all waste hauling activities. These data include average weight and density per waste customer, over and under loaded trucks, and diversion rate from disposal to recycling and composting.

Since the 1960s, SI Onboard/Vishay Precision Group has manufactured on-board weighing systems for the forestry, waste management, aircraft, and aggregate markets. Acquisitions of several scale companies (Lodec, Evergreen Weigh, Allegheny, and Revere) expanded their product line into aircraft, bucket loader, and lift truck scales and diversified their technology base, especially with Revere load cell technology. These are programmable systems with overload set points and alarms. These systems are also capable of comprehensive self-tests and diagnostics, while minimizing the need for driver interaction.

Soft-Pak, Inc. NTEP/CTEP certified Scale Management allows for transactional control at any scale site. Scale Management is available from the Cloud so there is no need for local servers, just a wireless connection. This allows landfills and transfer stations to quickly and inexpensively deploy this system. Scale Management is certified by the National Conference of Weights and Measures and will interface to most any vehicle scale and indicator. It can allow for both centralized pricing, credit, and taxation control while integrating with third-party billing systems. A unique report feature allows for LEED reporting for sustainable green building reports.

Trux Route Management Systems offers the TRUX suite of waste management software. This application is specifically designed for the waste hauling industry and includes functions for routings, dispatch, billing, accounts receivable, operations, account management, financial analysis, and operational reporting. TRUX WeightIT handles ticketing, billing, and material reporting for landfills,

transfer stations, and MRFs. It can be installed as a standalone software package or integrated with TRUX Haul-IT. It provides ticket processing for both inbound and outbound transactions and can be set up to capture key data points. Weight-IT is capable of processing multiple materials per ticket for split commodity loads (such as those delivered to clean MRFs). It can issue alerts based on geography, customer, material, contract, or facility constraints while tracking payment and cash transactions. Direct integration with hardware such as stationary scales, cash drawers, signature pads, gates, and cameras is part of the installation, allowing for indirect control of unattended stations.

Since 1985, WAM Software, Inc. has been providing billing and operational software along with technical support to the waste hauling industry. Their flagship software package, WAM-Hauler, is used for residential, commercial, rolloff, and port-o-let shipping. Its onekey billing feature saves considerable man-hours devoted to billing no matter what the billing cycle is. It can sum up customer data in an integrated report format, and includes functions for dispatching, route profitability analysis, basic accounting, and customer service communication. A recent (2002) upgrade is Easy Bill and Route designed for small haulers working residential and commercial routes. Again, this offers both simplicity and time savings. Its partner software, WAM-Scale provides full functionality to transfer station and landfill scale operations. It prints incoming and outgoing tickets, bills charge accounts, and provides summary reports. MSW Daniel P. Duffy, P.E., writes frequently on the topics of landfills and the environment.

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PROCESSING

MWP: Do You Doggie-Paddle to It or Swim Free Style?

BY BOB BRICKNER

iStock/stevecoleimages

Plunging the waste processing pieces into the pool (Part 4 of 4)

Introduction

S

ome probably hoped this series of articles was a trilogy. But, as in Hollywood and Washington DC, every next day is an opportunity to change what you did and said yesterday.

Therefore, for those just getting up with the sun, the background is as follows: In Part 1, “If At End of A Diving Board. . .Should You Take the Next Step?”, we raised the question of how to increase materials recovery rates and at what cost.

Part 2, “Drowning in Non-Collected Recyclables. . .Where’s the Life Vest?”, presented cost data from residential waste collection and the current cost/ton for several municipal residential curbside waste diversion programs.

Part 3, “Let’s Get Honest. . .MWP Has a Place in the Big Pond With All the Alligators!”, reviewed the author’s identify criteria to consider in evaluating the place where a mixed waste processing facility (MWPF) for recovering more materials from residential municipal solid waste (MSW) stream may be applicable.

This is the fourth article in the series. I will now pull the high points of the three previous articles together and include a look at the current state of MWFP around the country, and provide a few points of comparison of a hypothetical community: (1) using a single-stream materials recovery facility (MRF) and landfilling the rest, versus (2) a MWPF (with a “one-bin” collection program) and 36 MSW MANAGEMENT

36-41MS1511_PROCESS.indd 36

landfilling the non-marketable materials.

Based on published information earlier in the 2015 calendar year, several interesting written or stated factoids, and the authors response to each, needs to be kept in perspective as the reader considers the information in this article: 1. According to the EPA June 2015 annual waste summary report, in 2013 Americans continued to generate MSW, and the percent recycled was generally flatlining at 34%. (FYI: This counts both recycled materials and a healthy percentage of grass/yard waste.)

Thus, the 34% is not exactly our trash-based recyclables materials per-se . . . that number is about 25% of the total.

2. As noted in an Earth Day-related press release issued April 2015 by the National Waste and Recycling Association, the Executive Director of the NWRA notes that many interviewers (reporters, that is) thought that all of the services associated with recycling materials from our MSW was free. I ask: Under what rock in the Hudson River Valley have these reporter folks been sleeping?

3. Who, if anyone, is really making money serving the “recycling” industry?

4. Does the free enterprise system have a place anymore in the solid waste field, or are the citizens and communities just another financial piggybank available to be used to assure stockholders of companies their “guaranteed” returns?

So let me provide an opinion on each of those four issues.

[ NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2015 ]

9/29/15 10:47 AM

First: EPA and the Statistics—Are We Stuck in a Holding Pattern on Recycling Percentages?

It is not surprising to the author that we appear to be stuck. The basic backbone of the industry is not “divine intervention,” but rather “human intervention.” Except for the process of “extracting taxes”, when you set up a system that is fully dependent on people doing something the way the government wants them to do it, it cannot be sustained. People have short memories. In today’s world, we are very busy folks. Therefore, the constant drumbeat of “you need to recycle this, and you need to recycle that,” is often a lost message when too many people don’t read the newspaper or watch TV news. There is so much unwanted “junk mail” delivered to homes these days, even positive recycling-based flyers and TV-paid advocacy messages become lost among the food and restroom breaks between some TV show or computer game.

While the former elementary school children that were indoctrinated with “pro-recycling” messages are now the millenniums, the fast-paced live style of their majority is, in my opinion, not focused on differentiating the actual trash from the potential recyclables. Or if it is, maybe by now, and after 20 years of hearing “recycle, recycle”, they feel that more of the generated waste, if not all, must be of a recyclable nature by now. This just adds to the non-recyclables in the recycling carts, and the frustration and higher costs for the actuals MRF processors.

Let’s think about that situation. The MRF operators complain about all the junk and non-recyclables in the recycling carts. But that, and more, is specifically the expected feedstock for the MWPF operator who has no such complaints! Imagine, a world without complaints—so boring, eh?

Second: Recycling Is Free . . . Isn’t it?

The encounter of Sharon Kneiss of NWRA with the multitude of press reporters a few short months ago is solid evidence of one of our industry problems. We “of the industry” know the facts, but the other 300 million or so Americans outside the “inner circle” do not. Maybe in the ninth grade high school math class, after learning about recycling and the environment for eight years, the students should have a lesson on “Recycling Economics.” Too often, the acclaimed benefits of many programs are being taught in schools and even appearing as case studies in the national solid waste journals for the pleasure of us older “students-of-waste,” and contain no cost or economic data to put such stories into proper perspective. It thus oftentimes becomes a story of righteousness and let’s feel good, without the balance of costs and relative economics to allow for appropriate consideration into the decision-making process.

Third: Who—If Anyone—Is Really Making Money Serving the “Recycling” Industry?

The past decade of ups and downs in the value of recyclables has proved speculative to some, others that share revenues to be embarrassed at their meager pickings, and many more to “lose their shirts.”

If you were recycling textiles, that later situational phrase might be alright! But for the majority of municipalities and private companies, the processing of “deemed to be recyclable materials” as well as the market value if you were fortune enough to process and market some commodities, was as speculative as buying gold and silver based on a TV commercial.

However, before you become tearful, let’s consider a few other integral scenarios that might “make your day.” First, the equipment ven-

dors that sell recycling bins and carts, or recyclables collection vehicles, are happy. The end markets going up or down is incidental, and we all need a good bin or cart within which to set out our recyclables, and trucks to collect same. Second, since the waste companies that actually collect the recyclables can charge what they deem appropriate, subscription or procurement service be as it may, continue to provide a business service-for-charge. So the recyclables collector should be isolated from end market value changes and be making money. But the readers know the next sentence must tweak that thought to note that the real issue is: What about the collector that is also the owner and/ or operator of the MRF?… As the StarKist Tuna commercial used to say, “Sorry Charlie!”, a word of caution is added to a collection-only venture as a risk associated with materials market values is very problematic at this time although highly profitable in the past.

Fourth: Are Recycling Entrepreneurs and Risk-Takers in This Sector of the Industry a Dying Breed?

It used to be that I told my public-sector clients that they were not inherent risk takers and their citizens were not Las Vegas slot machines. They were willing to pay the private sector for assuming broad project responsibilities, including facility capital and operating costs. But the wild card with the final economics has always been, and still is, the value associated with the myriad of recovered materials streams produced at a MRF. Not too long ago, the average market value was $150 per ton processed through a MRF. Now, the average value might be $80–90 per ton, depending upon location, cleanliness of product, and one’s market connections.

Another recent economic hit mainly associated with single-stream MRFs is the unexpectedly high residue rate as more trash and nonrecyclables are put into recycling carts. Thus the processed tons might be up, but the percentage of marketable product is being reduced and the net market value per ton processed through the MRF lowered.

Additionally, this situation creates higher residue disposal costs than what might otherwise have been expected by the operator or responsible party, depending upon the business relationship.

Thus, times are a-changing, and the private sector desiring to shift risks and costs back to the public sector.

. . . And Behind Door No. 1 We Have?

In the June 9, 2015, edition of Resource Recycling, a summary of comments from Waste Expo in Las Vegas were presented that included Waste Management CEO David Steiner’s, and Waste Connections CEO Ron Mittelstaedt’s comments below.

It’s the single-stream, high-volume residential stream that’s completely broken,” stated Steiner. “We all screwed it up; this is a crisis.

Never have we had prices as down as they are today.”

Mittelstaedt said processing costs today average $80–100 per ton for his company, despite the fact that households typically only see a $2 recycling fee per month. Disposal, meanwhile, costs Waste Connections between $30 and $40 per ton, and residents pay about $25 a month for the service.

With all this gloom and despair about the recycling industry in its current state, maybe these leaders of the industry should serious consider technology options to improve both recovery rates and costs, instead of just giving the impression that the sky is falling. After all, don’t these same firms actually create the service prices they charge, and negotiate the deals they enter into? Nobody is twisting their arms when I last looked across the array of attendees at a pre-proposal meeting, or even a contract negotiation table. With any municipal RFB or RFP, [ www.mswmanagement.com ] MSW MANAGEMENT

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PROCESSING companies are afforded the opportunity to bid or propose, they are not mandated to respond; and an RFP process provides plenty of leeway for a sound competitive proposal with justifiable and cost-effective alternatives.

A Current Glimpse at the MRF Scene in the US Either dual-stream or single-stream MRFs have been used in the US for more than 20 years. They serve a purpose, and the history is well known. There are more than 600 specific MRFs around the US. Numerous case studies and opportunities to tour and watch them operate is part of the accepted industry recycling lure. However, as even EPA reports, recycling rates are stagnating. Over the past two years, the accelerated growth of using larger single-stream recycling carts, coupled with a somewhat “confused or ambitious” citizenry, has created a plethora of stories and incidents of “garbaged-recyclables” [Note: possibly a new industry phase for future use]. Additionally, the “current” lower prices for some key recovered commodities has also set off the public waste company’s ire as the primary service providers. So as I have occasionally recently asked the audiences at conferences: Are the old MRFs now becoming the haven for feeding of the US mixed wastestream?

If the citizenry keeps putting waste materials into recycling bins that they “hope for markets,” maybe the industry should just make it easier for all, and just process all of that mixed waste materials and use American ingenuity to create markets and/or products out of all of these discards. Sorry, I almost forgot, we have! But making fuels and energy out of the discards does not set well with some industry folks and political agendas, and thus we continue to fill landfills with millions of tons of “residue and non-recyclables” based on future dreams of magic pills and future recycling innovations. Rip Van Winkle would be very pleased with his long sleep and not having missed much in our industry in many regards.

So, what is the problem associated with today’s recycling programs? A list of potential issues in the summer of 2015 that comes to mind could include one or all of the following:

• EPA’s published annual recycling numbers are flat.

• States keep increasing recycling goals/ mandates.

• There’s too much garbage in single-stream recyclables.

• Too many recyclables are being put in the garbage carts.

• Citizens’ need to be continually educated increases costs.

• Recyclables collection costs are very expensive.

• Recyclable material markets are volatile (currently low).

• Reality needs confronted by all: Recycling is not free!

• Corporate “agendas” are everywhere, confusing the decision-makers.

• Some are hoping for a better mousetrap with the MWPF Alternative.

Thus, as well employed “the same-old,” Scenario 1 establishes a baseline with an approximate setout of the level of recyclable recovery, along with materials recovery at a single-stream MRF. Alternatively, Scenario 2 considers the use of a complete “one-cart (bin)-for-all” MWPF system. It is important for clarification that this collection system is one cart for all trash and recyclable materials, and exclusive of yard waste, where such is collected separately or from curbside ditches, for example. This is an important clarity, as the “negative and lessobjective interests” usually want to portray that one-bin programs would have all of the yard waste put in with the trash/recyclables and this just adds more organics into this messy situation. But this is not part of the programs that are being proposed by MWPF vendors around the country. [Several tables illustrating and comparing the scenarios can be found in Part 3 at http://foresternetwork.com/?p=27946.]

Thus, the “one-cart (bin)-for-all” MWPF system assumes the trash, plus the recyclables, are part of the curbside collection regime, and a one truck collection system is used. It is acknowledged that certain food waste and limited yard debris might still find its way into the combined residential MSW stream as a mixed organics component, and this

feedstock is incorporated into the design capability of the modern MWPF. As noted earlier, options that are just MRF-based are subject to significant human decision-making and intervention. Once the home owners decide what quantity and type of recyclables are placed in their carts for curbside collection, no other “diversion ability” enters into the program. However, with a MWPF, the entire residential MSW stream is subject to a series of mechanical separations with only human quality control (QC) review after processing.

