TAMRMS#: B06
13.1
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Green Bin Contamination Reduction
Notice given by: Councillor Killick
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PURPOSE OF REPORT
The purpose of this report is to present a motion for which Councillor Killick gave notice on April 19, 2022.
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PROPOSED MOTION:
recommendation
That Administration, following the waste composition study and public consultation in Q4 of 2022, bring forward for Council consideration by Q1 2023 recommendations (beyond curb side education) to reduce the amount of contamination contained in the green bin program (as identified in the waste and diversion report dated Feb 2022, page 14, provided to Council March 16, 2022).
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ALIGNMENT TO PRIORITIES IN COUNCIL’S STRATEGIC PLAN
Strategic Priority #6: Environmental Stewardship: Explore innovative environmental and conservation opportunities.
Corporate Business Plan: Enhance waste minimization strategies with emphasis on reduce and reuse activities.
ALIGNMENT TO LEVELS OF SERVICE DELIVERY
C.4 Waste Mamangement
C.4.1 Solid Waste Collection
C.4.1.c Organic Collection
ALIGNMENT TO COUNCIL DIRECTION OR MANDATORY STATUTORY PROVISION
Residential Solid Waste Management Bylaw 17/2018
Part 2: Application
12. No person shall place anything other than Organics in Organics Carts and hot Ashes shall not be placed in Carts at any time.
BACKGROUND AND DISCUSSION
The City introduced a three-stream, curbside waste collection program in June 2011. All single family and some multi-family properties receive garbage, source-separated organics, and comingled recycling collection on a fixed schedule:
|
Stream |
Frequency |
|
Garbage |
Biweekly year round |
|
Organics |
Weekly (April 1 - Oct 31); Biweekly (Nov 1-Mar 31) |
|
Recycling |
Weekly year round |
A third-party contractor (presently Green For Life Environmental Ltd) collects organic material from the curb and brings it to Roseridge Waste Management Services Commission (Roseridge), where it is composted in an outdoor, aerobic windrow system.
In January 2021, the City’s Waste & Diversion Operations branch was contacted by Roseridge and informed that contamination (unacceptable material such as garbage, household hazardous waste, recyclables, and other divertible material like textiles or bottle deposit containers) in the City’s Green Organics Cart program was widespread.
Under the present contract with Roseridge, contamination in the Green Organics Cart cannot exceed 30%. It was anecdotally noted that contamination, in some loads, exceeded 50%.
In order to continue to bring our curbside organic material to Roseridge, an agreement was worked out between the City, Roseridge, and GFL starting in June 2021.
When the GFL operator arrives at Roseridge, they “self declare” (qualitatively) their level of contamination. If the operator believes their load is more than 30% contaminated, they are instructed to dispose of it at the landfill rather than at the compost pad. The City is then charged as if this were a load of garbage ($52.00/MT) rather than organic material ($46.00/MT).
From June 2021 through April 2022, just under 7,000MT of organic material was collected from households in St. Albert and brought to Roseridge, with just over 4,000MT being composted, and just under 3,000MT (41%) being landfilled. It is important to note that in addition to the financial implications of landfilling organic material for a premium, the entire load is not garbage. Within a load that is > 30% contaminated, up to 70% of that material may be good, quality, organic material. When organic material ends up in the landfill instead of the compost, it undergoes anaerobic digestion (breakdown in the absence of oxygen), and releases methane, a potent greenhouse gas, as a byproduct.
To address contamination in the Green Organics Cart, the Waste & Diversion Operations branch conducted extensive education and outreach in the spring and summer of 2021, including:
• Cultivate the Conversation platform
• 10-week long “Oops! What Goes Where?” Green Organics Cart campaign
o Paid social media ads
o Weekly prompts on the BeWasteWise app
• “Journey of the Green Organics Cart” video
• Curbside Waste Education program focusing primarily on organics contamination
To date, this approach has not resulted in a significant change in residents’ sorting habits; 97% of organic loads were landfilled in February 2022.
The City has hired a contractor, S-Cubed Environmental, to conduct two Curbside Waste Composition Studies. The Curbside Waste Composition Study will take place in the beginning of June and again in mid September, visiting the same 100 households in both studies. These studies will help the City better understand residents’ sorting habits from a quantitative perspective and will better elucidate contamination in the Green Organics Cart. Results from the report and recommendations from Administration will be provided by end of Q1of 2023.
The City will continue with ongoing education & outreach surrounding proper sorting of the Green Organics Carts. Currently, if an operator sees contamination in a Green Organics Cart, it is tagged and not collected. Because the carts are opaque, this method does not capture much contamination city-wide. It is therefore suggested that further enforcement measures be explored.
Approximately half the survey respondents on the Cultivate the Conversation platform expressed support for further enforcement measures such as fines for misuse or removal from the program for repeat offenders.
STAKEHOLDER COMMUNICATIONS OR ENGAGEMENT
N/A
IMPLICATIONS OF PROPOSED MOTION
None at this time, pending the outcome of the Curbsite Waste Composition Studies
ALTERNATIVES AND IMPLICATIONS CONSIDERED
N/A
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Report Date: June 7, 2022
Author: Jay Mason
Department: Public Operations
Deputy Chief Administrative Officer (Interim): Diane Enger
Chief Administrative Officer (Interim): Kerry Hilts