city of airdrie curbside organics initiative presented to gearing up for green carts 1
TRANSCRIPT
CITY OF AIRDRIE
CURBSIDE ORGANICS INITIATIVE
Presented to
GEARING UP FOR GREEN CARTS
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Reduce the amount of waste per household that goes to landfill in 2014
versus 2013 levels.
Municipal decisions take into consideration, our three pillars of Sustainability:
Social, Environmental and Fiscal
CITY OF AIRDRIECOUNCIL STRATEGIC PRIORITY
2013/2014
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WHY NOT BLUE BOX FIRST?
Private companies in Airdrie currently offer blue box services to our residents
Higher diversion can be achieved through food and yard waste
Savings may be realized from an organics program thru reduced tipping fees whereas in a single stream blue box program, the processing fees are higher than potential revenue
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ENVIRONMENTAL BENEFITS OF SEPARATING ORGANICS FROM MAIN WASTE STREAM
Recycling a “waste” material to create a new, useable and valuable product;
Saving valuable landfill space, and
Reducing methane gases generated at the landfill. 5
Disposal Cost Trend
THE PURPOSE OF A PILOT PROGRAM
Analyze operational effectiveness
Gauge citizen satisfaction and address concerns
Determine participation rate
Evaluate effectiveness of education and communication tools
Measure tonnage, waste diversion percentages and contamination
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PILOT COMMUNITIES WERE SELECTED BASED ON…
Mixture of front street and back alley pick up locations
Mature neighborhood vs. newer (ensure proposed cart generally met the requirements of yard waste volumes)
City’s ability to maintain organizational efficiencies while the pilot was being conducted (each areas on different collection days)
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PILOT PROGRAM RESULTS
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5
10
15
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30
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May June July August September
Met
ric
Tonn
es
2012
2013
38% reduction in garbage
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FEEDBACK FROM THE PILOT PROGRAM
Residents weigh-in on the program…“Overall we are enjoying it!”“Once we got started with the program, it went smoothly”“For a family it's a great way to reduce waste.” “This would be an excellent program city wide”
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ORGANIC ROLL OUT HIGHLIGHTSOrganics Collection and disposal are contracted
servicesOrganic Material is taken to a facility 6km outside
Airdrie City Limits for processing
240L Carts - chosen to accommodate volumes of food and yard waste
Rolled out to 14,600 single family homes
129 carts were refused at the curb
Since the program started more than 30 households have called to request their cart back
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HIGHLIGHTS Cont’dWeekly collection May-October
Bi weekly collection November-April
Current tipping fees (2015) for waste at City of Calgary is $110/MT
Tipping fees at organics processing facility is $55/MT
Service is currently not offered to multi family or businesses
Garbage/Organics collection is 60 cents per household per day (2014 was 58 cents)
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REACHING OUR RESIDENTS
Face-to-face communication for an opportunity to discuss opinions and concerns
Grocery store and recreation centre intercepts, a booth at our community trade show and community town halls
Waste Pirates - Engage children to be ambassadors for the program
Staff and Council became ambassadors of the program in the community
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MARKETING MATERIAL
14https://www.youtubecom/watch?v=J9EVkw7RS3I
ORGANICS IN THE NEWS…
JanuaryLongtime composters should be rewarded, not punishedPOLL: Are you in favor of curbside recycling
50% yes, 46% no, 4% undecidedCurbside organics program unwantedResident doesn’t think those who already compost should be chargedWhat does organics recycling mean to you?Who’s responsible for informing residents?Resident says “no” to curbside organicsLongtime Airdrie resident does not want organics recyclingOrganics recycling was passed without properly advising residentsAirdrie resident not sure how she missed important informationPOLL: Do you think there was enough opportunity for public input about the City’s curbside organics program?
29% yes, 71% no
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IN THE NEWS Cont’dFebruaryGroup concerned about curbside organicsRethink curbside servicesCity conducts organics recycling surveyConcerned residents confront council over curbside recyclingOrganics recycling an authoritarian moveGreen bins are just another way to tax residentsPOLL: Did the City adequately inform residents about the organics recycling program?
20% yes, 80% noCurbside organics survey complete, City to use information at open housesOrganics study not sufficientDiscontent with organics program continues
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IN THE NEWS Cont’d
MarchAirdrie resident petitioning for curbside blue box pick-up
City addresses concerns around organics pick-up at open house
Small turnout for organics open house
Green bin service should be a choice
City release video on organics recycling
Aldermen pleased with turnout at organics open house
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IN THE NEWS Cont’dApril (Organics program launched)Curbside organics a wasteBlue boxes are neededCity shouldn’t offer recyclingBlue box service not wanted or needed in cityCity council, administration does not consider alternatives to curbside organics recycling programPeople should stop whining about green binsLet’s return the bins en masseBlue bin petition gaining attention (*currently at 920 supporters)Curbside organics positiveTired of green bin complaintsThe green bins are here to stay so get over itResidents slowly warming up to curbside organics programResident not in favor of blue bin petitionOrganic opinions remain mixedOrganics recycling crazyBlue bin program would be good addition to AirdrieOrganics recycling not the best choiceGreen-bin complaints validSay no to curbside recycling 18
IN THE NEWS Cont’dMayGreen bins a good moveGive green bins a trySome residents do not want blue bins in Airdrie
JUNECompost fee angers Airdrie woman who already diverts organic wasteResident thrilled with success of green binsCity says organics program showing early signs of successGreen bin program is a huge successProgram shows early signs of successCity’s green bins are easy to useNumbers for organics waste pick-up don’t add upPeople use green bins because they are forced to pay
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IN THE NEWS Cont’dJulyCity to tag green binsOrganics recycling program shows success in three months
AugustFollow-up Organics Survey
SeptemberNothing
OctoberCity moves to bi-weekly organics pick-up this winter
NovemberGreen bin no monster
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BEFORE AND AFTER COMPARISON
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Do you have concerns specific to…
February 2014 (557) August 2014 (615)
CONCERN CONCERN
Smell 48.8% 33.4%
Knowledge of program 23.6% 7.9%
Added effort 22.5% 11.7%
Room to store cart 46.6% 22.6%
Pests Not asked in first survey
31.4%
Kitchen Catcher Storage 46.6% 21.9%
Cost Not asked in first survey
21.1%
2014 ORGANICS ROLL OUT Waste vs. Organics Comparison
(May – December)
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5173.07 MT Waste collected
3453.77 MT Organics collected
2014 FISCAL IMPACT
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If 3453.77 MT of Organics (from the previous slide) had been sent to landfill rather than the Organics Processing Facility, the City would have incurred an additional $179,597 in tipping fees.
Survey results
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CHANGING PERCEPTIONS AND BEHAVIOURS (from Aug 2014 Survey)
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STATEMENT AGREE
I find value in the organics program 85.7%
I think its harmful for organics to decompose in the landfill 78.6%
I find the program easy to use 84.2%
The program is easier than I anticipated 83%
Organics recycling is important to the environment 92.9%
Organics recycling makes a positive impact on the waste Airdrie produces
88.4%
CHALLENGESEDUCATION, EDUCATION, EDUCATION!!In the absence of a blue box recycling program it is challenging to keep “recyclables” out of the green carts
Proper cart placement
Contents freezing in winter
Cul-de-sac access
Proper use (what goes in the cart, acceptable compostable bags)
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