With the MWPF, 100% of the residential generators wastestream materials is subject to inspection and potential separation and recovery if appropriate as a recycled material. Thus, all of the home owners are both feedstock generators and indirect participants in having all their residential MSW streams undergo a series of recovery steps for identifying, separating and aggregating recyclable materials for marketing.

As the Sustainability Manager for the City of Indianapolis, IN, noted, with the MWPF the city would have 100% household participation in their MWPF program now being developed by Covanta.

All MRFs and MWPFs have an inherent efficiency of recovery, thus not all the recyclable material is actually recovered. Additionally, the age of the MRF and equipment available and utilized at that time will also impact recovery rates and thus residue rates.

The modern and new automated systems (both MRFs and MWPFs) generally have a very high efficiency, and many equipment vendors are guaranteeing these recovery percentages, although they are commonly not published due to competitive advantage and confidentiality agreements between equipment vendors and their private customers.

So Why Consider Building a MWPF? The main reason to build a MWPF is to improve the quantity of overall recyclables separated and marketed in the region covered by the program (that is, increase landfill diversion). Interestingly, for many communities

Table 1. Estimated MRF & MWPF Recovery Rates and Landfilled Quantities Assumed Tons Per Year Generated (1)

Tons Actually Processed Per Year (2)

Tons Recovered and Marketed Per Year

Tons Per Year Not Recovered, Required to Be Landfilled

Tons Requiring Landfilled, 20-Year Period

CY of Landfill Capacity Saved 20 Years, Versus Baseline (3)

% Less Landfill Space Used During 20 Years Versus Baseline

1: Baseline “MRF” Only

200,000

50,000

45,000

155,000

3,100,000

NA

NA

2: The “One Bin” MWPF for MSW and Recyclables

200,000

200,000

100,000

100,000

2,000,000

1,466,667

35.5%

Scenario

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that have implemented single-stream recycling programs, they have not seemed to have their net program costs as a primary concern!

Oftentimes, they don’t even publically present their net recycling and net landfilling costs. So the average citizen may not be aware of their costs, and are rather just presented diversion statistics. Cost information should be more forthcoming and be based on evaluating their competitive costs per ton when looking at the entire system costs including collection, which is, after all, part of the system. Unfortunately, it has become a “diversion chase” and not a full cost disclosure concern, in too many cases.

Ironically, when looking objectively at all of the program solid waste management costs, realizing that collection is typically 65% of the overall cost, a MWPF could potentially be built at a more competitive cost than a new MRF, or the current contracted collection/MRF processing economics, and lead to a significant reduction in the amount of waste

For related articles: www.mswmanagement.com

going to a landfill, thus increasing diversion and reducing landfill costs.

In this regard, Table 1 has been compiled from a theoretical community generating 200,000 TPY of MSW (excluding Yard Waste quantities) to illustrate the projected increased tonnages that are forecast to be delivered, recovered for recycling, and not landfilled from each of the two. It is important to note that all of the non-recovered materials indicted in Table 1 are assumed to be landfilled at this time. Thus, the additional benefits of the back-end recovery at a MWPF from an anaerobic digestor (AD) system or a WTE plant, for example, like the WTE in Indianapolis and the AD system proposed in Montgomery, AL, are not included as diversion benefits in this review.

To illustrate this higher “Diversion Rate” and landfill abatement issue, a 20-year summary of the key throughput and performance parameters for the two options described in this article are summarized in Table 1.

1. Trash plus recyclables only; not yard waste 2. Assumed 25% of MSW placed in recyclables carts 3. Assumes in-place density average of 1,500 pounds per cubic yard

In addition to the costs estimated, there are also certain other cost benefits that are expected to accrue based on either the “onecart-for-all” collection system or reduced usage of the landfill. These potential cost saving areas, when looking at a fully integrated system, are identified as follows: • Reduced overall direct collection costs (single collection system versus two services) • Less collection truck O&M as dumping on concrete versus landfill • Quicker unloading time with dumping at MWPF versus landfill • Reduced landfill usage • Reduced waste hauling costs to landfill • Potential elimination of transfer station (if one exists) • Delay of landfill closure-post closure costs • Delay of landfill cells construction • Reduction in landfill gas generation • Reduction in leachate generation (potential for less cell space open)

One-Cart-For-All and the Potential for Significant Savings on City Collection Costs Waste collection costs are almost 65% of the overall waste management costs for a

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PROCESSING community. Therefore, the efficacy of this system, and the purposes to which it is design and equipment expensed becomes critical to the overall budget for the services rendered. Over the years, many different types of collection vehicles and materials to be collected have been decided to be in the best interest of the community and the number and costs of collection systems, and trucks on the road within neighborhoods, has increased.

One collection cost saving measure could be associated with the analysis of the efficiency and operation of a typical Automated SideLoader (ASL) fleet load size. During a recent detailed municipal waste fleet review, GBB’s analysis of trash load sizes found that the all of the ASL’s averaged 11-ton loads approximately 50% of the time. Of this, truck loads above the average, 50% of the loads are 11 to 13 tons and the other half were between 9 and 11 tons.

The analysis shows that the ASL trucks have the weight capacity with their two loads to handle a single MSW wastestream. Also, it should be pointed out that MWPFs have not had operational issues with processing of compacted loads affecting their ability to separate materials. Therefore, the compaction ratio for the trucks would not be expected to hinder load size and customer performance.

While the total collection weight does not seem to be an issue, a detailed study at the household level will be needed to determine if cart size, number of routes, or other adjustments would need to be made at the curb. The actual setout situation would demand additional review and significant generators may need two carts for the MSW, which is actually the number most homeowners have now with a trash cart and a recycling cart.

A decade ago there would have been a better argument that there is not sufficient volume in a 95-gallon cart to hold a single combined waste stream. However, the push has been to have manufacturers reduce their packaging material, and this, in part, has shown contributing to the downward trend of recyclable volumes along with increasing use of electronics reducing paper volumes. If needed, large cardboard accumulations would need to be broken down to be set inside the cart as ASL truck styles, for example, do not allows for material to be conveniently hand loaded.

In summary, the route times spent collecting may not increase as the ASL trucks would still service one cart per household like they typically do for trash now. However, collection costs may slightly increase if the location of a potential MWPF, as disposal distance, could increase from that mileage to the county landfill. By adding both the MSW and recyclables streams together, which is a key consideration with a MWPF, the community would eliminate the need for the separate recyclables collection service, which can be quite expensive.

site costs about $8 million.)

• Design at 185,000 TPY by BHS (equipment costs about $15 million) • BHS Process Guarantee is a minimum of 30 tons per hour (TPH).

(But Infinitus anticipates it can do 35 TPH.)

• O&M Subcontract with ZWE for 10 years • IREP MWPF Acceptance test dates: May 5–9, 2014 • Recyclables from this Infinitus project include: mixed paper, OCC, tin/steel cans, aluminum cans, scrap metal, HDPE (natural and colored), LDPE (film plastic), PET, and mixed plastics and aseptic containers.

Athens Disposal Project in Sun Valley, CA (Los Angeles Area) • Privately owned/operated project: opened October 12, 2014.

• MWPF = 1,500 TPD (300,000 TPY).

• 80,000-square-foot building with 200-kW rooftop solar • 70-TPH BHS equipment processing and recovery system • Capital price est. $50 million County of Santa Barbara, CA, Project • Developer selected for design, build, and operation was Mustang Renewable Power Ventures LLC. • MWPF = 800 TPD (250,000 TPY) • Est. 90,000 TPY of recyclable materials (36%) • AD Facility = 73,600 TPY (from MWPF and source-separated organics) • Landfill now expected to last until 2036, extending closing from 2026.

• Currently in the EIR Review Monterey, CA, Regional Waste Management District • Current Disposal Fee is $51.75 per ton for district waste.

• Planned/evaluated MRF improvement plan for 6 years • RFP issued for new MWPF: combination facility (2 lines at 40 TPH) • 80,000 TPY of mixed waste and 16,000 TPY of single-stream recyclables • 70,000 TPY C&D Line • Expected Diversion Rate = 65–68%.

• Selected equipment: BHS ($13 million for the 2 lines) • Expected full operation in August 2016.

As Sargent Jack Webb, from the TV show Dragnet, used to say: “Just the facts ma’am.” The following overview brings the reader up to date on several MWPF projects/procurements that might be of interest.

Developer: Covanta (Advanced Recycling Center) Project in City of Indianapolis, IN • Capital investment = $45 million by Covanta • MWPF feedstock = residential MSW+ (est. 250,000 TPY) • Produce: recyclables (claim 80–90% recovery of paper, cardboard, plastics, and metals); remaining <1 inch fines to landfill and the residue as WTE feedstock • Technology: Van Dyk Recycling Solutions = 45–50 TPH. • On 4/6/15, court judgment against two paper companies + a private citizen who sued the City

Infinitus Project: Montgomery, AL, Facility • “Waste Feedstock Supply Agreement,” dated 6/4/13 between the Company and Solid Waste Disposal Authority of the City of Montgomery (MSWDA). “Direct Payment Agreement,” dated 6/1/13 and signed between the City, MSWDA, and the Trustee for 25 years: $233,333 per month, which equals the minimum tip fee payments.

• The initial tip fee of $28 per ton and supply of a minimum of 100,000 tons per year (TPY) • 82,000-square-foot facility built on 14.5 acres (Building costs and

Van der Linde Recycling Inc., Troy, VA • Privately owned and operated (MSW since November 2009) • Has 400-TPD MWPF and a 400-TPD C&D system.

• Processes MSW and S-S; looking to add AD to RNG in future.

• Building 18,000 square feet with pre-sort off floor and initial conveyor • Principal recovery equipment • McCloskey Bag Breaker: Trommel Screen • Machinex OCC screen Sherbrooke OEM fiber screen

Overview of Current MWPF Projects

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• BloApCo Air Fans suction of film plastics and other items for QC • CP (MSS optical sorter) for three-grade plastic separation Emerald Coast Utility Authority/Escambia County, FL, MWPF Project • Emerald Coast Utility Authority (ECUA) collects 20,000 TPY of SSR, and Escambia County Landfill receiving 270,000 TPY. • RFQ (developed in part by GBB) issued on 11/18/2014; qualifications received 12/18/2014.

• Project: to design, permit, finance, construct, and operate new MWPF. MWPF processing requirement is 250,000 TPY. • Selected Developer: Mustang Renewable Power Ventures approved 6/25/2015 for negotiations.

• Tipping fee proposed: $42 per ton • Mustang’s proposed operator: Sims Recycling • Mustang’s proposed equipment: Van Dyk New Providence, Bahamas • First state-of-the-art MWPF in the Caribbean Islands • Selected developer: Renew Bahamas.

• Location: adjacent to New Providence landfill.

• Two lines at 40 TPH (80-TPH system): first line installed • Began operations May 28, 2015 • Equipment supplier: Machinex

Summary of Review and Potential Feasibility of a MWPF This article attempts to put in perspective an opportunity of potentially changing the current solid waste management system. As part

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of any evaluation, it is important to make sure that there is a clear understanding of the actual costs of the current program. The author knows that it is hard to be exact when discussing such a far-reaching system makeover. A detailed review of all costs centers for potential savings and/or reconfiguration should be undertaken if the concept of a MWPF advances to the stage of a feasibility study. As with Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz, continuing to pull strings and ask probing questions, to challenge the status quo, will expose it for what it is!

Finally, there are other benefits that could potentially accrue from the implementation of a MWPF including: • Reduced GHG emissions produced in the region from the recycling, versus continued burial, of the waste in the county landfill; • Reduced collection trucks—less wear and tear on city and county roadways, increased safety, and less dependence on fossil fuels; • Convenience—no more homeowner separation of recyclables, or items thought to be recyclable; • Only one waste cart set out to deal with, which increases homeowners space and trips to the curb; • Less waste going into the landfill extended the life of the very strategically located site; • Achieving a higher level of recycling with minimal public relations and 100% participation in the program; and • Possibility of MWPF acting as a catalyst for a shared collection service plan between regional participants and act as one entity achieving economy-of-scale benefits and further reducing overall costs. MSW Bob Brickner is the Executive Vice President at Gershman, Brickner & Bratton Inc. in Fairfax VA.

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Central Newfoundland Waste Management, in collaboration with the Machinex Group

TECHNOLOGY

Brand new, state-of-the-art Materials Recovery Facility

Advanced Materials Recovery Is this the next step towards achieving zero waste?

M

aterials Recovery Facilities (MRFs) continue to become larger and more complex with more unit processes performed by sophisticated equipment employing advanced technologies. Understanding this trend requires a brief look at the history of materials recovery, where the industry is today, and what remains in the waste disposal stream.

Waste reduction and recycling programs have been an important part of almost every solid waste system throughout the country for the last 30 years. Some communities have achieved diversion and recycling rates of over 60%, but the national average hovers around 35%. Although some jurisdictions will continue to experience increased diversion and recycling as their existing programs and systems mature, many others are looking for the next step towards achieving higher rates.

Municipalities that are looking for ways to increase recycling rates are considering mixed-waste processing in an Advanced MRF, or â&#x20AC;&#x153;dirtyâ&#x20AC;? MRF as they are often called. With proper management, equipment systems and materials selections, mixed-waste process42 MSW MANAGEMENT

42-47MS1511_MRF.indd 42

BY JAMES R. MILLER

ing can produce recovered goods of high quality that can be sold at the upper end of the price scale on the increasingly competitive global commodity markets. The information and data from existing MRFs presented in this article will provide insight on increasing recovery through mixed-waste processing using Advanced Materials Recovery technologies.

Why Consider an Advanced MRF? Most communities have instituted curbside collection of commingled recyclable materials from residences. These collection programs are mature and generally well supported by a high percentage of households that participate. In addition, MRFs that process residential commingled wastestreams typically recover very high percentages of the recyclable materials.

Once collection and processing of the residential commingled wastestream was well established, the next step for some municipalities and processors was to collect and process source-separated recyclable materials from commercial and institutional customers. Often,

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these select wastestreams could be processed along with the residential materials with little or no modifications to the processing systems.

