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1992-09-16 adjSeptember 16, 1992 (Afternoon - Adjourned Meeting) M.B. 42, Pg. 198 (Page 1) An adjourned meeting of the Board of Supervisors of Albemarle County, Virginia, was held on September 16, 1992, at 4:30 P.M., Meeting Room 7, County Office Building, McIntire Road, Charlottesville, Virginia. This meeting was adjourned from September 9, 1992. PRESENT: Mr. Edward H. Bain, Jr., Mr. David P. Bowerman, Mrs. Charlotte Y. Humphris, Mr. Charles S. Martin and Mr. Walter F. Perkins. ABSENT: Mr. Forrest R. Marshall, Jr.. OFFICER PRESENT: County Executive, Robert W. Tucker, Jr. Agenda Item No. 1. The meeting was called to order at 4:35 P.M. by the Chairman, Mr. Bowerman. Agenda Item No. 2. Work Session: Recycling Program. Mr. Tucker said the Board was presented a status report on Ms. Andrea Trank's review of the County's recycling program at its meeting on August 5, 1992. The report-included a summary of the Homeowners' Association survey, program options with advantages/disadvantages and specific recommendations for the recycling program. A work session on September 2, 1992, incorporated the Recycling Program Review, Materials Recovery System Study, Solid Waste collection (including transfer stations), and options on subsidizing tipping fees. Mr. Bowerman said the Board will take public comments during this work session, and they are particularly interested in hearing from the haulers. He then recognized the members of the committee who had worked with Ms. Trank: Polly Buxton, Preston Coiner, Bill Colony, Bill Flemmons, Liz Jessup, Donna Klepper, Randy Layman, Sam Morris, Peter Parsons and A1 Reaser. He then turned the meeting over to Mr. Tucker. Mr. Tucker said the purpose of continuing the work session from earlier this month is to obtain comments about the recommendations from the waste haulers. He suggested going through the recommendations first. Ms. Trank said the Committee started this work knowing there is already a functioning, private hauling system in place. They wanted to work with the private haulers in order to make the recycling program viable. Many of the private haulers are already active in recycling having started under the County's pilot program. Her recommendations are based on looking at success- ful recycling programs around the country were private haulers were used. Ms. Trank said the first recommendation is to have a commitment from the county to continue the curbside program already established and phase-in expansion. Since that program is already in existence and is experiencing problems that are easily solvable, it makes sense to work with the program the haulers are investing money in. The second recommendation is to correct the problems in the current program. There have been many glitches, but they can be worked out with the help and cooperation of the private haulers. She proposed to have a county representative, a representation from the Rivanna Solid Waste Authority, and the haulers meet on a monthly basis to work out problems in the program. Ms. Trank said one of the corrections that can be made is to change the setup at the Ivy Landfill to make it easier to unload recyclables and prevent breakage of materials. Sometimes it is difficult for the haulers to drop the recyclables in. The other change is to redo the current recycling brochure (improve the look, include county recycling logo and space for individual haulers to add their names). These are two short-term items that can be done to correct the current program. Recommendation No. 3 is the one that will catch the attention of most of the haulers. That is to license all haulers and require haulers to offer recycling as part of licensure arrangement. Consider offering a short-term subsidy to help haulers defray start-up costs for recycling. Ms. Trank said she found that communities around the country which rely solely on private haulers to furnish this service had to have some sort of oversight. The simplest way was to license haulers and try to standardize the recycling effort by letting the citizens know exactly what could be recycled. Recommendation No. 4 is to provide, at a minimum, a short-term recycling education program that will include the following elements= work with the haulers, develop start-up educational materials including brochures, radio, TV and print advertisements, provide technical assistance to the business community and work with the Rivanna Solid Waste Authority. This will let everyone know the County is involved in recycling, and make it easier for the haulers. Recommendation No. 5 is to phase in, as soon as feasible, the addition of newspapers to the County program. Adding newspaper, by weight, is a greater percentage of trash than the things that are already being collected in the recycling program. It could greatly lessen the load going to the landfill. The program would require additional labor by the private haulers and added up-front costs for the County, haulers and/or customers. September 16, 1992 (Afternoon - Adjourned Meeting) 54.B. 42, Pg. 199 (Page 2) Recommendation No. 6. is to establish a drop-off center at the Ivy Landfill, separate from the haulers receiving area and away from the scales. Recommendation No. 7 is to analyze during the next year and a half whether these programs are improving recycling throughout the county before considering placing other drop-off centers, establishing mobile manned centers or before considering mandating that all businesses and residents recycle. Ms. Trank said they sent out over 3500 business surveys and a number of people expressed an interest in having a drop-off center. By putting it at the Landfill, the committee concurred that it would not be competing with the haulers. The people who already are taking their trash to the landfill would not be using a