04-14-18 Special Meeting of the La Porte City Council - Budget Retreat

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REQUEST FOR CITY COUNCIL AGENDA ITEM Budget Agenda Date Requested: April 14, 2018 Source of Funds: Requested By: Councilmember Nancy Ojeda Account Number: Department: Public Works Amount Budgeted: Report: ___ Resolution: _____ Ordinance: _________ Amount Requested: Exhibit: Estimated Cost for City Crew Collection Budgeted Item: YES NO Exhibit: Waste Management 2017 Proposal Exhibit: SUMMARY & RECOMMENDATION This item has been placed on the agenda at the request of Councilmember Nancy Ojeda. The current City recycling program includes a recyclable drop-off location at the Public Works yard, and curbside collection of brush and yard waste for transport by City crews to the Public Works yard where the material is shredded, composted, and converted to landscaping mulch that is made available free of charge to City residents. Summary: The current City recycling program pays for itself. The brush recycling component of the program saved the rate payers over $80,000 in FY 17. The cost of the recycle drop-off center for materials other than brush is about $60,000/year. The net savings associated with the program in FY 17 was more than $20,000 overall. The anticipated cost of a contracted curbside recycling program is $4.00 - $4.50/month/account. For 10,500 accounts, this translates to approximately $504,000 - $567,000 per year before considering landfill savings. Landfill savings would be approximately $28,460 per year. The estimated cost for two-week collection by City crews is $4.75 per month per household. The City cost to pick up curbside is driven up due to the current tipping fee at recycle facilities and the price paid for recyclable materials. Startup cost would be approximately $1,194,000. Previous studies estimate that a curbside collection program would generate approximately 1144 tons/year of recyclables in La Porte (1000-tons/year more than is now processed at the current Public Works drop off location). Landfill fees are $28.46/ton currently increasing annually by CPI-U. Current Single Stream Recycle tipping fee is $25.00 a ton with an additional 35 mile drive over the landfill distance. The recycle fees and revenues are not particularly stable at this time due to the international market. The numbers for the sale of recyclables indicate a limited revenue potential in comparison with the collection cost. As an example, cardboard yields approximately $5/ton baled. The labor cost to bale makes this cost prohibitive. There is no market for cardboard not baled.