However, in many locations providing separate commercial and institutional routing to generate loads that contain more recyclables has limits due to costs and logistics. As a result of this and the sheer nature and volume of the commercial and institutional wastestreams, many recyclable materials remain.

Other efforts to boost recovery have been the implementation of residential green waste collection programs and composting of the collected materials. Measurable gains have also come from processing of construction and demolition debris.

Despite these historic gains, there is continuing pressure from many different levels to increase the amount of recyclables and divert more from landfill. Most notable are the new state and local regulations and/ or policies aimed at setting higher recycling and diversion goals.

Recently, California passed new laws that will lead to a 75% statewide recycling goal by 2020. A key element of this legislation requires local jurisdictions to establish recycling programs for commercial and multi-family generators. The city of Seattle approved a policy to achieve a 70% recycling rate by 2022. Several other communities throughout the country have adopted “zero waste” plans with the goal to eliminate landfill disposal.

Another factor influencing the desire to increase mixed-waste processing is that landfills are significant contributors to greenhouse gas emissions. Another very important consideration is the fact that solid waste is a resource, and we should strive to reduce, reuse, recycle, compost, and recover energy before considering disposal.

These driving factors are ever pressing, and legislators and policy

makers will not be deterred from passing regulations and policies that call for higher recovery rates. In order to satisfy these demands, increased processing of the mixed commercial, multifamily, and institutional wastestreams is imperative.

What Is Left to Recover?

Within the remaining wastestream, the mixed commercial, multifamily, and institutional wastestreams contain significant quantities of recyclable and organic materials, specifically food waste that can be composted or converted to energy through anaerobic digestion.

Additionally, materials such as wood and mixed plastics can be recovered for thermal conversion, and there are beneficial uses for many other construction and demolition (C&D) wastes.

Waste composition studies from several communities verify this. In Seattle, a comprehensive waste characterization study was performed in 2010 that revealed their commercial wastestream contained between 25% and 30% of marketable commodities. The list includes traditional “readily recyclable” materials such as OCC, mixed paper, HDPE, PET, mixed plastics (such as rigids and film), aluminum, and ferrous and non-ferrous metals. In addition to these marketable commodities, another 20% of the wastestream is comprised of food waste and other organics.

This is not a unique case. A comprehensive waste composition study for commercial wastestreams in northern California showed their commercial wastestream contained about 30–35% of various marketable commodities. The mixed organic stream (food and green waste) was estimated to be about 32%.

In addition, a waste composition study conducted for the Fraser Valley Regional Waste District located east of Vancouver, BC, showed that their commercial/institutional wastestream is comprised of approximately 25% marketable commodities, and 21% food wastes and compostable mixed organics.

The data sighted from these studies provide evidence of the potential to recover more recyclables from the commercial, institutional, and multifamily wastestreams. Considering the challenges with establishing consistent and reliable source separation collection programs for these generators, advanced mixed-waste materials recovery may be the best means for capturing these recyclable goods.

Programs to collect food waste from restaurants and grocery stores can play a role in reducing the amount of organics disposed into landfills, but the reality is that most food waste is embedded in the mixed wastestream and is not present in concentrated forms.

Separating the food waste for composting or anaerobic digestion requires advanced systems and processes.

After separation of the recyclables and organics in an advanced MRF, a predominantly dry residual wastestream remains. Where markets exist, this residual stream—which consists mainly of plastics and fibers—can be converted to engineered fuel.

How Effective Are Advanced MRFs in Recovering Recyclables From Mixed Wastestreams?

MRFs that process source-separated wastes are designed to recover targeted recyclable materials that may comprise more than 90% of the incoming stream. In contrast, mixed-waste systems are required to process much larger quantities of materials to recover those same targeted recyclables, but also organics, inerts, and possibly dry residuals for engineered fuel.

To meet these demands, Advanced MRFs are designed with high-throughput, robust screening equipment to segregate materials, 44 MSW MANAGEMENT

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Within the remaining wastestream, the mixed commercial, multifamily, and institutional wastestreams contain significant quantities of recyclable and organic materials.

split into three streams: wet, dry, and a third stream for generators of high volumes of select materials such as cardboard or mixed paper.

Their Advanced MRF processing system was installed in 2012 and processes all four streams.

In 2013, recovery from this system was: (1) recyclable commodities = 22%, (2) residual organics for composting and anaerobic digestion = 36%, and (3) recovered wood for biofuel and other uses = 14%. The residual organics are processed at the ZWEDC anaerobic digestion facility nearby in San Jose.

Case Study: Grand Central Recycling, Industry, CA typically into three different size ranges, early in the process.

Dividing the wastestream through size segregation is a very effective first step in minimizing contamination. Additional processes include ballistic separation that effectively separates fibers from containers and other three-dimensional objects.

However, despite these advances in technology, the perception remains that materials recovered from a “dirty MRF” will be highly contaminated or soiled, and as a result, their market value will be diminished. Although there is lack of published data to dispute this, evidence provided by MRF systems providers and operators tell a different story. Information from the following case studies will provide some insight.

Case Study: Newby Island Resource Recovery Park, San Jose, CA In addition to source-separated residential commingled wastes, NIRRP receives approximately 200,000 TPY of commercial wastes,

The GCR Advanced MRF system was expanded in 2014 to receive and process 500 TPD of mixed commercial, multifamily, and C&D wastes. Their wastestreams fluctuate during the day and from day to day, and their recovery rates for marketable commodities fluctuate accordingly—from mid-20%, to mid-30%. Although the system produces organics and dry residual wastestreams, currently they are not recovering or marketing those materials.

Case Study: Athens Services, Sun Valley (Los Angeles), CA The Athens MRF came online less than one year ago. Their Advanced MRF system is designed to process 1,500 TPD of mixed commercial and multifamily wastes. To date, over 30% of incoming materials are being recovered, primarily commodity recyclables, wood with some recovery of other materials for beneficial use.

According to Greg Loughnane, President of Athens Services, “Considerable materials we are recovering are being successfully

[ www.mswmanagement.com ] MSW MANAGEMENT

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Montgomery with no source separation, creating a truly mixed wastestream. One hundred and seventy-five thousand TPY of collected materials are received and processed through the facilityâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Advanced MRF system.

Based on nearly two years of operations, recovery from this system is: (1) recyclable commodities = 22â&#x20AC;&#x201C;25%; and (2) residual organics for composting = 20â&#x20AC;&#x201C;22%. The total projected recovery, based on fully developing the markets for organics and dry residuals to be used as biofuel, is more than 60%.

marketed as commodities. We see future increased diversion coming from organics, plastic film and engineered fuel markets.â&#x20AC;?

When all of these efforts are fully realized, Athens Services expects to recover more than 60% of the incoming wastestream.

Case Study: IREP, Montgomery, AL The Infinitis Renewable Energy Park (IREP) MRF has received considerable attention because it is the centerpiece of Montgomeryâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x153;Single Binâ&#x20AC;? collection and processing system. All municipal waste collected in

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Can Recyclables From Advanced Materials Recovery Facilities Be Marketed?

There are many vocal opponents of mixedwaste processing. The unflattering term â&#x20AC;&#x153;dirty MRFâ&#x20AC;? often precedes discussions of low recovery rates, lack of public participation, and limited educational opportunities.

Clearly, the potential for contamination is very high and the recovery rate is relatively low. However, advanced technologies have been developed specifically to minimize the effects of contamination and maximize the values of recovered goods.

Dan Domonoske, Vice President of Potential Industries in Wilmington, CA, operates a MRF that processes sourceseparated as well as mixed-waste materials.

According to him, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Moisture content is a major factor in determining the value of recovered fibers. Small amounts of excess moisture from water are far less of an issue than any moisture from foods and unknown sources. Modern, well-designed MRF systems can sort and remove these potential contaminants from fibers that entered the wastestream in clean and dry condition. This is the key to higher quality and commodity values.â&#x20AC;?

Steve Miller, President of Bulk Handling systems states, â&#x20AC;&#x153;A common misconception is that a mixed-waste facility ships contaminated fibers and polymers and/or the fiber and polymers shipped must be sold at a discount. Speaking for the facilities that we have built, this is simply not true. All products shipped meet or exceed the specifications provided by end use customers.

Anyone in the industry understands that no user of material would accept anything less.

In fact, since the implementation of the Chinese â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Green Fenceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;, standards have tightened, making the production of quality material even more important. While it is true that some of the fiber becomes contaminated during the collection cycle, the processing systems that we build have technology that separates contaminated materials and only material that meets customer standards is baled and shipped.â&#x20AC;?

Terry Schneider, CEO and President of CP Group, adds, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Clean fiber recovery can be challenging, yet it is feasible to achieve end-market specifications. Profitable fiber recovery requires additional equipment and additional sorting. While some yield loss is inevitable, it is offset by the additional volume. Organics solutions are ongoing and continue to develop. CP Group has engineered and installed several profitable mixed-

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waste processing plants in recent years.”

According to Chris Hawn, North American Sales Manager for Machinex, “With optical/near-infrared technology, we can do a very good job of reading and segregating plastics, fibers, metals, etc. However, we can’t control the cleanliness of the materials before they are received. Although our systems can separate many of these contaminated materials, from a systemwide standpoint, the more foods and liquids that are segregated at the source, the higher the yield, quality, and market value of the recovered goods.”

According to Carl Mennie, NIRRP Plant Manager, “We experienced some short-term, specific issues with rejections due to the implementation of the Green Fence. Other than that, NIRRP has had no problems with marketing recovered materials at the upper end of commodity prices.” However, as Mennie also pointed out, Newby has a healthy flow of residential source-separated materials and their fiber products are a blend of what comes out of that stream and the commercial dry wastestream. Thus, they don’t have a true experience of selling fiber from only mixed commercial sources.

Kyle Mowitz, CEO of Infinitus Energy, reports that since the IREP MRF in Montgomery began operation in April 2014, they have never had problems selling materials they recover. OCC is sent to Georgia Pacific mills here in the US, Mixed Paper sent to China with no rejections to date and satisfy “Green Fence” requirements. Plastics and other materials are marketed domestically with high success and praise from purchasers.

Can Advanced Materials Recovery Be the Next Step to Reach Your Recycling Goals?

Actions taken recently by several jurisdictions on the West Coast confirm that advanced materials recovery will be a key element in achieving increased recycling goals.

This question was recently answered in the affirmative by the Monterey Regional Waste Management District in Marina, CA, which has been at a 50% recycling rate for several years. In anticipation of the 75% recycling goal, the District conducted a feasibility study that led to the decision to move forward with a significant MRF improvement project.

An Advanced MRF system will replace an aging MRF designed to process only dry wastes (self-haul and C&D). The new system will replace the C&D processing line with a

far more efficient line and add a second line that will process mixed commercial wastes.

This new system will also have the ability to process source-separated residential materials. When the Advanced MRF is operation in mid-2016, its increased recovery will enable the District to achieve the 75% recycling goal for its member jurisdictions well before the 2020 date.

In Oregon, Portland Metro is the regional agency responsible for solid waste management. They are currently in the process of evaluating various alternative technologies to consider future actions needed to increase recovery. According to Paul Ehinger, Director of Solid Waste Operations, “from our review of the available technologies Advanced Materials Recovery appears feasible and we expect it to be a component for our system to increase recovery.”

Conclusion As the previous Case Studies indicate, mixed-waste MRFs are operational and achieving positive results, including increased recovery and marketable materials. Innovations in processing technology give facility operators the ability to process mixed commercial and multifamily wastestreams effectively and efficiently.

So as politicians continue to push the envelope to increase recycling goals and to divert more from landfill disposal, the burgeoning mixed-waste processing industry is reacting. By processing mixed wastestreams that historically were destined for landfill disposal, gains in the recovery of marketable materials and other materials with beneficial uses increases have been significant.

Advanced Materials Recovery is a proven method for recovering valuable materials and reclaiming the energy value locked in other materials and is a growing trend as a next step towards achieving higher recycling rates. The case studies presented in this article are good examples of the successful implementation of Advanced Materials Recovery and are provided to help other jurisdictions that are committed to increasing recycling and diversion. MSW James R. Miller, SE, is CEO of J. R. Miller & Associates in Brea, CA.

For related articles: www.mswmanagement.com

[ www.mswmanagement.com ] MSW MANAGEMENT

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Golder Associates

LANDFILL

Landf ill Liners and Covers One of the biggest challenges landfill designers face is containing the trash and its byproducts until the cows come home. BY CAROL BRZOZOWSKI

T

here are two driving factors: the liner and the cover. How they are designed and installed, what materials are used, and how it is maintained play a significant role in achieving a high degree of assurance of environmental integrity throughout the period in which post-closure care is required.

Experts agree that no liner is totally impermeable, but the right approach offers the lowest possible permeability against leachate and gas escaping into the environment.

Geosynthetics serve the purpose of keeping a plastic liner from being punctured, depending on their strength and resistance to tears, impact, punctures, and environmental stress. The cap used for the landfill’s closure also is subject to the same factors that will lay the groundwork for success.

Don Hullings, Cornerstone Environmental Group client manager, points out that geosynthetics are used “first and foremost” as a prescriptive standard to keep water out of leachate.

As of late, a more pressing concern is to contain the gas as well, he says. “We don’t want to have odor or greenhouse gas emissions coming out. We want to have a beneficial gas use project and contain all of that gas within the landfill and collect it in a gas collection system, but not have it be emitted through the cover,” he adds.

Geosynthetics offer a “very, very low permeability,” which is 48 MSW MANAGEMENT

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lower than what could be derived from a traditional compacted clay layer, which was used before the advent of geosynthetic systems, Hullings notes.

He points out a geosynthetic membrane is not totally impermeable, given that water can seep through under “very long-term conditions” and through defects in seams and pinholes.

Design and Materials Site-specific conditions and budgets will dictate landfill liner and cap designs and materials used.

Todd Farmen, principal environmental engineer with Arcadis USA, says in areas with a lot of clay soils, “geosynthetics aren’t the right way to go. But in a lot of sites in some parts of the country that don’t have a readily available clay source, geosynthetics is certainly a more cost-effective way to construct either a cell or a cap.”