private hauler anyway, and this would provide them with a convenient place to drop off recyclables. Recommendation No. 8 is to actively pursue a compost site at the Ivy Landfill. Recommendation No. 9 is to aggressively pursue a business recycling program in cooperation with the Rivanna Solid Waste Authority and citizen groups such as CART (Charlottesville-Albemarle Recycle Together). Recommendation No. 10 is to work out a system with Ivy Landfill staff, haulers and processors to accurately report the amount of material recycled, but do not require businesses that recycle to report unless they send materi- als to outside collection centers. It has been found that businesses are very interested in recycling, but need technical assistance and education and a way to recycle. The reporting is something that needs to be worked out with the haulers~ so the individual business would not report, but the amount of their recycling could be tracked at the landfill itself. The last recommendation is not to ignore what the earlier task forces in this community recommended. There have been two reports issued and those issues should be reVisited yearly to see if they are practical. Mr. Bowerman asked if there were any member of the public who disagreed with any of the recommendations just presented. Mr. Randy Layman said the recommendations are a good starting point, but, he feels an education program is needed first. He feels the key to this is a commitment financially from the County and the public service authority. He is a member of the Hauler's Association and they have discussed the licensing. They feel the purpose of such a license is to make "a level playing field" for all involved. He is not opposed to that, but they already buy a business license, and the cost of that license doubled this last year due to the implementation of tipping fees at the Ivy Landfill. Also, the County charges for a business license based on gross receipts and not on net profits. He said there are a lot of things that needed to be "ironed out". Mr. Bain asked about Recommendation No. 3. where it states consider offering a short-term subsidy to help haulers defray start-up costs for recycling. Mr. Bain said he knows a number of the haulers are already recycling. He would like to know what needs to be done in terms of start-up costs and the length of any subsidy. Mr. Layman said the cost to run a program varies from neighborhood to neighborhood. In the City, it costs $2.35 per household, but, their hauler gets paid 100 percent for each house whether that house participates or not. He assumes that the hauler is not making any money based on the facts that he has seen. Looking at the true cost of collection in the rural areas, only the homes using the service pays for it. Therefore, it is costing about $8.00 per household because the hauler is paid only by the few people using the system. Most of the haulers are not charging that amount, but closer to that amount being charged in the City. Speaking of the subsidy, Mr. Layman said a lot of the haulers hate already invested in equipment, but most cannot invest in equipment until they have a commitment from the County that they will still be in business tomor- row. They need a long-term agreement that they will be in this business in some form. He has heard rumors that the County will not continue the program. If the County is limited on funds, he recommends that it spend its funds running the program the way it is presently being run, pay for the receiving, processing and marketing of recyclables. Of utmost importance is to get the information to the homeowner on what will be recycled, and to let them know that recycling costs money. Mr. Layman said for every ton of garbage the private haulers carry to the landfill, they pay for the Rivanna Solid Waste Authority to be in direct competition with them on the recycling program. He is not opposed to the drop-off center on McIntire Road, but he is opposed to the way it is being funded. It was paid for by the City and the County, and then turned over to Rivanna Solid Waste Authority. The Clean Community Commission came to the Board for short-term money to get them through until the Rivanna Solid Waste Authority was created. They were given $26,000 to continue their program from January through July of that year. Ail of a sudden the McIntire Road Recy- cling Center was given to the Rivanna Solid Waste Authority to take care of. The Rivanna Solid Waste Authority gets its funds through the tipping fees, so the private haulers are paying to run McIntire and the same people who pay the private haulers are also paying for their neighbors who do not use the program September 16, 1992 (Afternoon - Adjourned Meeting) M.B. 42, Pg. 200 (Page 3) of the private haulers. Mr. Layman said he has paid to create his own competition. He feels the drop-off centers should be paid for from general or some other source, and not out of the tip fees. Mr. Layman said he thinks the costs to run a landfill need to be discussed again. There was money put aside for construction that was to have started two years ago, but it still has not started. It was decided to open a new cell and that has not happened yet, nor has it been bid, and that money has not been spent. Ms. Angela Glomm said she served on the task force when it was first put together. She strongly supports the recommendation that there needs to be education. The Rivanna Solid Waste Authority has finally approved an educa- tion position. To give recycling a boost, there may be need to have a position in the County also~ She thinks the position should be at the Rivanna Solid Waste Authority. The recommendation from the task force was to study a regional approach to this problem, and not only the City and County work closely, but to include Greene, Louisa, Fluvanna and Nelson counties