The report from SWANA's Applied Research Foundation provides guidance on managing waste and recycling collection services.
The Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA), Silver Spring, Maryland, has released a report highlighting best practices to address truck driver shortages and a declining availability of waste and recycling collection personnel.
The report, which was released by SWANA’s Applied Research Foundation (ARF), presents tools and best practices to provide waste and recycling collection services optimally and efficiently. Called “Efficient Management of Waste & Recycling Collection Resources,” the report follows a study released in December 2021 called “Encouraging Better Curbside Recycling Behaviors,” which assessed the effectiveness of “recycle right” educational programs.
“In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, the efficient allocation of personnel and equipment resources in the provision of waste and recycling collection services is more essential than ever,” says David Biderman, SWANA executive director and CEO. “This new report provides solid waste, recycling and sustainability managers with useful guidance and benchmarks for streamlined collection operations.”
According to the report, capital costs are estimated to account for 19 percent of total collection deployment costs, while labor costs account for 39 percent of total costs. ARF says collection services should be managed so that no routes are uncollected because of the lack of functioning collection equipment.
Furthermore, analysis in the report indicates annual maintenance and repair costs are roughly equivalent to the annual capital costs. As a result, deferring the purchase of new vehicles at the end of optimal service life likely will increase total service costs.
The report notes that solid waste collection vehicles have a “useful” life, after which they should be retired from service and replaced with newer vehicles. The optimal life of a solid waste collection vehicle will vary depending on average annual miles driven/hours of operation, local operating conditions, local maintenance practices, vehicle make and manufacturer.
Additional research findings the report presents address various questions regarding the efficient use of personnel and equipment in the delivery of waste and recycling collection services. SWANA recommends that local governments collect and analyze on-route productivity data to evaluate the productivity and performance of their collection crews compared to their peers.
Additionally, the report says governments should budget for and develop equipment and labor backup strategies that enable them to staff and serve routes every collection day. They should also determine and adhere to equipment service lives that minimize life cycle costs associated with their collection equipment.
Finally, SWANA says operators should take advantage of new routing software to develop daily routes quickly and efficiently for on-demand services.
“We are proud to be able to provide this report that addresses such an important and timely topic for SWANA ARF subscribers,” says Jeremy O’Brien, SWANA director of applied research. “SWANA would like to recognize and thank the organizations that comprise the ARF’s collection group subscribers that identified and voted on this topic as well as supported and assisted in the research.”
The full report is currently only available to SWANA ARF subscribers. SWANA members receive free access to the report one year after publication. Download the executive summary here.
The majority of new capacity is for mills producing linerboard and corrugated medium.
The Northeast Recycling Council (NERC), headquartered in Brattleboro, Vermont, has released an update to its “Summary of Announced Increased Capacity to use Recycled Paper” report, which it says reflects continuing progress toward using more recycled paper in North America and includes completed projects as well as those approaching projected opening dates.
NERC first published the list in 2018, which at the time included new capacity projects at 17 mills—three of which had been completed. The previous update was in June 2021, and the most recent update includes 28 new mills, including four new mills among 17 completed projects. Much of the new capacity is occurring at existing or closed mills. In some instances, mills are adding new capacity, and, in other cases, they are converting existing papermaking machines to produce different end products. This list includes two mills that are consolidating production from existing facilities and one that will use food-contaminated paper from commercial sources.
According to NERC, the announcement of a new mill does not guarantee it will be built because of the high costs of siting, permitting and building a new mill. Economic circumstances and demand for final products will determine the viability of each project.
The following projects have been completed since the June 2021 update to the report:
According to NERC, the following projects have been announced and are awaiting completion:
The majority of new capacity increases are for mills producing linerboard and corrugated medium and will use old corrugated containers (OCC) as their primary feedstock. According to NERC, the facilities are unlikely to use mixed paper unless their stock preparation systems allow for its uses, but about half of the announced mills plan to use some mixed paper.