There are many elements that go into a design, depending on the facility, says Farmen. “Is it in a seismic area? What kind of safety factors are they trying to achieve? Those are all typically governed by state or federal regulations that you’re designing under to meet those criteria,” he says.

There are many types of geosynthetics from which to choose for a baseline or cover system, Farmen points out, adding that the chosen

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LANDFILL materials are site- and design-specific. “There are geosynthetic clay liners for containment, geocomposite systems for drainage, fabrics for separation and for cushioning effects on liner systems, and geogrids for soil reinforcement and strengthening,” notes Farmen.

“If you’re dealing with a liner or a cover system that’s flat or doesn’t have as much of a gradient on it, then you’re typically going to use geomembranes or liner systems that are smooth,” he adds. “If you’re dealing with more slopes and need to have that higher degree of interface friction between the liner and cap materials, you’re going to go with a textured liner.”

Arcadis USA has a project in Catskill, NY, recapping a landfill with ClosureTurf by Agru America, which manufactures the textured geomembrane component for Watershed Geo. ClosureTurf combines a drainage system and geomembrane barrier with a durable synthetic turf.

It is designed to install more than 50% faster than traditional closure systems. It eliminates the need for large quantities of soil and related equipment activities. Average maintenance costs are reduced by $1,300 per acre per year.

ClosureTurf is designed to improve stormwater runoff quality and reduce carbon footprint by 80%.

The benefit to the client for that site is that it significantly reduces the amount of long-term O&M on the 40-plus-acre landfill, notes Farmen.

The primary overriding goal in designing a final cover system to effectively control the leachate is to ensure it is less permeable than the bottom liner system “because if it was more permeable, moisture would infiltrate in there somehow and it would start building in the landfill and have a bathtub effect, which Subtitle D federal regulations were set up to avoid,” says Ron DiFrancesco, principal and senior consultant with Golder Associates.

Another important factor is grades. “You want to make sure the grades—the contours of the final cap—are sloped sufficiently to allow precipitation to run off,” says DiFrancesco. “If the grades are too shallow, you can get more water than wants to migrate into the landfill. If they are too steep and that water runs off and the velocities are too high, it can damage the final cover system through erosion.”

Most modern landfills have side slopes of a 3:1 grade; 3 feet horizontal, 1 foot vertical, he says. “As you get to the top of these landfills, they are graded out at about 5%, and that allows that runoff to run off and not settle in and pool on top of the landfill.”

That consideration also is important in designing the geomembrane liners, adds DiFrancesco. “There are friction angles you have to be concerned about between the components of different liner systems with the underlying waste in the geomembrane covering,” he says. “If you get too steep, you have an erosion or water problem and then you could have a sliding problem. Your cover soil could slide off if it’s too steep. That’s why the design is limited to 3:1 grade maximum.”

Hullings concurs. “We have found that if you have relatively steep slopes on the order of 3:1 and you don’t control the stormwater and it falls on your soil cover layer, you’re going to have problems,” he says. “The primary problem we’ve seen is significant storms haven’t been accounted for in the design and that can lead to some failure of soil on top of the membrane.”

DiFrancesco points out that on the top portion of the landfill where the grades are more shallow and the landfill has settled is where the decomposition process is occurring, and the geomembrane 50 MSW MANAGEMENT

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covering systems are designed to flex and give with that settlement.

“It provides full containment for the waste that has been encapsulated in these liner systems designed to control not only runoff, but also to account for settlement that may occur over the post-closure period and even longer,” he says. “They’re designed to make sure the soil components which protect these geomembranes are secure and stable, and don’t slide off during periods of heavy precipitation.”

A similar concept applies to controlling landfill gas, says DiFrancesco. “When you close a landfill, you’re basically encapsulating it in a system that has a geomembrane covering and just like water cannot penetrate that geomembrane, gas cannot penetrate it either, so there is landfill gas being generated through the decomposition process,” he adds. “That final cover minimizes or prevents uncontrolled release of greenhouses gases. If you didn’t provide an avenue for it to escape, it would build up and build up like a big balloon.”

There are different types of geomembrane capping systems, DiFrancesco says. “Generally, they’re all used with some form of protective cover, which is the soil that goes on top of it. That protective cover is to prevent wind erosion, rain erosion, deer running across the top of the landfill and provide a place where vegetation can establish.”

As for the use of materials, Hullings says he likes to keep his options open on a site-specific basis, “but the high-density polyethylene (HDPE) is pretty much the prescriptive standard for base liners” he says. “It’s what most people have a lot of experience with because of that. We see a lot of high-density polyethylene final covers. I think a better cover would be a lower density polyethylene cover, which has a little bit more flexibility because waste is going to settle over time.”

Flexible geomembrane capping components made of PVC are used occasionally, DiFrancesco says.

Fred Doran, senior environmental engineer for Burns & McDonnell, says his firm designs for a 2-foot clay liner portion with a 60-mil HDPE liner on top of that.

Designing a liner and cover to achieve a high degree of assurance of environmental integrity throughout the period in which post-closure care is required depends on regulations and the type of landfill being closed out, notes Doug DeCesare, the solid waste section manager in HDR Engineering’s Nebraska/Iowa engineering department.

Usually a 40-mil linear low-density polyethylene (LLDPE) membrane is placed on top as an infiltration layer, he says. “It’s easier to weld than a 30-mil linear low-density polyethylene membrane, but provides the same protection as far as water infiltration into the landfill,” says DeCesare. “In a lot of places, you can get a 30-mil permitted, but they are harder to weld. When the panels are being welded, there is sometimes a tendency to burn through those and you don’t get as good a seam. We usually go a minimum of 40-mil for that reason.”

Soil combinations, such as clay material, is another influencing factor in materials choice. “Usually a 40-mil LLDPE membrane with a geocomposite above it can take any pore water pressures off the cap system,” says DeCesare. “You need to have a geocomposite or some type of drainage layer to dissipate the pore pressures out of the soil so that you don’t get any instability in the soil and the soil doesn’t wash off the liner. That drainage layer above the geomembrane is an important aspect for the long-term integrity of the cap.”

Usually, DeCesare designs for 24 inches of soil above the geomembrane, which he considers ideal. Good vegetative growth in the soil adds to the integrity of the cap system and minimizes erosion

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and water infiltration, he adds.

Hullings says he’s seeing more use of an exposed geomembrane cover without a soil cover. In terms of maintenance, it would require someone to inspect it for pinholes and tears on an annual basis, he says.

Farmen adds that opting out of using vegetative covers is common in conditions where it’s very arid and “typically there are long stretches in the season where there is no precipitation and having vegetative cover may mean it will starve during drought.”

Additionally, “if it’s a site where the client is looking to minimize long-term O&M costs, and they’re willing to spend some capital upfront, you can get away with the ClosureTurf material,” says Farmen.

Farmen says he’s seen sites with flat grades capped with asphalt. “You can slope the asphalt,” he points out. “It’s really good for it to drain by putting in drainage pipes and catch basins. The client’s objectives with the site post-closure is another key driver in the choices.”

Installation The material used for liners and caps is only as good as it’s installed properly, DeCesare points out.

Installation is critical for the effectiveness of geomembranes in landfills in not enabling water to stream through tears or pinholes, adds Hullings.

Boyd Ramsey, GSE Environmental chief engineer, concurs. He recommends for guidance is the International Association of Geosynthetic Installers (IAGI). “They have a qualification program for both the installer and the actual staff that works on the site, so if I were building a site that I was going to depend on, I’d use an IAGIcertified installer and IAGI-certified welders” Quality construction assurance is another critical component. For that, Ramsey recommends The Geosynthetic Institute. “It has a certification program for construction quality assurance and it includes a practical examination and a resume qualification phase,” he says.

Installation is usually overseen by construction quality assurance (CQA) technicians, says Farmen. “When the material arrives on site, they’re inspecting it to make sure the material they’re receiving at the project matches the rolls or the identification numbers for what material was produced for that job,” he says.

That goes back to the manufacturing plant where rolls of material are produced. Samples are collected from the rolls and sent to a lab for material testing.

“It’s got to meet a myriad of both raw material properties and requirements as well as finished product requirements,” says Farmen.

“For a liner, they’ll make sure its carbon black content is accurate or within a specified range. They’ll want to make sure its thickness is within a specified range, so they usually do sampling at the plant while it’s being manufactured.”

Once approved by the engineer and the data reviewed, the product is sent to the site, and the CQA technicians are responsible to make sure that the site is getting the rolls that were produced for the job and it matches the rolls that were sampled, says Farmen.

“Then during deployment of the material, they’re making sure that the right equipment is being used, that the subgrade or whatever surface the material is going on is properly prepared and tested,” he adds. “As it’s going in, they’re testing seams and overlaps—there’s a lot of tests they use out in the field to make sure that the seaming is done properly and you’re producing a liner system that is intended by the design.”

Another important factor is ensuring that the material covering the geosynthetic is being laid down correctly and that the right equipment from a ground pressure standpoint is being used, says Farmen.

“Is adequate thickness being put in? All of those different things that a CQA person would monitor throughout the construction —whether it’s a cap or a liner, soils or geosynthetics—they’re usually on top of everything and making sure the contractors who are doing the installation are following the requirements,” he says. “It’s really very important because it affects the overall performance of the integrity of the material that you’re putting in.”

Burns & McDonnell does a lot of quality assurance testing on the liner and the clay to make sure it’s meeting permeability requirements with the different lifts, says Doran. “Typically they’re putting in three or four lifts to get that two-foot thickness,” he says. “You do a lot of quality control testing on the membrane to make sure that the seams are good.”

Burns & McDonnell does electric connectivity testing on the geomembrane after the drainage layer goes on top of the membrane, which could be a sand or gravel, to identify any holes that might occur from a survey stake, rock or any other object that could create a hole, says Doran. “In every project, we’ve found something,” he notes.

Ramsey points out that there are several mechanisms in place for a liner integrity survey, which uses a variety of site-dependent electrical methods to verify the barrier function of the liner both before and after the soil is placed on top.

“Abigail Beck at the Texas Research Institute has done a lot of work putting statistics together to show these are the chances of a leak with this level of leak detection, these are your chances of leak without these level of leak detection, and it is something that benefits the product and gives you a much higher probability of success,” he says.

DeCesare says that in many cases—depending on his company’s client and site location—“our qualifications for liner installation have to meet a certain threshold. That’s one way to minimize the opportunity for an unqualified installer because that’s problematic.”

Dan McGrath, associate and senior consultant for Golder Associates, points out that proper installation starts with a properly prepared subgrade.

“It doesn’t do any good to deploy this fantastic geomembrane material on a sub-grade that’s going to poke holes into it and make it leaky,” he says.

Geomembrane material typically comes in rolls that are unfurled in site-specific sizes on a prepared subgrade and then welded. PVC material sections are glued, he says. In addition to CQA inspection to identifying deployment errors that may have damaged the liner, seams that aren’t quite complete, wrinkles or shortcomings in the deployment itself, there are a variety of destructive and non-destructive seam test methods to verify seam integrity, McGrath says.

Such methods usually involve spark testing, pressure, or vacuum. “Testing to verify the seam integrity and then to verify the strength of those seams, they can cut samples out of the seam itself and test them for strength,” he adds. “Ideally, testing shows that the seam is as least as strong as the material itself to verify if any kind of settlement occurs, physical stressors on the liner system as a whole will behave as a unit. You don’t want the leak point to be at the seam to come apart like a zipper.” [ www.mswmanagement.com ] MSW MANAGEMENT

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LANDFILL Maintenance As for maintenance, “it’s always a good idea to do regular inspections of these sites, particularly where you have material that’s exposed and not covered with soil,” says Ramsey. “You can save yourself a lot of time and effort by doing an annual inspection and then correcting any minor deficiencies that you find.

“Generally if these things fail catastrophically, it takes a long period of time,” he adds.

“What happens is you get some sort of penetration that is relatively minor and then you get erosion of the subgrade underneath it. Then some storm event comes along and causes that erosion to accelerate. An annual maintenance inspection will do you wonders.”

There are post-closure requirements to maintain the integrity of a final cover system, Farmen points out. “Let’s say you have a final cover system that’s predominantly soil or it’s a soil covering a geomembrane or some sort of geosynthetic,” he says. “Most states will require you to perform mowing and maintenance on top of that cap to make sure roots don’t penetrate the liner material or damage it.

“Certainly with clay layers, if you have roots penetrating it, it affects the long-term permeability of the material,” he adds. “So there’s a lot of mowing and fixing of erosion that occurs from large storm events. The ClosureTurf is a neat product because it minimizes that greatly.”

Not only does the material used come into play for the design of environmental protection, but another critical factor is the shape of the landfill and how it’s filled. That will impact maintenance down the road.

“The steeper the slopes and the grades of the landfill is, the more it’s inclined to shed stormwater faster, whereas the flatter it is, the more opportunity there is for water to pond and try to infiltrate through the cap,” says DeCesare.

DeCesare concedes that’s a “tough position” for a solid waste operation because of how the MSW settles. “You want to try to account for that over time so you don’t get sags in your slope and if you do during postclosure maintenance, you need to go in and maintain those areas where there are depressions,” he points out. “You might have to add more soil to get the surface flush again so that water will run off.

“In those cases during the post-closure inspection period, you need to determine whether or not there’s enough settlement 52 MSW MANAGEMENT

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in an isolated area that’s compromising the integrity of the synthetics. You have to uncover it, cut the synthetics, re-establish grade, and put new synthetics and new soil over the top of that.”

A lot of maintenance is attributed to the settlement—the drainage swales and the letdown structures tends to get dips in them and owners have to fix them, DeCesare says. The frequency with which that is done depends on budgets and resources.

“A lot of times, they will postpone fixing some of those issues until there is a significant amount to where they can put together a bigger contract,” he adds. “You might have a closed landfill right next to an active landfill and it’s easy for them to send equipment from the open one to the closed one to make repairs to the diversion berms, downpipes or let-down channels maybe quarterly, maybe twice a year.”

In a strict closed site situation, repairs may occur up to four years or longer, DeCesare says.

Closed landfill sites are not a “set it and forget it” situation, notes McGrath. “Erosion is constantly at work through wind, water, and ice. Those sorts of things can over time damage that soil cover and start to expose it, making it thinner than it should be, which then exasperates future problems.”

