Download Diversion of Waste The Business Case for Going Green

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Diversion of Waste
The Business Case for Going Green
By Michael Younie
Improving its organics
diversion program helped
the District of Mission,
British Columbia, control
storm water control and
extend landfill life, among
other benefits.
This article originally ran in Volume 12,
Issue 2, of the GFOA’s Canadian Finance
Matters newsletter.
the region determined that composting
was far less costly than other disposal
options.
T
DIVERSION PROGRAMS
he District of Mission, British
Columbia, recently took steps
to improve its comprehensive
organics diversion program. The results
have had a positive economic and environmental impact, including extended
landfill life, storm water control, and
even, somewhat unexpectedly, better
meal planning.
Organic materials received at a typical
municipal solid waste landfill include
wood waste, yard waste, and food waste.
Approximately 50 percent of residential
waste collected at the curb is organic in
nature — typically food waste scraps,
but also food-contaminated cardboard,
napkins, paper towels, etc. Organic
material degrades in the landfill, in the
absence of oxygen, to produce methane
and other gases. Methane is a greenhouse gas that is approximately 21 times
as potent as carbon dioxide generated
by burning fossil fuels and is also a
byproduct of composting.
Recently, the Region of Niagara,
Ontario, commissioned a comprehensive study to determine the true cost of
managing organic waste materials. The
study undertook a full-cost accounting
review of food waste and leaf-andyard waste composting throughout the
region, as compared to other waste
management options such as landfill
and waste-to-energy (WTE). Ultimately,
The District of Mission had been diverting yard waste and food waste for many
years, but it was not in a position to
aggressively promote diversion of food
waste because the receiving compost
facility, in a neighboring community,
was not able to receive large amounts
of material. To address this issue, the district provided every residence within the
curbside collection area with a 48-liter
(12.7 gallon) food waste bin that was
of durable construction, had a secure
locking lid, and was designed to be easy
to keep clean. At the same time, in June
2011, a private company was retained to
start processing compost at the districtowned landfill site.
As a result, the district has realized
savings in terms of transport costs to
the previous composting company and
expects to see further savings in curbside collection, as all trucks collecting
organics, recycling, and garbage can
now go to one location. The results
to date are impressive, with approximately 50 percent of the food waste
being diverted from the landfill. It is
hoped that, with continued education
and incentives, the amount of food
waste within the curbside garbage that
is buried at the landfill will be negligible. This strategy also allows staff to
begin working with local businesses,
August 2012 | Government Finance Review 65
giving them the ability to reduce their
garbage disposal costs by diverting
organic materials.
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66 Government Finance Review | August 2012
The district has also started diverting
wood waste at its landfill. Clean wood
waste can be composted, while contaminated wood waste such as plywood
and painted wood can be chipped and
mixed with soil to reduce the amount
of clean gravel required to cover garbage in the landfill. Wood waste can
account for as much as 40 percent of
a landfill’s total tonnage, and simply
grinding the wood can reduce the volume of required landfill air space by
40 percent without any diversion of the
material. It is also likely that a market
will soon be identified to accept some
of the contaminated wood waste for
bioenergy production.
REAPING BENEFITS
Mission’s organics diversion program
has extended the life of its landfill by
15 years, according to a recent business case evaluation. There are other
benefits, as well. The district receives
some of the finished compost at no
charge and uses it for park landscaping and to provide residents with free
compost at various times of the year
to promote environmental awareness.
The business case also determined that
diverting organics will keep the district
below the regulatory limit for methane
emissions, thereby averting a requirement to install an expensive landfill gas
collection system. Remaining below
the regulatory limit would also allow
the district to sell any carbon credits
associated with landfill gas collection
for a much longer time, if gas collection
were to make economic sense.
Another point to consider is landfill leachate treatment. Given that the
Mission area receives close to 2 meters
(6.56 feet) of rainfall every year, treating
leachate, or the liquid that drains from
the landfill, is a significant issue that
must be managed. Degrading organics
in a landfill are responsible for increasing the toxicity of this liquid, so it is
hoped that diverting a significant portion of the organics will make it easier
to treat the leachate over time.
A proposed change to the district’s
subdivision control bylaw will require
all new urban developments to apply
30cm (11.8 inches) of amended soil — a
mix of sand and compost — to lots. This
is widely recognized as an important
measure to reduce storm water generation, irrigation requirements, and the
need for fertilizers and herbicides. The
need for amended soils has the important benefit of generating an additional
market for finished compost.
Mission’s food waste bin was branded as the “Rot-Pot,” which turned out to
be an important component of resident
recognition of the program. Residents
have let staff know that composting
has made them become more aware
of how much food is wasted, and better meal planning has been one of the
unexpected benefits of the program.
CONCLUSIONS
From storm water control to improved
landfill leachate quality and extended
landfill life, the environmental benefits
of a comprehensive organics diversion
program are obvious. Recognizing and
accounting for the many economic
benefits may allow your municipality to
save green on two accounts. y
MICHAEL YOUNIE is director of develop-
ment services for the District of Mission,
British Columbia.