as well. Greene has made some motions toward discussing the use of the Ivy landfill, and so there is movement. With the new Recovery Facilities Report that is due, there may be more movement to work together on recycling as a region. Ms. Trank said she did not recommend just turning the program over to Rivanna Solid Waste Authority because she had hoped to get the County program "up to speed" with Charlottesville's. ThiS person would need to work on issues equally between the two localities, and as long as the County's program remains at a different level than the City's program, there might be some feeling from the City about the Rivanna person spending more time on the County's program. Mr. Tucker said it was not intended to be a permanent position, only an interim type position. Rivanna has just authorized the hiring of a full-time education coordinator. Mr. Bain asked about the recommendation to license all haulers and require the haulers to offer recycling as part of licensure arrangement. He wonders how many of the private haulers are not offering recycling now, how many say they are but they really are not and are just confusing the homeown- ers, and what will it take to get to the "level playing field". He said he does not think all of the haulers are "are up to speed" on the recycling program. Some of these people may need to be educated as well. If the recycling program creates problems for some of the haulers that is one thing, but he does not want to force them out of the business. Ms. Trank said there are twelve haulers who have officially become a part of the Albemarle program being run by Rivanna. She found that some haulers had tried recycling on their own, maybe offering recycling once a month. Many haulers feel that other haulers are doing it in a legitimate way. She believes a majority of the haulers are doing the best they can, but would appreciate any assistance offered. Ms. Trank said one issue that has come up for many haulers is the bag that is to be used. BFI, at one time, tried to hand out bags, but bags were stolen. The idea of having a uniform bag with the Albemarle recycling logo on it might make it easier for the hauler to figure out which is the recycling bag. Ms. Trank said requiring a license would give a certain amount of oversight to the County and would also let the hauler know they have the County or the Rivanna to go to if there is a problem. It would also help with the recording requirement by standardizing something at the landfill. She said Mr. Laymen spends a lot of time with other haulers trying to get them "up to speed". She does not believe anybody wants to push another person out of the business. Mr. Layman said, as a hauler, he does not like the license, but knows that there must be a "level playing field". He cannot compete against the person who says he will run the program, and then does not do it. Most of his customers have figured out that he runs a legitimate business and he is willing for anybody to look at his business. He feels that the haulers who are present today would invite the Board to come and look at their program, and see the problems they have encountered. He does not feel it is any use to educate the homeowner until the haulers have a strong commitment as to what they will be doing. As to the "bag" deal. He tried to give out bags and it was almost an impossible task. If the County decided on a certain bag, how would it be distributed? In the City of Pittsburg, the grocery stores had a bag that was larger than a normal grocery bag and all the information concern- ing the recycling program was printed on it. One of the problems was that instead of just giving the customer one bag, all groceries were packed in these bags so they ended up with about two million bags of garbage on the streets. Ms. Trank said some of the programs she looked at had the haulers actually selling the bags. Mr. Layman said he would like to see the bags at some retail outlet. Working the rural areas as he does, it would cost him as much to distribute the bags as it does to collect the garbage. There is also a limited amount of room in a truck to carry these bags. Mr. Tucker said that is the kind of detail that need to be worked out with the haulers. It can be done based on the Board's support of this program. Mr. Layman said the haulers need a commitment that this is the program the County will have, and that the County will continue to pay the cost of September 16, 1992 (Afternoon - Adjourned Meeting) M.B. 42, Pg. 201 (Page 4) processing and marketing of this material, and it will come back in the form of a tip fee that the haulers will eventually have to pass back to the customer. He said the haulers would like a start-up subsidy so they can get back some of the money they have spent, and an education program so that when the homeowner has made too many mistakes, there is a sticker which can be placed on the bag and the bag left. The haulers need the support of the County before they start leaving bags because the competition will "eat us up". Mr. Bill Colony said he came today to congratulate the County for undertaking this recycling program review. Ms. Trank and the staff have done a good job. He said recycling is more than just a collection of various materials, such as glass, aluminum, tin, etc. Recycling should include all organic materials. He said that 80 percent of all waste created in the community served by the Rivanna Authority is compostable. It does not have to be burned or put into a landfill. If it is composted, it is recycled. No recycling program should leave out recycl~ing back into the natural ecosystem the organic material of yard wastes, garbage and other materials that break down (newspaper can also be composted very nicely). These things are not covered in the report. Mr. Colony said glass and metals should