Maintenance should include inspections to look for evidence of such factors as rodents burrowing down in the soil cover to the point where they could puncture a hole in the liner and introduce water into the system, McGrath says.

General maintenance should include mowing and keeping a good stand of vegetation that helps keep soil in and prevents weedy vegetation from taking root, which may seize the water and penetrate the liner itself, he adds.

DiFrancesco points out that post-closure care is mandated by regulation. “That includes all of the monitoring, testing, inspections in identifying areas of concern, particularly erosion or in the vegetative cover in making sure that is properly installed and properly maintained to ensure that no damage can occur to that buried geomembrane line,” he says.

Citing the Geosynthetic Research Institute, the half-life of a buried geomembrane liner is 499 years, says DiFrancesco. “That’s why we do post-closure care maintenance to ensure that liner stays covered and is not exposed to ultraviolet light and sun,” he adds.

Doran notes that it is critical to do a

fluff lift on the first lift of waste so it doesn’t have bulky waste on it that could puncture the membrane.

“That could be in there from six- to 10-feet thick and then you’re not driving a compactor on it,” he says. “Usually it’s best to use a lighter-weight dozer with wider tracks to reduce the ground pressure that’s on there to minimize in that first lift any potential puncture of that membrane. Once you start going above that, you’re filling in the landfill and putting the liability of that liner in place and going from there.”

Going forward, maintenance depends on the site, its requirements and what the cover profile looks like, and what the cover profile looks like, Farmen says.

“Different states have different requirements for closure, post-closure maintenance and monitoring,” he adds. “A lot of landfills will have leachate monitoring. They’ll have annual requirements as far as cap inspections to make sure there’s no erosion going on if it is a soil cover.

“The type of O&M activities depend on the nature of the cover. If it’s a vegetative cover, or there is a certain amount of mowing or weed control that has to take place.

If it’s ClosureTurf material where you don’t have mowing, it has to be inspected periodically to make sure that the sand ballast that’s placed on top to hold it down hasn’t washed away from storm events.

Material Choices There are a several choices on the market for landfill liner and cap materials.

Reef Industries has manufactured and fabricated reinforced polyethylene laminates designed for a wide range of applications.

The company’s landfill covers and tarps allow for rainwater management and control in and around the site.

“Our primary function in the landfill market is leachate prevention on the landfill before they make the permanent closure,” says Mark Young, product manager. “We make large 10-mil reinforced UV-stabilized products in large sheets, normally 200 feet by 200 feet, but it can be made in other sizes as well. It prevents the water from getting into the garbage from above and then leaching down into the soils and into the garbage and getting into the water table.”

The use of the product is site-specific.

“On the West Coast, it’s very common to use this because they have volcanic soils which are very permeable to water—normally it’s Washington, Oregon, and northern Califor-

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also offers a traditional closure system, which utilizes Agru America’s MicroSpike or smooth geomembrane, overlain by a geocomposite drainer layer, soil cover layer and vegetative layer. It is designed to offer cost-saving benefits and an asperity height to provide consistent shear strengths.

Another option is an Integrated Drainage System, which uses Super Gripnet or Drain Liner overlain with an AgruTex geotextile.

Soil is placed on top of the geotextile to complete the system. The IDS system is designed to reduce drainage layers for cost

efficiencies, to install 15% faster than traditional closure systems and for a high safety factor for steep-slope stability.

During manufacturing of the IDS Super Gripnet, the machined rollers provide the final structured surface with a minimum 0.130-inch studded drain surface on the top, and 0.175-inch spiked friction surface on the bottom.

The finished product includes a smooth 12-inch edge on both sides of the role to facilitate fusion welding as with standard textured geomembrane. The high asperity

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nia where it’s used,” says Young.

“Where it is not used as much is where there are clay soils where they’ll fill up the landfill, take the soil which is very dense with the clay, and put it over the top of it until they have a permanent cap put on.”

The product is sometimes used in the East in places like the Appalachian Mountains where there is rolling terrain where soil can be easily permeated, with water infiltrating the leachate and running off into streams, Young notes.

“Any of those places is probably going to require a temporary rain cover,” he adds.

For Ramsey, the product of choice for landfills is a 60-mil high-density polyethylene geomembrane as a barrier product, usually combined with either a clay or a geocomposite clay liner to achieve a composite liner system.

“Those have a long history of success as documented by the USEPA and innumerable other state environmental protection agencies,” he notes. “The 60-mil product has pretty good durability, but it is a plastic liner system.

“We’ve identified over the years that during construction, soil placement over the geomembrane is probably the most dangerous portion of its lifespan in terms of losing the barrier function, and that’s been identified academically and in peer-reviewed papers,” says Ramsey.

Regarding proper design, “the devil is in the details,” points out Ramsey. “Connections from cell to cell, connections from panel to panel—the tricky parts, the attention to detail, good design drawings, and good construction quality assurance need to come together.”

Ramsey points out that the primary reason for using HDPE is its chemical resistance. “The way we dispose of our garbage in the United States, just about anything can be thrown in there,” he says. “The good news on HDPE is there are very few chemicals that can penetrate it and even then, it takes a long time and you end up with very, very slow permeation rate.”

Ramsey points out that the approach to caps and containment is different. “The capping application tends to be more sensitive to drainage,” he says. “You need to get water off of the cap in a prompt and efficient fashion. You don’t have quite the concern about zero leakage on caps as you do on baseliner systems. A little bit of leakage on a cap is not such a big deal but drainage over caps tends to be much, much more important.”

In addition to ClosureTurf, Agru America

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LANDFILL spike surface is designed to ensure optimum interface friction characteristics at any point on the sheet surface.

The top surface IDS is covered with a nonwoven geotextile to prevent soil infiltration and create a drainage layer. The bottom surface’s high spikes and patterned texture is designed to provide maximum interface friction and high factor of safety against sliding.

Delaney Lewis, vice president of environmental applications for Watershed Geo, explains that ClosureTurf is used in a surficial gas collection system, which relies upon the total containment of a landfill area by utilizing the benefits of the impermeable membrane component along with a design of gas transference strips and collection devices.

“Gas collection does not rely upon traditional wells drilled into the waste mass,” he says. “However, the system can be installed and work in conjunction with a traditional wellfield to increase gas collection efficiencies and minimize air intrusion. The system relies upon the landfill gas generation and internal pressures within the landfill to push the gas to the surface where it is trapped beneath the membrane conveyed to the collection points and into a typical header system via a vacuum source.”

The collection efficiencies of the surficial collection system have proven to be very high with no fugitive emission loss and the propensity for air intrusion—oxidation—into the waste mass is non-existent, he adds.

“The gas condensate generated with the surficial system is very low as a result of the gas traveling through the waste mass and soils at a more consistent generation rate without significant temperature changes,” says Lewis.

The surficial collection system utilizes the ClosureTurf system components along with surficial collection strips—single-sided geocomposite—and polyethylene gas collection devices.

“The design of the surficial gas collection system is very similar to the design of more traditional gas collection systems in that each collection point or wellhead has a collection strip and an designed radius of influence,” says Lewis.

Typical gas calculation modeling determines the expected gas generation rates for the specific landfill and the ClosureTurf surficial collection radius of influence is then applied to determine the number of collection points needed over a specific area, he adds.

“The collection header design is the same as more conventional designs and based on 54 MSW MANAGEMENT

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the gas collection points and calculated gas generation rates,” says Lewis. “The collection header can be either in ground or above ground, depending upon the engineers’ desires. The header design and installation is consistent with other more conventional gas collection systems.”

Lewis says if the gas collection header is below the soil, then it must be installed prior to the ClosureTurf surficial collection system—if above, it will be installed after the installation of the system.

Installation of the ClosureTurf surficial collection system is achieved by an initial placement of the collection strips onto the sub base soils in pre-determined locations, he says.

“The strips are not connected to anything but merely placed onto the soil,” says Lewis.

“The collection devices are then placed onto the collection strips at predesigned locations with the compression fitting nut removed.

The membrane component is then installed over the area to be closed. Typical installation procedures for double wedge welded seams membrane installations are followed.”

Once the membrane is installed, the low-profile collection devices are located, a hole is cut into the membrane consistent with the top of the collection device compression fitting and the compression fitting nut is installed and tightened, says Lewis.

“The collection device is then connected to the gas collection header lateral and the system is complete. The turf component is then installed over the membrane and then the sand infill is applied,” he says.

Maintenance of conventional gas collection systems focus` on pumps associated with dewatering deep wells in order to maintain flow, damage to the wellheads and header systems from maintaining the grass vegetation through mowing along with membrane boots around wellheads failing from landfill settlement.

“Since the ClosureTurf system has neither deep wells nor the need for mowing of vegetation and the collection devices are designed to free float with the membrane with no added stress from landfill settlement, the maintenance required for the surficial gas collection is very limited,” says Lewis.

“The benefits of the ClosureTurf surficial collection system are that the Subtitle D cap and gas system can become one system, lowering capital costs, reducing condensate production, increasing collection efficiency, preventing liabilities associated with air intrusion into the waste mass—oxidation—and lowering maintenance requirements,” he adds.

Landfills that utilize ClosureTurf earlier in the life cycle of the landfill also can lessen the environmental impacts of the fugitive emissions because they can be controlled earlier and longer after post closure, Lewis says.

ClosureTurf demonstrated positive results in an installation at the Timber Ridge Landfill in Washington County, MO, says Jose Urrutia, vice president of engineering for WatershedGeo. Leachate generation was evaluated for a period of three years after the installation of 10-acre slope area that was closed with ClosureTurf, he says. Leachate generation was reported to the Missouri Department of Natural Resources as part of the final assessment report.

While ClosureTurf was not deployed entirely over other areas of the landfill, the data showed an immediate decline in average leachate generation over the three-year trial period with reduction values of 30 gallons per acre per day or approximately a reduction of 100,000 gallons per year average for the 10-acre closed area, says Urrutia.

At the Tangipahoa Landfill in Independence, LA, analyzed stormwater samples comparing the area of the landfill with ClosureTurf to an area with soil cover demonstrated a turbidity (NTU) of 11 versus 371; (mg/L) TSS of < 4 versus 349; pH of 7.3 versus 6.5; 1 (mg/L) TOC versus 174, and 0.5 (mg/L) TRI versus 16.

A landfill closure does not necessarily mean the end of the land mass usefulness.

ClosureTurf was used as a capping technology at the Hartford, CT, landfill, where a 5-acre solar field was placed on top.

While Farmen says he believes today’s options “more than adequately meet the needs of landfills” the challenge is the many different materials being produced and the different combinations in which they can be used.

“I don’t think that the regulatory agencies are caught up to this point with how they are installed and what different scenarios they’re allowed to be installed under,” he adds. “This ClosureTurf project in New York is interesting because up to this point, very few if any variances have been given to landfills to allow them to use this technology.” MSW Carol Brzozowski specializes in topics related to waste management and technology.

For related articles: www.mswmanagement.com

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ADMINISTRATION

Is Privatization the Answer?

You need to consider several factors before making the decision.

BY MARC J. ROGOFF, KARL MOYERS, MICHELLE LEONARD, AND ROBERT GARDNER

T

Dollars Per Ton

by the agency. These impacts need to be taken into consideration he decision by a governmental agency to self-perform when considering privatizing the operation of the system. Use of versus outsourcing (privatizing) solid waste services is public employees can be included in the conditions of contracting complex and should consider costs, as well as the followfor the operation of a public system. ing six major factors: 1. Continued level of service and rate control • Impacts to waste reduction and recycling goals. Local government 2. Impacts to public employment generally is responsible for providing the infrastructure and 3. Impacts to waste reduction and recycling goals services to meet state and local diversion goals. Under an agency4. Community pride and public perceptions operated program, the Agency has direct control over its progress 5. Organizational values. towards these goals and its cost effectiveness. However, under an 6. Ability to respond to technological, regulatory, and sociooutsourced solid waste program, a contractor may have incentives economic changes. that conflict with these waste reduction goals. The contract can be Evaluating the changes to an agency’s cost structure from outsourcing structures to incorporate diversion goals and performance incenor eliminating certain services (e.g., landfill or drop-off station operatives that drive diversion. tion) is relatively straightforward. However, the intangible factors • Community pride and public perceptions. Community pride and can be just as important as the cost factors in making a decision to public perception are difficult to gauge with respect to solid waste outsource services or not. Several factors that could affect the agency’s services, except when there are complaints pertaining to problems decision to outsource solid waste services are discussed below: with the services being provided or inconsistencies or changes in the level of service. Agency staff typically take pride in the services • Level of service and control. Solid waste facilities are particularly they provide in dealing with special circumstances such as defervulnerable to public scrutiny regarding “environmental concerns,” ring some landfill disposal costs for non-profit organizations or and some public officials prefer to have more extensive control special community events (“free disposal”), or accepting nonover the operation of a project than is afforded by private ownerhazardous, special wastes from other governmental entities (e.g., ship or operation in order to satisfy these public concerns. With public works, agency offices, etc.). Although private companies public ownership, the agency has control over all aspects of system also take pride in the quality of the services they provide as well, operation and levels of public services. Some public officials prefer outsourcing solid waste services could change public perceptions, to distance themselves from public involvement in such projects the Agency and private service provider should work together to and prefer private ownership or operation. Normally, however, the maintain community involvement and support of the system. community has only limited control over operation of a privately owned, solid waste system. This typically includes only the rights to inspect the facilEconomies ity and requiring periodic tests to demonSource for 100 tpd, “Waste Age,” March 1991; for 250-1500 tpd, NSWMA strate guaranteed performance levels. The $144 140 decision to retain ownership of all or part of a system can be subjective as it relates to considering the public’s reaction to and rate 120 control when making the ownership decision. Long-term rate control concerns can 100 be mitigated through contract clauses such $96 as consumer price index (CPI) adjustments, set contract periods, and termination A (Full Cost, Year X) 80 provisions.

