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Long Range Waste Disposal and Recycling Committee

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Committees: Long Range Waste Disposal and Recycling Committee

Mission:

To promote and encourage efficient long-range waste planning with a focus on recycling through the use of communication/education, facilitation, and best practices. 

Communication/Education Goals

• Set benchmarks and goals
• Update body of knowledge
• Update website
• Update flyers
• Create distribution lists
• Involve each of the schools and develop education program
• Involve recreational programs by creating recycling education program for kids involved
• Involve cable television and local media 

Facilitation Goals

• Full recycling throughout the town, including all schools and municipal buildings
• Enforcing recycling and transfer station rules, including resident permits and mandatory recycling
• Develop compost program

Best Practices Goals

• Determine what works for other towns around SWAP areas and implement best practices
• Incorporate recycling and green practices into developments around town - set an example for other towns
• Partner with Hingham League of Women's Voters, ICLE, and DEP
• Analyze commodity contracts
  

2010 Annual Report

In 2010, The LRWDPR Committee continued to focus on increasing resident awareness of the cost of waste disposal and the savings generated for Hingham through consistent recycling. The Committee prepared educational information on recycling and composting for display at the Hingham Library and wrote articles for the Hingham Journal, including an article on the SWAP area to help educate residents on matters related to its operation, hours, and limitations. The Committee co-sponsored a lecture on Recycling and the SEMASS facility where the town's waste is taken to be burned in a waste to energy plant, and participated in educational events at the Derby School Fair and the Town Open House. The Committee now has bulletin board display space on the first floor of Town Hall where information about waste reduction strategies and what can (and must be) recycled will be available for town residents.

During the past year, the Committee also worked to facilitate residents' understanding of and transition to updated Rules and Regulations for the Transfer Station, the new permitting system (access stickers), and the new scale. In addition to writing informational articles for the Hingham Journal, the Committee held a public meeting where residents were invited to learn more about the updated regulations and reasons for them, ask questions, and receive direct answers.

In April 2010, the Committee was charged by the Board of Selectmen to conduct research regarding ways the town might increase revenue through waste and recycling operations. From May through October 2010, the Committee performed extensive survey research of how "benchmark" and other local towns are handling the costs and potential revenues from waste and recycling operations. Five models were identified. The Committee provided education and sought resident input regarding possible models for Hingham through the "Talking Trash" presentation, a survey on the Town's website and a public meeting. The Committee then presented a report to the Board of Selectmen on November 30, 2010. Should the town decide to change its current system, the following models were recommended in this order: 1st - Permitted Access with Itemized Fees model; and, 2nd - Pay As You Throw model. The full research report and summary of resident responses to the survey can be found on the town website (see the Department of Public Works or the Long Range Waste Disposal Planning and Recycling Committee's webpages).

The Committee is pleased to report that the new stickers and permitting process have been implemented smoothly, with stickers being issued at the DPW office weekdays and one Saturday per month. From June 2010 through January 2011, 3,570 stickers were issued to residents at no cost, 329 residents purchased additional stickers for their household's vehicles, 155 commercial stickers were issued to residents with commercial trucks, two (2) permits were issued to non-residents with commercial trucks for a fee, and one permit was issued to a resident commercial waste hauler. The goal of the new permitting process is twofold: (1) to insure access to the Transfer Station is limited to current town residents to bring their household waste and recycling at no added cost; and, (2) to insure that those with commercial waste are accurately charged for the disposal of their Construction & Demolition waste ("C&D"), Bulky waste, and/or Yard waste (via the scale). Total receipts for access permits/stickers from June through December 2010 were $16,175.

By the end of May 2011, all vehicles entering the Transfer Station must display the new permit stickers or show a paper permit. Residents will have the option of disposing of C&D or bulky waste in excess of the weekly maximum by using the scale to assess the fee for the additional waste. Residents with commercial trucks and the handful of non-residents with commercial permits will continue to pay fees for disposing of C&D/Bulky waste and Yard waste. Revenue from commercial and household use of the scale reached $35,000 in 2010. The scale is generating revenue as expected and the Transfer Station is on target to meet the three year payback of the capital expenses for its installation.

Despite a very slight decrease in household waste tonnage (down 4 tons compared to 2009), Hingham's costs to dispose of household waste rose $22,000 in 2010 due to the increased disposal cost per ton in our contract with SEMASS. The LRWDPR Committee is pleased to report that the town has successfully negotiated a new contract, beginning 1/1/11, which reduces our disposal rate from $104 per ton to $80 per ton for the year, with small yearly increases over the 10 year period of the new contract. In addition to these cost savings, the town should expect to see some reduction in waste tonnage with the tighter system of access permits, once the system is fully implemented as of June 2011. Construction and Demolition/Bulky waste tonnage increased by 92 tons from 2009, due to sharp increases in materials brought in after the floods of spring 2010. After the scale was installed, Construction and Demolition/Bulky waste tonnage for the last six months of the year was down twenty tons compared to 2009, demonstrating that the scale has brought in revenue from disposal of residents' commercial waste but has not increased the total amount of such waste brought to the Transfer Station.

The Committee notes with concern a continued decrease in Hingham's recycling tonnage over the course of the past year. Although in 2010 household waste tonnage was down by 4 tons, recycling tonnage was down 47 tons compared to 2009. Plastics and glass recycling are up, but paper and cardboard recycling are down. As paper comprises the single largest portion of household waste, increased focus on sorting and recycling all paper and cardboard is a priority for the coming year. In addition to more consistently following the Commonwealth's laws requiring these materials be removed from the waste stream, increased paper and cardboard recycling will both reduce the town's waste disposal costs and yield increased revenues as our town receives payment for these recycled commodities. An important goal for the Town in 2011 will be to improve our overall recycling rate, especially our paper and cardboard recycling rate.

The Committee would like to recognize the ongoing efforts of the Hingham Schools to reduce waste by increasing recycling (all schools) and composting of food waste (three schools have composting systems for their cafeteria food waste in place and two others are doing pilot projects). The schools have systems in place for consistent recycling of the following materials: paper, cardboard, bottles and cans, ink and toner cartridges, glass and metal containers from their kitchens, fluorescent bulbs and ballasts. Each school also holds drives to collect and donate, for re-use, such materials as coats and other clothing, sneakers, soccer uniforms and cleats, costumes, books and other media.

The Committee's goals for 2011 include: focusing on educating residents about the importance of consistent paper and cardboard recycling; focusing on education about "precycling" or reducing waste at the point of purchasing materials; focusing on education about home composting of organic materials (food waste and yard waste, another waste reduction strategy); implementing a more visible and consistent recycling program at Town Hall; and establishing a "work payback to the town" system for the youth groups who receive proceeds from the deposit bottles and cans collected at the Transfer Station.