not be put into a landfill but should be recycled. The overall process of recycling needs to be looked at. Everybody is familiar with the economic theory of "cost and demand". If the market does not have an adequate supply, it will not demand it, nor pay for it. There are glass and metals outside of just beer cans, soft drink cans, and food cans. There are things that could be reused. There have been developers who made the wood from their properties available to people who needed wood to heat their homes, etc. The report does not talk about that type of recycling. Mr. Colony said this should be encouraged because the marketing of these materials is a big problem. When it is said that it is cheaper to landfill than to recycle, Mr. Colony said he challenges that database. He knows that is not right. If you really recycle, and make it so the market is flooded with materials, the industries that will use that and make new materials from it, are going to come here. Major industries across the country are now getting together to say they do and will use recycled material. He thinks the idea will come eventually. Mr. Colony said if the community that reaches to the boundaries of the Thomas Jefferson Planning District commission made a volume of recyclable material available to the market, the producers and manufacturers who are going to use those materials will come. If there is not an adequate supply, there is no reason for them to come and take these materials and reuse them. They must be encouraged and that is the government's role. Mr. Colony said the Board has a basic report which is a good report. The report is deficient only in that it does not spend enough time on other issues. He hopes the Board will make active many of the recommendations in the report. He said many people worked hard over the years to bring about the Rivanna Water and Sewer Authority, and now, the Rivanna Solid Waste Authority. Don't throw away the opportunity it presents to go regional because the better the volume, the better the market will be. He said there is a valuable cost- effectiveness opportunity in the regional approach. Mr. Bowerman asked if all newsprint today is fit to compost and be used in a garden. Mr. Colony said he knows of no reason why it cannot be. Some of the color inks may give more of a problem than the black ink. That is an issue that should be researched. Mr. Layman said in 1961 a study started at Penn State University, and he became involved through Virginia Tech. The research has already been done. Even the old lead-based inks created less contamination than there is in the natural soil. Mr. Bowerman said that he and Mr. Bain serve on the TJ Planning District Commission and the item of regional cooperation is being addressed by the Commission. Ms. Trank pointed out Recommendation No. 8 concerning a composting site at the Ivy Landfill. She took a short-term look because the other reports had done long-term studies. She did not want to go back over what they had already discovered. Mr. Colony said he is concerned about the validity of the database on the cost of landfilling and recycling programs. It is difficult to do, but the governing body needs to look at whether there is a better way to determine actual costs of a ton or a cubic yard of material going into a landfill versus a ton or a cubic yard recycled and sent back out into a good recycling market. The information may not be available at the present time, but he asked that this type of information be looked at. Ms. Trank said she attended a conference and this debate is going on all over the country. They are even debating whether "avoided costs" can be included as part of the cost scenario. Most people are saying to use national figures when doing these types of analyses. They are more accurate than local figures. September 16, 1992 (Afternoon - Adjourned Meeting) M.B. 42, Pg. 202 (Page 5) Mr. Colony said the tipping fee will continue to go up. The problem is that most of the general public does not recognize that it is for more than just operating that landfill, but there are a series of cost before beginning operation, then there are operating costs, and finally there will be the closure costs. If you are talking about equitable treatment of the haulers and equitable treatment of the public, there are a lot of numbers that are not yet available to consider. Mr. Bowerman said there are some things in these recommendations that do not cost the County any money. If items that require money are discussed, they will have to go into the budget for the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1993. Mr. Tucker said there are already some funds set aside for solid waste initiatives. Mr. Bowerman said the first thing should be to make an "even playing field" for all haulers, but to do so, he believes that all of them would have to participate, and there would have to be some County regulation requiring that. He does not believe the haulers need to pay a fee for that. Mr. Tucker said he is not sure the County needs to charge a licensing fee since the haulers already pay through purchase of a business license. Mr. Bowerman said the pilot program can be expanded, and then the Board discuss items which should be funded to increase participation. Mr. Tucker said if the Board supports the recommendations, that will give staff direction to put some of the recommendations into action. It would allow staff to recommend some type of phasing. Before any type of licensing were implement- ed, he would like to hear from the haulers as to what will be implemented. Mr. Bain said the Board needs to make a commitment as to what it will do, and put some money into education. Mr. Tucker said if the Board accepts this report, the haulers are being supported through this report so that the collection service will remain in the