• Impacts to public employees. Outsourcing of 60 solid waste services may result in a reduction in an agency’s work force (salary and $48 $42 benefits). When implementing outsourcing, $36 40 some positions could be transferred to a private contractor or reassigned within the 20 agency. However, it is unlikely that all the 100 250 500 1000 1250 1500 positions would transfer to a private comTons Per Day (tpd) pany, nor would the benefits provided to the agency’s staff necessarily be comparable Exhibit 1. Economies of Scale in Landfills to the pay and benefits currently provided Source: USEPA 1997 56 MSW MANAGEMENT

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• Ability to respond to technological, regulatory, and socio-economic changes. Private companies tend to respond quicker than government agencies to changes in technology (e.g., LFG-to-energy), regulatory initiatives (e.g., disposal bans), and socio-economic changes (e.g., downturn in the economy). When change requires capital investment (e.g., new landfill disposal equipment, drop-off station improvements, etc.), the private sector is typically able to more quickly respond to financial impacts through more readily available access to private capital. Due to its nature, use of public capital is subject to careful budgeting, planning, and the political process. Public agency operations also have the added step of gaining consensus and approval of the political decision-makers before implementing major program changes. The political process can affect the speed of change.

Management Options: A Case Study A recent review of the Santa Cruz County, AZ’s solid waste operations by SCS Engineers (SCS) identified the following four longterm waste management options for the County decision-maker consideration: • optimize current solid waste system operations • revenue enhancement • sale of agency assets (Privatization) • agency ownership but private operation Each option is discussed below, along with the advantages and disadvantages of each. These are illustrative of similar issues with other agencies across the country.

Optimize Current Operations At the outset of the assignment, we reviewed the County’s current operations and levels of service. Based on SCS’s knowledge of the solid waste industry and similarly sized communities in the Southwest, we were of the opinion that the County appeared to be “right sized” in its staffing and equipment deployment for its major landfill, the Rio Rico Landfill (RRLF). Staffing appeared similar to smallersized landfills (daily tonnage less than 250 tons) represented in a Solid Waste Association of America (SWANA) Landfill Benchmarking Study, which was conducted several years ago. Our opinion was that current staffing could allow the Agency to process more than 500 tons per day at RRLF, if available.

However, given the low daily tonnage and numbers of customer visits, the level of service (hours of operation) for the County’s other solid waste facilities (drop off stations and small C&D landfill) appeared somewhat excessive (ranging $150–175 per ton). Many small communities find it difficult to achieve economies of scale operating small landfills and drop off stations. These communities have tried to minimize costs by considering reducing hours and days of operation. The drawback to these changes is a potential increase in illegal dumping along public right-of-ways and private property.

As a result, we recommended that the County explore the option of reducing the number of days these facilities are open, preferably those days with the highest customer peak use. This change would reduce the operating cost of these facilities and save limited County financial resources.

Revenue Enhancement Under this management alternative, the County would pursue MSW and other waste streams to help boost the incoming flow into the Rio Rico Landfill. Currently, the RRLF is receiving an average of 121

tons of MSW and sludge per day. “Revenue enhancement” through an increased wastestream would help improve the economies of scale for the system.

Typically, landfills of the size of the RRLF could effectively manage 500 tons of MSW per day without significantly increasing personnel or equipment costs. Exhibit 1 illustrates the advantages of economies of scale, where tipping fees can be significantly lower on a per-ton basis at larger landfills.

The largest potential MSW generator in the wastershed is the city of Nogales. Until 2009, the city disposed of its waste at RRLF. At that time, the city contracted with a private hauler/landfill owner/operator to provide disposal services. The cost to transport the city’s waste stream to this remote landfill in Tucson (Marana Regional Landfill) is substantial. One suggestion was for the agency to approach this hauler with a long-term proposal to accept the city’s MSW stream from the city’s transfer station at the RRLF for a negotiated tipping fee (less than a reported gate rate of $27 per ton). This additional wastestream would enhance the Agency’s solid waste revenues and improve the RRLF’s economies of scale. Obviously, the downside to this potential increase in MSW tonnage to RRLF would be the reduction in landfill life and the need for new System capacity earlier than anticipated.

Other possible options for the County considered included the implementation of landfill design modifications (substitution of alternative daily covers in lieu of soil for RRLF to save landfill capacity) and the use of global positioning system (GPS) technology in its landfill compactors to more accurately place and compact MSW and cover soil. SCS clients have significantly reduced the amount of time, labor, and expense associated with such landfill surveying and cover soil.

Privatization The practice of privatization—delegating governmental functions and the fulfillment of public needs to private vendors—is not new.

Throughout the nation’s history, federal, state, and local governments have often hired outside contractors to perform essential public functions. States have privatized a great number of governmental functions such as public works, health care, prisons, building security, and public works. Virtually every function of local government has been delegated to the private sector at some time across the US. While privatization has been implemented in different ways by various public agencies, a structured approach consisting of the following three basic steps tends to improve the chances of successful privatization: • A performance-oriented Statement of Work is prepared describing solid waste service requirements and work to be performed.

• The agency performs a comparison study of in-house versus contractor costs.

• A thorough contract monitoring system is developed.

Exhibit 2 lists some of the advantages and disadvantages touted by proponents and critics of privatization.

Up until the mid-1800s in the United States, solid waste management was the responsibility of private citizens and scavengers. With the emergence of large urban cities and associated solid waste problems at that time, many cities across the country assumed the collection and disposal responsibilities for solid waste management.

Agency Ownership and Private Operation Across the US, local governments use contracting for a variety of solid waste services. Currently, about 60% of publicly owned landfills [ www.mswmanagement.com ] MSW MANAGEMENT

56-59MS1511_PRIVAT.indd 57

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ADMINISTRATION are managed or operated by private firms.

Locally, Pima Agency outsources the operation of its remaining landfills to a private operator, but retained ownership of the asset and compliance costs. Exhibit 3 shows a comparison of general advantages and disadvantages to this arrangement.

For landfills, many local governments have entered into long-term agreements (“end-of-life agreements”), which in essence specifies that the new landfill operator is responsible to meet operating/ regulatory conditions.

Asset Sale If the County considered sale of its assets, it would need to issue a Request for Proposal (RFP) requesting proposals/bids from private companies for the operation and ownership of all the Agency’s solid waste assets, including closure and post-closure care of all landfill areas. Once the business arrangement is completed, the private company would then have full responsibility to the State of Arizona for the landfills. Some items that the County could possibly negotiate for under this option include the following: • guaranteed disposal for all solid waste • long-term preferred rate (tipping fee) for the disposal of solid waste generated in Santa Cruz County • set limits on the amount of solid waste that the private company can bring in from outside the County • host fees for out-of-agency solid waste delivered to landfills If a county wishes to consider outsourcing

Potential Advantages

Potential Disadvantages

Exhibit 2. Advantages and Disadvantages of Privatization Source: Rosen 1997

of its solid waste system, we typically they consider the following: • Develop a document that provides a comprehensive description of the types and level of service it provides, and clearly articulate the expectations it would have of a contractor were it to outsource all or part of the services it currently provides. This document could serve as the framework for a bid specification.

• Generally, an entity acquiring a landfill

Potential Advantages

asset does not want to accept liability for potential risks (e.g., contamination) that exists on a site because of prior events and activities. The typically approach is to do a “baseline” study to define the existing conditions and then provide this in either the procurement document or contract that the asset purchaser has no liability for pre-existing conditions.

Another option is to sell the sites “as is.”

We generally do not recommend this approach for maximizing the sale price.

Potential Disadvantages

Exhibit 3. Public Ownership and Private Operation of Landfills Source: Segal, et al. 2000

58 MSW MANAGEMENT

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â&#x20AC;˘

Conclusions In the end, there are no clear-cut answers to the issue of privatization. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Cookie-cutterâ&#x20AC;? type solutions often do not make sense in most situations. Clearly, situations arise where privatization of solid waste services makes economic and practical sense for the community. However, at the same time, many public agencies have demonstrated that with good leadership, management support, and the reduction of â&#x20AC;&#x153;red tapeâ&#x20AC;?, they can provide cost-effective solutions for its ratepayers. The decision whether to privatize needs to be answered using a nonemotional, methodical approach balancing all of the risks and rewards.

References Gomez-Ibanez, Jose, John R. Meyer, and David Luberoff. â&#x20AC;&#x153;What Are the Prospects for Privatizing Infrastructure? Lessons From US Roads and Solid Waste,â&#x20AC;? Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, 1990.

Oâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;Brien, Jeremy, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Contracting Out: Adapting Local Integrated Waste Management to Regional, Private Landfill Ownership,â&#x20AC;? Waste Management World, Volume 7 (7), 2005.

Rogoff, Marc J. Solid Waste Recycling and Processing: Planning of Solid Waste Recycling Facilities and Programs, Second Edition. William Andrew, 2013.

Rosen, Mark J. Privatization in Hawaii, Legislative Reference Bureau. Honolulu, HI: December 1997.

SCS Engineers, â&#x20AC;&#x153;Solid Waste System Long Term Alternatives Study and Business

marking the Performance and Costs of MSW Landfills. Silver Spring, MD: December 2008.

US Environmental Protection Agency.

Full Cost Accounting for Municipal Solid Waste Management: A Handbook.

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VEHICLES

Collection Vehicle Lubrication You’ve heard it before; it’s been said a million times: The environment in which trash trucks operate is one of the toughest, dirtiest, and most demanding. BY LORI LOVELY

“R

efuse is one of the most difficult applications, most severe duty cycles,” says Ed Steyn, vice president of engineering with Autocar. He lists factors that combine to make it so: curbing, extended idling, stop-and-start driving, full throttle/full brake, the force on front- and side-loaders, and landfill issues.

Continuous operation, alternating loads, changing weather, and dirt and grime contribute to the test. “It’s dirty; it’s dusty. It’s refuse soup,” says Steyn.

While those conditions are hard on the trucks, they are also detrimental to the efficiency and life of the lubricants that keep the trucks operating.

Location, Location, Location As a chassis builder, Autocar works with OE suppliers to ensure that the “vehicle 60 MSW MANAGEMENT

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works together as a system,” adds Steyn.

“It’s very important to work with engine and transmission suppliers to make sure the customer has uptime. We must comply with engine OE requirements and specs; Cummins must approve use of the engine.”

To ensure uptime, Autocar carefully locates components and has a program to integrate bodies and chassis. “Packaging of components is challenging,” acknowledges Steyn. “We recognize that the vehicle is not just a cab and chassis—which we produce.

The body builder adds components. It’s all part of a system; we must integrate the body and the chassis.”

Placement is important, he continues. “It helps cleanliness. If we locate components in the chassis out of harms’ way, they don’t get as dirty. For example, placing a washout tank above or below the DEF tank is not a good idea; it gets dirty more quickly.”

Because Autocar works with a lot of body builders and styles, their chassis are individually designed and pre-engineered on the product line. “They are engineered to order, knowing what body will go on,” explains Adam Burck, vice president brand manager.

“Parts are pre-engineered to fit together.

None of the hydraulic systems needs to be moved to fit the body: no modifications need to be made.”

Placement is also important for fill and check points. Most check points are under the cab, but tilting the cab every day to examine is tedious, Steyn says. “We use fill points and check points on the outside, in one location, close together, within arms’ reach. They are curbside for safety.”

It comes down to the issue of convenience, Curtis Dorwart believes. The Mack Trucks vocational marketing manager says that if the service check points are easy to see

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and access, there is a higher probability that the system or component will be inspected and maintained at regular intervals.

“Cleanliness is another consideration,” continues Dorwart. “If a fill port or other service item is buried under other components, there is a good possibility that fluid contamination will occur just in the process of topping off a fluid, something we really don’t want to happen. For these reasons, check points for normal service items like oil fill and dipsticks, coolant, power steering reservoirs, and air filter restriction monitors are typically positioned in such a way that a quick visual inspection can be easily done with minimal intervention.”

Cleanliness Counts While Steyn recommends following the guidelines of suppliers when it comes to lubrication and maintenance, he emphasizes good practices: regular cleaning and routine maintenance intervals. “It is extremely important to do PMs,” he says.

In addition to multiple tables and pages in the manual about when to check lubrication, he says alerts are built into the machine system to aid in reminding

“Oil is the blood of a machine.

Send it to the lab, test it, and follow the ‘doctor’s’ recommendations.” the operator. “But you still must routinely check,” adds Steyn.

It’s essential to follow the recommended maintenance intervals for both the truck and the body, agrees Jim Zito, Peterbilt Motors Company national manager of vocational sales. “You need to understand the equipment you have and be proactive to take care of it,” he says. “It is much less expensive to maintain equipment than to repair it.”

Keeping the truck and body clean is essential. Zito suggests running every unit through a wash at the end of each day.

“It helps prevent debris and con-

taminants from affecting a component or system and it makes it easier to spot any possible leaks.”

If there is a leak, he says it should be taken care of immediately. Not only does it prevent any issues with the unit being pulled out of service, but it can help prevent larger problems if the fluid levels become too low for safe and normal operation.

“For fluids, filters, and other parts, we recommend using OEM-approved replacements,” says Zito. “You don’t want to compromise expensive systems to save a few dollars on commodity items.”

Nor do you want to compromise the systems by using dirty oil. “Sucking in dirt creates wear,” notes Mark Barnes, with Des-Case Corp.

Equipment lasts three to four times longer if maintained at acceptable levels of cleanliness. The problem is that new oils in bulk delivery are not clean, he observes.

“Twenty years ago, a British research study looked at a group of construction equipment and the cleanliness of hydraulic oil. The dirtiest contained 42% particles—metal— while the cleanest had only 7%.”

He says fluids are typically 8–16 times

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VEHICLES ensure top performance and long equipment life. It also allows service managers to learn the individual needs for their fleet within the unique circumstances of their application and conditions.

For example, he says, “Some applications may be causing particular wear on certain fluids, filters or other components, so the service manager learns to increase the replacement frequency. It’s also important to keep an ample supply of fluids, filters, and other wearables in the shop for maximum uptime and ease of upkeep.”

There is a solution for all steps, Barnes believes. He advocates oil sampling in order

Grease Is the Word One big maintenance issue centers on moving parts: the more moving parts, the more maintenance. The lift arm features multiple pivots. Not only do pins and bushings need frequent replacing, but lubrication needs diligent attention. The size and speed of bearings determine the need for grease. Fifty percent of bearing failures are lubrication-related.

Grease does more than lubricate, Barnes explains. It purges contamination. Using the right type and consistency is important.