If all projects are completed, they will use more than eight million tons per year of OCC and mixed paper.
The full report can be accessed online.
This year the association honors 11 recipients of the safety award.
The Construction & Demolition Recycling Association (CDRA), Chicago, has announced the 2022 Best Practices in Safety award recipients. The awards will be presented at C&D World 2022, Atlanta, March 13-15.
This year’s Gold Recipients include:
DTG Recycle, Mill Creek, Washington;
Lautenbach Recycling, Mount Vernon, Washington;
Michael Brothers Hauling & Recycling, Pittsburgh;
Premier Recycle Company, San Jose, California; and,
R&B Debris, Hainseport, New Jersey; and,
JR Ramon Demolition, San Antonio, Texas.
The CDRA says construction and demolition recycling and related operations have inherent risk factors and the most successful operators have created a specific action plan to minimize those risks and create a culture of safety. The CDRA developed the Best Practices in Safety awards program to recognize companies that have achieved a high level of safety management and to identify a level of safety performance that will help C&D operators manage their business.
For more information, email info@cdrecycling.org.
Don Ross will replace Ben Harvey as chairman of the board of trustees for the organization.
The National Waste & Recycling Association (NWRA), Arlington, Virginia, has elected Don Ross to serve as chairman of the board of trustees and reelected Dave Call as its treasurer. Their terms will commence at the conclusion of the board meeting being held at WasteExpo in May.
“I am excited to be working with Don in his new role as chairman with the enthusiasm and ideas that he brings to everything that he tackles,” says Darrell Smith, NWRA president and CEO. “Likewise, I am pleased that Dave will continue to serve as our treasurer. I look forward to working with Don and Dave as they both bring tremendous experience and I appreciate their perspective.”
Ross is the vice president of McLaughlin Family Cos., Scranton, Iowa.
Call is the senior vice president for business development at Republic Services, Phoenix.
NWRA says it has traditionally alternated the chairmanship between its services and suppliers members.
Ross will replace Ben Harvey, who is completing his sixth consecutive one-year term as chairman. Harvey will continue to serve as a member of the board.
“I congratulate Ben on his successful chairmanship during which he has led NWRA to unprecedented heights in financial performance, advocacy and safety,” Smith says. “His continued service on the board of trustees will help ensure a smooth transition.”
The partnership offers additional, complementary system solutions to meet application needs in organics and construction and demolition.
ML Environmental Group, a Denver-based supplier of equipment and systems for processing solid and organics waste, has announced a partnership and exclusive United States distribution agreement with Scott Equipment Co., a New Prague, Minnesota-based manufacturer of the Turbo Separator and GypStream product lines.
"When we consider a company and brand as a potential solution partner, the most important characteristics we look at are that our company cultures, values and visions align," says Brandon Lapsys, ML Environmental Group president. "Scott Equipment Co. checks all of those boxes and so many more. They have a world-class product that has been proven in the marketplace for nearly three decades."
ML Environmental Group, the parent company to Komptech Americas and Plexus Recycling Technologies, says the patented Turbo Separator depackaging technology is a natural fit for Komptech customers in the food waste and organics recovery market. In addition, MLE customers have a new solution to process gypsum wallboard or drywall in the construction and demolition recycling market.
According to the companies, benefits of this strategic partnership include:
Komptech Americas customers gain the ability to implement preprocessing and separation systems for food waste depackaging into their organics waste processes.
The Turbo Separator and GypStream systems effectively complement Komptech Americas' equipment technologies, giving a broader audience reach to both companies, regionally and nationally.
ML Environmental Group is the exclusive dealer for Turbo Separator organics systems for composting and Gypstream drywall recycling systems in the United States, excluding California.
"Our recycling systems, including both the food waste organics recovery system and the gypsum wallboard separation and recovery machines, position nicely with ML Environmental Group's vision to offer their customers an end-to-end solution," says Kevin Pedretti, business development and product marketing manager at Scott Equipment Co.