private sector. He feels that is a significant commitment and making the pilot program permanent is a commitment. If the Board wants to do other than that, the Board may want to take a vote on that. By accepting the report, that is a commitment that the County is moving forward with the current program. Mr. Tucker said he is not suggesting that the County do anything today. Staff must look at phasing and implementation of these recommendations. Mr. Bowerman said he believes the Board would like to continue the process as rapidly as can be done, and with as much participation as can be obtained. If the licensing can be worked out with the haulers and the public, it will be something the Board can accept. Mr. Bain's point is well taken, that to formally adopt this plan, it can be done at a regular meeting. He asked for a plan as to what will be done over the next year along with dollar costs. Mr. Tucker said if the Board is ready to accept the report as it is, the staff will bring back a priority list for implementation with costs attached. Mr. Bain moved that the Board accept the report, but said it is not a commitment to do everything in the report at one time. He said the Board needs to keep up with the process. The motion was seconded by Mr. Martin. Mr. Lonnie Dickson said he has no problem with the recommendation for licensing provided the Board makes a long-term commitment that it will handle the processing part of this program. Mr. Bowerman said that seems reasonable. He said that at some point in this process there needs to be some incentive for the people doing the recycling even if that means the government must assume that additional cost. He agrees that stickers are a nuisance, but that is a way it can be implement- ed. He is not suggesting that is the course to take, but early in the process, he would like to have that looked at because that is a way to make the program successful. Mr. Bain said there needs to be better record-keeping by the Rivanna Solid Waste Authority in order to determine what is coming to the landfill. This should not be done solely to show the State the amount being processed, but because it is the right thing to do. Even some of the haulers have been to other states to see how things are being done in terms of the collection, the processing, etc. It is an ongoing thing and will be difficult. It will not be addressed until there is a total education program so people know what it is about. There are so many misconceptions by the public as to what this program will accomplish. Ms. Trank said several communities studies gave their haulers a subsidy for about three years based on the amount they were recycling. Mr. Bill Flemmons from BFI said they pick up at Lake Monticello. Last month, Lake Monticello recycled 20.5 percent of their total pickup, but in Albemarle County only 4.6 percent was recycled. Education is definitely needed. Mr. Bowerman asked why Lake Monticello is different from Albemarle. Mr. Flemmons said they publish a magazine, and call neighbors, and put out a weekly pamphlet that tells how they are doing, and how much has been recycled. Mr. Flemmons said his company recycled 3.52 tons of newspapers from Albemarle County last month, but who cares? There is no place to report it. September 16, 1992 (Afternoon - Adjourned Meeting) ~4.B. 427 Pt- 203 (Page 6) Hire somebody so he can call them and say "Hey, this what I did." Mr. said he carried the newspapers to Richmond to recycle them, but who cares? How much more of this is going on? Mr. Tucker said there is a lot of this going on. Mr. Flemmons said education is definitely needed. Mr. Bain asked how to reach people in the rural areas for education. Mr. Flemmons said in recycling, a brochure they would read, is needed. A coordinator who could go out into the community and talk to the people might help. Mr. Colony said it was found out years ago in the environmental pro- grams, that the message could be gotten out best through the school children. Putting the message across even five minutes a day in the classroom, with posters, etc. That is the way to get it home. Mr. Bain said some people don't have children in school. Mr. Colony said the education program is the number one requirement. There will not be good recycling, nor good management of this program by County staff or the public, unless they are educated first. Mr. Mike Dixon said in places like Lake Monticello, it is a higher income area, and the citizens have more education to begin with. If you want to educate the simple people in the rural areas, you need to print bigger letters, a plainer style, simpler language, actual facts (don't use national statistics). Farm boys don't care what happens outside of their farms. They need to see where their money is going and why. They need to know what is happening to them in this area, and not what is happening in New York or Los Angeles. It needs to be based on what will happen to "our" community. Ms. Trank said she has many samples of materials from other areas that were used to educate their citizens. There are many things available to review. At this time, Mr. Bowerman asked for a roll call on the motion to accept the report as presented. The motion carried by the following recorded vote: AYES: Mrs. Humphris, Messrs. Martin, Perkins, Bain and Bowerman. NAYS: None. ABSENT: Mr. Marshall. Agenda Item No. 3. Other Matters Not Listed on the Agenda from the BOARD. There were none. Agenda Item No. 4. Adjourn. At 5:48 P.M., motion was offered by Mr. Bain, seconded by Mrs. Humphris, to adjourn into executive session under Virginia Code Section 2.1-344A.7 to discuss legal matters pertaining to the Bargamin case. Roll was called and the motion carried by the following recorded vote: AYES: Mrs. Humphris, Messrs. Martin, Perkins, Bain and Bowerman. NAYS: None. ABSENT: Mr. Marshall. Chairman