Grease is made of base oil, additives and a thickening agent. The first two are the same

Photos: Worthington

dirtier than they should be. Adapter kits for barrels of oil help reduce dirt by sealing them against contamination.

The typical desiccant breather cannot be sealed. “It must be able to breathe,” explains Barnes. “It’s a tradeoff. The challenge is it’s open to the environment at all times, so it gets saturated with moisture and must be replaced.”

The newly developed EX breather, launched nine months ago, provides the best of both worlds, he says. When it’s “breathing,” it completely seals while exchanging air.

When the hydraulic cylinders extend, oil flows out of the tank into the arm, creating low pressure in the tank and causing the valve to open. Once the pressure equalizes, it closes again. In addition to lasting two to three times longer than standard breathers, Des-Case’s EX breather doesn’t put oil in the air, making it ideal for working in environmentally sensitive areas.

Check It Out “We did a survey four years ago on the importance of lubrication,” relates Barnes.

“About 90 to 95% said it’s critical, but only one-third did something about it.”

Most don’t do anything because of a lack of understanding, a lack of management support (usually due to cost or downtime issues), or they’re too busy solving day-to-day emerging problems.

While keeping up with daily issues is important, monitoring lubrication can keep trucks on the road.

Follow the manufacturer’s recommendations to measure a truck’s fluid service life in hours, Dorwart advises.

“Manufacturer-recommended service intervals should be followed,” he says.

Dorwart also suggests vigilance with filter inspections in especially dusty or dirty environments such as a landfill, noting that the stop/start conditions and dirty environment pose special concerns for the refuse and recycling collection applications that need to be addressed with proper routine maintenance.

“Many of our refuse customers run second- or third-shift maintenance crews that inspect and maintain each unit in their fleet,” indicates Peterbilt’s Zito. Doing so helps 62 MSW MANAGEMENT

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Placement is important to system cleanliness.

to determine particle levels.

“Bigger companies with big fleets and big money do it; 75% of plants with stationery equipment do it. But independent owner/operators may not, due to costs.”

However, it’s important to find the time and money to do it. “Oil is the blood of a machine,” theorizes Barnes. “Send it to the lab, test it, and follow the ‘doctor’s’ recommendations.”

Data determines the difference between guessing and knowing—and in the long run, can even save money. Oil analysis can validate things such as proper control of ingress and correct selection of service intervals. “You can do filter changes every three months or do oil analysis to determine how often you need to change them,” explains Barnes. “Nothing changed in contamination control since the 1970s.

Just do it.”

in all, but the thickening agent varies. Some have more thickening agent.

“Use a different consistency of grease in season,” he says. “Forcing thick, gooey grease through may not leave enough power to push an attachment.”

A lower consistency is required in automatic greasing systems for adequate pumpability. Automated lubrication systems provide many benefits for refuse trucks. They increase up-time and machine reliability, extend service intervals, improve safety for operators and mechanics, minimize downtime (planned and unplanned), and increase the productivity and value of the trucks.

Occasional refilling of the pump reservoir is necessary, but auto-lube systems have been known to eliminate the 7,000–10,000-mile PM interval for manual lubrication. Unlike manual lubrication, which requires the truck to be stopped and shut down, automated systems can lubricate while the truck is in motion. This creates a dynamic grease seal

[ NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2015 ]

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Autocar

that aids in preventing contamination in addition to saving bearings and other components.

The unit sits on the side of the vehicle and pumps on a time clock, Barnes explains. “If set up properly, it works fine.”

Unfortunately, there is a “set it and forget it” mentality. “You need to check grease levels and for plugged lines. It dispenses through injectors, which can become plugged,” he says.

Leveling the Playing Field The demanding start/stop duty cycle common to refuse and recycling collection applications has the potential to significantly impact a truck’s vital fluids, says Mack’s Dorwart. “The most critical fluid impacted is the engine oil, as additive technologies in A good servicing location is no guarantee of cleanliness, but it helps. the engine oil will degrade over time. For Mack vehicles, like the new LR model, it’s also cause premature failure.” off and replaced at the recommended mainteimportant for refuse and recycling collecOperating with the right fluids at the nance intervals is essential, Zito emphasizes. tion operators to measure oil drain intervals in “If a truck is operating with low fluid levels, right levels is critical. Support from the right hours rather than miles.” options, such as auxiliary coolers, is also it can put additional strain and excess heat on Other fluids such as DEF, coolant and important. Operating in hot, harsh conditions pumps and other components, which can also hydraulic oil, are also important. High-quality can cook the fluids and degrade them to the lead to catastrophic failure,” he says. “If fluids fluids that meet the manufacturer’s specificapoint of ineffectiveness, leading to larger issues. degrade or become contaminated, they can tions should be used. Keeping all fluids topped

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Before issues become big, Zito recommends regular oil and hydraulic fluid analysis. “This can provide comprehensive insight to fluid and vehicle performance, helping fine-tune maintenance intervals and helping identify potential issues before they manifest.

Refuse collection and landfill operation can be excessively dusty and dirty, meaning fluids and filters are subjected to harsher conditions and may require special attention.

Daily checks are important.”

Onboard diagnostic systems, mandated by the EPA, warn of conditions where trucks may have a problem of exhaust emissions and have to regenerate. “We took it further,” says Steyn, “by giving the operator more information on the state and condition of the vehicle.”

Standard engine codes for engine faults hasten repair and uptime, but Steyn says it’s still imperative that the operator does regular checks.

When operators don’t, bad things can happen. “DEF rolled in with SCR systems in 2010,” recalls Steyn. “There were initial issues: polluted fluid, dirt, filters locked when you launched product. . . . But most of the issues were just a matter of diligence: wipe off the filter cap to reduce contamination.”

Hydraulic

VEHICLES

Quick couplers make for easy access, but they need to be cleaned before use.

He writes off some of it as the change of routine created by the addition of something new, but adds that “training issues” are partly to blame. “The burden is on us to train,” says Steyn. Autocar offers live, online training every day.

Burck believes that’s partly why they’re ranked #1 in service, but says their “call us first” policy and total system approach on maintenance contribute. As part of Autocar Solutions 24/7, he says they have “ninja technicians in the command center [who]

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Fueling Solutions Regardless of how rigid the maintenance program might be, contamination can occur.

Some factors lie beyond the reach of the operator. The quality of gas is managed by the pipeline, says Jim Rike, operations manager, fuel systems for Worthington Industries in Salt Lake City. “It’s controlled by gas suppliers,” he says.

Suggesting that refuse haulers work with fuel providers to ensure fuel quality testing periodically, he says it’s important to do seasonally because weather effects the quality of gas. Moisture content is always a concern.

“Communicate with the fuel provider,” advises Rike. “The energy company manages the pipeline. The infrastructure provider builds and manages the fuel station. If high moisture content is consistent, talk to the provider.”

Other things can also improve the quality of the fuel being used in trash trucks. Proper spec’ing of components and baseline filter inspections are crucial to the delivery of consistent, reliable performance.

Providers make suggestions for general intervals for filters, but Rike says, “If you’re buying from public infrastructure, inspect to see at what mileage or hours you see contaminants to establish fuel intervals.”

Fuel quality is the big issue Worthington faces as the manufacturer of Type 3 cylinders for natural gas. Reliable performance, safety and efficiency are other concerns for the company. Rike believes the 26.2-inch diameter tank they offer provides superior fast-fill and durability.

“It works well for the Class 8 vocational market,” he says.

It also helps control life cycle costs by helping the engine perform better. “Trash trucks have a lot of moving parts and go to off-road sites,” observes Rike. “There’s a lot of frame flex and movement.”

Worthington offers the only fully integrated fuel system on the market, claims Kyle Takavitz, director of sales, fuel systems business. He discusses some of its inherent safety features, such as the aluminum liner and rigid

For related articles: www.mswmanagement.com

metal support, for minimized flexing and breaking and increased heat tolerance.

“This liner won’t break down,” says Takavitz.

Because one of the three components of the cylinder consists of composite carbon fiber/epoxy resin, it is lightweight, which Takavitz says is critical for this application.

“Fleets want capacity, so there’s not as much emphasis on weight restriction in MSW, but because it’s lighter, they can use a larger cylinder for added capacity.”

Rike points out that the industry recently

adopted the even lighter Type 4 tank, but says they consider the Type 3 tank to be the safest. By fully integrating the tank and fuel system, Worthington has designed them to withstand the application, he states. It also contributes to the liner’s rigidity, which would provide support in an impact. Safety goes hand-in-hand with maintenance and productivity. MSW Winner of several Society of Professional Journalists awards, Lori Lovely writes about waste management and technology.

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WHITEPAPER I BY ALLISON MCNEAL

Three Questions to Ask Before Buying a Material Handler Look for all-around machine performance, reliability, and comfort

1. How Will the Material Handler Perform in My Application?

Material handlers should have extensive reach, visibility, and attachment and hydraulic capabilities to help you easily complete materialsorting and scrap-handling applications. Make sure the machine has plentiful swing torque, dual-boom cylinders, and an under-mount arm cylinder placement. These are important machine features to look for when you are sorting material or transferring it with a fourtine grapple attachment or magnet from one pile to another or into a truck.

“Typically, material handler buyers want more reach and swing speed than they can get with a standard crawler or wheel excavator,” says Mike Stark, Doosan material handler product specialist. “The straight boom improves reach and lift height for better material placement, while the droop-nose arm provides good grapple clearance. With a longer boom and arm, you won’t have to move the machine around as much on the ground either, saving the operator valuable time from repositioning the material handler.”

When selecting a material handler, you should also make sure the machine has advanced hydraulic capabilities to provide power when you need it most. According to Stark, Doosan provides four selectable power modes—Power+, Power, Standard and Economy—on its DX225MH-3 and DX300MH-5 material handlers to help balance fuel consumption and match machine power to working conditions.

“The Power mode is important in scrap handling because time is money when mov-

ing material,” says Stark. “In addition to the power modes, Doosan has a Lifting work mode (available for the DX225MH-3 and DX300MH-5) that provides increased pump torque, low engine rpm and an automatic power boost.”

Before you buy, you should decide if you will want a fixed or hydraulic cab riser to help precisely dump materials into trucks or containers. The hydraulic cab riser can be lowered to the ground for easier cab entry and exiting. The cab riser is hydraulically controlled so the operator can see better when loading trucks.

“When loading material in the scrap industry, you want to be able to see the inside of the truck or container,” says Stark.

“Hydraulic cab risers are a good option because you can get that extra height when you need it to ensure that you’re filling every part of the container or truck to maximize the space. For example, our DX210WMH wheel material handler comes standard with a 6.5-foot hydraulic cab riser for good visibility when loading materials.”

Additionally, fixed risers can easily be lowered when being transported on a flatbed truck because of their self-contained, electronically powered hydraulic system.

2. What Can I Do to Minimize Downtime?

When working in recycling or scrap-handling environments, the last thing you want is downtime. By choosing either tracked or wheel material handlers, based on your jobsite application, you can maximize uptime.

According to Stark, if you will be driving over sharp material or will be in a stationary position, a tracked material handler would be your best option. However, if you regularly move a material handler around a scrapyard or on concrete surfaces, you should purchase a wheel material handler.

Buyers should consider purchasing optional solid tires rather than bias tires for their wheel material handler to help prevent punctures and to keep concrete or asphalt surfaces intact.

Many material handlers have optional heavy-duty underguarding and side guarding to help protect the machine’s structure and hydraulic pumps and motor from potential damage. By having additional guarding, Stark says it can save a tremendous amount of downtime. Additionally, choosing a material handler with centralized greasing points on the arm and boom can also significantly reduce downtime and service.

Doosan

I

f you are in the market to buy a material handler, you need a dependable machine that can handle tough material-sorting and scrap-handling applications. You not only want to make sure you’re getting a good deal, but also that you’re getting allaround machine performance, reliability and comfort for your operators. Here are three simple questions to consider before your next purchase.

[ www.mswmanagement.com ] MSW MANAGEMENT

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“By having centralized greasing points, it can cut down your daily servicing to around 15 to 30 minutes,” says Stark. “You will still want to do a machine walkaround and a full greasing approximately every three to four days.”

Operators should get to know their dealer maintenance department well. They should establish a working relationship with the dealer’s mechanics in the event that something happens and an operator needs an answer quickly. It could be something as simple as an error code on the display panel that can be resolved over the phone. In the end, it’s all about maximizing uptime.

To help save valuable diesel fuel, some material handlers have an auto-shutdown feature that automatically shuts the machine down during non-working conditions.

Operators can configure the idle time from three to 60 minutes. When enabled, the feature will shut down the material handler’s engine when the preset idle time is met. Stark says this can be helpful when operators are waiting for a customer to get into position to unload materials.

Newer material handlers also have online tracking devices—known as telematics—that track the material handler location, operat-

ing hours, fuel usage, and fleet status. These devices monitor fault and warning codes as well as allow you to review maintenance schedules. Gaining a better understanding of your equipment and reducing your operating costs is a win-win, according to Stark.

Options to Consider

Material handler manufacturers, including Doosan, offer customers a variety of options for material handlers (options vary by model). They may include the following: • Additional work lamps • Cab guarding • Frame guards • Fuel filter pump • Rotating beacon • Solid tires • Air compressor • Diesel-powered coolant heater • Straight travel Visit with your local heavy equipment dealer about these options before finalizing your next material handler purchase.

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[ NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2015 ]

3. What Do I Need to Know About Comfort Features?

Operator comfort is another important consideration to assess before buying a material handler, especially for operators who work long days in industrial applications. Before buying, Stark says to check the machine to make sure it has ergonomic controls, a quiet cab, air-ride seats, good visibility to the working area, and a display monitor with machine parameters.

“Operators may be in material handlers for more than eight hours straight and are doing repetitive motions,” says Stark. “If operators can be more comfortable during the day, they will be more productive and will feel a whole lot better when they come home after work.”

Be sure to ask these three critical questions and keep performance, uptime protection, and comfort in mind the next time you’re purchasing a material handler. Work with your local heavy equipment dealer to customize a material handler to best fit your application. See the sidebar for options to consider before placing your order. MSW Allison McNeal is the Public Relations Coordinator at Two Rivers Marketing in Des Moines, IA.

STATEMENT OF OWNERSHIP, MANAGEMENT, AND CIRCULATION 1. Publication Title: MSW Management. 2. Publication No.: 1053-7899. 3. Filing Date: October 1, 2015. 4. Issue Frequency: Bimonthly with extra issue in June. 5. No. of Issues Published Annually: Seven. 6. Annual Subscription Price: $76. 7. Complete Mailing Address of Known Office of Publication: 2946 De la Vina Street, Santa Barbara, Santa Barbara County, CA 93105. Contact Person: Steven Wayner, 805-679-7643.

8. Complete Mailing Address of Headquarters or General Business Office of Publisher: 2946 De la Vina Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93105. 9. Full Names and Complete Mailing Addresses of Publisher and Editor: Publisher, Daniel Waldman, 2946 De la Vina Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93105; Editor, John Trotti, 2946 De la Vina Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93105. 10. Owner: Forester Media Inc., 2946 De la Vina Street, Santa Barbara, CA 93105. 11. Known Bondholders, Mortgagees, and Other Security Holders Owning or Holding 1% or More of Total Amount of Bonds, Mortgages, or Other Securities: None. 12. Tax Status: The purpose, function, and nonprofit status of this organization and the exempt status for federal income tax purposes has not changed during preceding 12 months. 13. Publication Title: MSW Management.

14. Issue Date for Circulation Data Below: November/December 2015.15. Extent and Nature of Circulation: Average No. Copies No. Copies of Single Each Issue During Issue Published Previous 12 Months Nearest Filing Date a. Total No. Copies 24,924 26,028 b. Legitimate Paid/Requested Distribution: (1) Outside County Paid/Requested Mail Subscriptions Stated on PS Form 3541.

17,100 17,387 (2) In-County Paid/Requested Mail Subscriptions Stated on PS Form 3541.

0 0 (3) Sales Through Dealers and Carriers, Street Vendors, Counter Sales, and Other Non-USPS Paid/Requested Distribution 1,134 1,011 (4) Requested Copies Distributed by Other Mail Classes Through the USPS 0 0 c. Total Paid/Requested Circulation 18,234 18,398 d. Nonrequested Distribution: (1) Outside County Nonrequested Copies Stated on PS Form 3541 6,079 5,977 (2) In-County Nonrequested Copies Stated on PS Form 3541 (3) Nonrequested Copies Distributed Through the USPS by Other Classes of Mail (4) Nonrequested Copies Distributed Outside the Mail 418 1,650 e. Total Nonrequested Distribution 6,497 7,627 f. Total Distribution 24,731 26,025 g. Copies Not Distributed 193 3 h. Total 24,924 26,028 i. Percent Paid/Requested Circulation 73.73% 70.69% 16. Electronic Copy Circulation: a. Requested and Paid Electronic Copies 2,482 2,641 b. Total Requested and Paid Print Copies 20,716 21,039 c. Total Rquested Copy Distribution 27,213 28,666 d. Percent Paid and/or Requested Circulation 76.13% 73.39% I certify that all information furnished on this form is true and complete.

–Daniel Waldman, Publisher, 9/03/2015

9/25/15 3:10 PM

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ShowCase CP GROUP The CPScreen is a powerful, versatile, low-maintenance 2D/3D sorting technology that: handles up to three times more tonnage than ballistic separators; processes up to 16 TPH; contains small screen openings to maximize both large and small fiber capture rate; handles both singlestream and MSW materials; consists of screen widths from 80 inches to 140 inches; involves easy replacement of two-piece, patented rubber Cam-Discs, no shaft removal necessary; includes heavy-duty rotor shafts that wonâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t bend; includes CP SyncDrive timing belts lasting up to four times longer than chains; includes discs that are highly resistant to wear, jamming, and wrapping; and provides safe maintenance with trapped key, folding floor, access door, and more. www.cpmfg.com/cpscreen

ONSPOT AUTOMATIC TIRE CHAINS Onspot of North America and VBG Group of Sweden (owner of the Onspot trademarks, designs, and products) announces the new GLOBAL list of Onspot distributors that now include 31 distributors in 26 countries. Since its origination in 1977, the Onspot automatic tire chain system has received worldwide acceptance for its benefits in providing drivers with increased safety and productivity in snow and ice. The Global distribution list can be found on the website, www.onspot.com/onspot_ global_partners.html, or by going to the homepage and clicking on the link on the left side that says: Onspot Global Partners. www.onspot.com

WALINGA INC. GENERAL KINEMATICS General Kinematics screens have been a staple for many recycling companies around the world. The newly engineered SXS SCREEN is the first of its kind in the industry. A side-by-side screen, the unit is engineered to move less dense, soft materials that typically do not convey or screen well. Developed for MSW, single stream, and C&I materials, many other kinds of materials can also be screened. The high stroke transmits more energy into the materials, meaning faster travel speed + better separation = improved recovery. www.gkrecycling.com

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From the day the company produced its first Champion Recycler, Walinga committed to an ongoing program of research and development. Increasingly diverse customer needs drive Walinga to the technology forefront. The welding, component fit, FRP (fiberglass reinforced plywood) side wall panels, and well-thought-out Walinga factory cab conversions all speak to the dedication of generations of skilled Walinga craftsmen. Quality, durability, and meticulous attention to detail deliver a guaranteed low maintenance waste management solution that is second to none. www.walinga.com

[ NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2015 ]

9/28/15 7:50 AM

BULK HANDLING SYSTEMS MAC TRAILER Fleets, operators, and transport companies turn to MAC Trailer Manufacturing because of the structural integrity, durability, and dependability that is designed, engineered, and built into each and every trailer. The company now introduces the New MAC Frameless Aluminum Roll-Off Trailer. It is the lightest-weight roll-off trailer in the industry. With a heavy-duty aluminum frameless design, it offers a lighter weight that is Severe Duty Rated. This trailer comes complete with 75,000-lb hoist capacity, allowing for maximizing load where maximum capacity is needed. The New MAC Frameless Aluminum Roll-Off Trailer is ideal for hauling scrap, C&D, recyclables, and more. www.mactrailer.com

York, PA-based Penn Waste, a locally owned and operated waste and recycling company, has opened a new 96,000 square foot state-of-the-art recycling facility in Manchester, PA. The Single Stream Recycling system was designed, manufactured, and installed by Bulk Handling Systems (BHS). The new facility more than triples the company’s processing capabilities and improves recovery rates, cementing Penn Waste’s position as a cutting-edge leader in the waste and recycle industry in Pennsylvania.

The new MRF is one of the largest in the nation. The new building and equipment upgrades Penn Waste’s sorting and processing capability to 35 tons of recyclables per hour, significantly up from the 10 tons per hour the old system handled. www.bulkhandlingsystems.com

CLEARSPAN FABRIC STRUCTURES

AIRSPACE SAVER Airspace Saver Daily Cover has been manufacturing long-lasting, reusable alternate daily cover tarps for 22 years. They incorporate several heavyduty fabrics—coated, non coated, and flame resistant—to build any size tarps from small, up to 150 feet by 150 feet. All tarps are sewn together with 2-inch (6,000-pound) polyester web straps across each seam and around the perimeter. D rings or hand loops are secured on all corners and edges for easy deployment. Cable or chain can be inserted in pockets around the perimeter edge for weight in high wind situations. www.tarpsandcovers.com

ClearSpan Fabric Structures provides design-build solutions for composting facilities, recycling centers, solid waste facilities, and more. ClearSpan Hercules Truss Arch Buildings feature high clearances and spacious interiors without support posts, ideal for maneuvering trucks, and equipment inside the structure. These fabric buildings are outfitted with frames constructed from USA-made, triple-galvanized structural steel that will hold up strong in corrosive environments. www.clearspan.com/admsw

ShowCase is based on information supplied by manufacturers. Some manufacturers did not respond to requests for information. Publication of materials received is subject to editing and availability. [ www.mswmanagement.com ] MSW MANAGEMENT

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Advertiser’s Index COMPANY ...........................................................................URL ................................................................................................. PAGE Air-Weigh . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.air-weighscales.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 35 ARC Technologies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.controlledgas.com. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 Babcock & Wilcox . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.babcock.com. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5 Buffalo Turbine . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.buffaloturbine.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .44 Bulk Handling Systems LLC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.bulkhandlingsystems.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3 Cambridge Companies . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.cambridgecoinc.com. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 47 CDEnviro Ltd . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.cdenviro.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32 ClearSpan Fabric Structures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.clearspan.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Doosan Infracore Construction Equipment America . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.doosanequipment.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 19 Ecoverse Environmental Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.ecoverse.net . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45 Environmental Solutions Group . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.doveresg.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 17 Freightliner/Daimler Trucks North America LLC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.freightliner.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 27 Hallco Industries Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.hallcomfg.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 69 Keith Mfg . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.keithwalkingfloor.com. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 21 LFS Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.lfsinc.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .66 Machinex Industries . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.machinex.ca . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 25 Mack Trucks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.macktrucks.com. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cover 2 New Way Trucks . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.newwaytrucks.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cover 3 Onspot Automatic Tire Chains . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.onspot.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 66 Paradigm Software LLC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.paradigmsoftware.com. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 33 Perkins Manufacturing Co. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.perkinsmfg.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Cover 4 Qv21 Technologies Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.qv21.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29 Roto-Mix . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.rotomix.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 31 Schaefer Systems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.ssi-schaefer.us . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 23 Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.swana.org . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11 Stadler America LLC . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.stadler-engineering.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 43 TruStar Energy . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.trustarenergy.com. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7 Ty Cushion Tire . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.tycushiontire.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 61 U.S. Composting Council . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.compostingcouncil.org . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 39 VAN DYK Recycling Solutions . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.vdrs.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9 Vulcan On-Board Scales . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.vulcanscales.com. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30 Walinga Inc. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.walinga.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 28 Watershed Geo . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .www.watershedgeo.com . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .49 [ www.mswmanagement.com ] MSW MANAGEMENT 73

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Reader Profile JOHN HASSIS BY CAROL BRZOZOWSKI

J

ohn Hassis’ atypical career path took him from ministry to management of the St. Louis (MO) County Health Department’s solid waste program. Even his job is unusual, he says.

“Nearly every municipal government owns a landfill, transfer station, recycling center or collects trash. I’m one of the few who regulates the industry without owning any facilities.”

His program’s focus is public health protection through licensing facilities and regulating trash hauling and recycling. The program also finances recycling and waste diversion efforts with landfill fees.

The West Lake Landfill in Bridgeton, MO—which hasn’t accepted new wastes since 2005—has radioactive material on one part and a subsurface oxidation event on another in addition to odor problems leading to public discontent, notes Hassis. While its problems are rooted in past action, Hassis’ goal is to reduce the potential for another problem through minimizing landfill disposal.

“My job is to implement and maintain an integrated solid waste management control system for the county,” says Hassis.

The county’s one million residents live on 560 square miles, with 90 incorporated municipalities contracting their own waste hauling services; the county handles collection bids for unincorporated areas.

As vice director of SWANA’s planning and management division, Hassis takes note of other operations’ missions, of which he says economics is a driving factor. Higher tipping fees on the East Coast drive wasteto-energy technology development which would not be feasible in his area with lower tipping fees, he says.

Landfill waste reduction is a Catch-22 for many authorities, he points out, as waste revenues fund operations.

pollution control program. His life took a dramatic twist after six years, when he left the engineering field to go into pastoral church ministry for 17 years. He returned to engineering, doing building code plan review, before hiring on in his present post 10 years ago.

“I really didn’t know anything about it,” Hassis says. “But I do like environmental regulatory control, so I thought this ought to be interesting.”

What He Likes Best About the Job Hassis has gone from being a “servant” of his congregants to a public servant. “I enjoy helping people,” he says. “Everyone has trash and I have oversight over all of it. It’s a lot of customer service, trying to relay to people the public health benefits and sometimes having them do things they don’t want to do or don’t understand why they need to do it.”

His pastoral work notwithstanding, “this is the most interesting, fun job I ever had,” notes Hassis. “I enjoy being able to direct a group of people with a common goal, pulling out their talents and abilities.

There are so many things to research and get metrics about to figure out how we’re going to do it here. It’s more than just public health protection—a good goal in itself—but it’s also about economic viability. For the companies we regulate, their bottom line is making money and if they can’t, they’re not going to be happy with us.”

His Greatest Challenge

What Led Him to This Line of Work

“One size does not fit all in solid waste regulations or strategies,” says Hassis. Circumstances, solid waste mix, and public sentiment must be considered for an effective integrated solid waste system, he adds.

“My biggest worry as a regulator is forcing something in the wrong direction that doesn’t accomplish what we thought it would and hurts more than it helps,” he says.

“I’m very conscious into looking into what we’re doing, how we’re going to do it, get stakeholder input, best management practices and put all of that together in a program that may not work anywhere else, but will work here in St. Louis County.” MSW

After earning a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Missouri-Columbia, Hassis worked in a state-run air

Frequent contributor Carol Brzozowski specializes in topics related to waste management and technology.

What He Does Day to Day In addition to his day job duties, Hassis conducts events, organizes, and provides training for his SWANA work, which also includes presiding over the local chapter. Planning and management is the “umbrella” of all other SWANA efforts in landfill gas, recycling, communication, and education because it’s all part of an integrated system, he says.

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[ NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 2015 ]

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®

PURPOSE. PERFECTED.

DUAL PURPOSE ( O R G A N I C S SOLID WASTE)

2014 MACK LEU DUAL DRIVE · 27 cu yd ROTO PAC ® Body · 12 Foot Arm Reach, Low Miles and Hours · Factory Warranty Remaining · Highest Compaction · Lightest Weight Automated Body Available SEE WHAT EVERYONE IS TALKING ABOUT.

SPECIAL DEMO PRICING! Representative Model

Demos Available for Purchase 2015 PETERBILT 320 RIGHT HAND STEER · 27 cu yd ROTO PAC ® Demonstrator · 12 Foot Arm Reach, Low Miles and Hours

· Factory Warranty Remaining · Highest Compaction · Great Condition

GREAT OPPORTUNITY TO BUY THE TRUCK EVERYONE IS TALKING ABOUT.

FOR MORE INFORMATION CALL

PHIL ALLEN - 800 8311858

15-0577

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