1. City of Houston Wood Waste Diversion Program
SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing

2. Wood Waste Diversion Overview
Landfill Airspace Preservation
Recycling Case
Greenhouse Gas and Air Quality
Financial Impact of Program
Disposal Cost Reduction
Fuel Savings
Personnel Savings
Pilot Area Review
Next Steps
Questions
SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing

3. Landfill Airspace Preservation
Available airspace cited by Solid Waste Task Force as major business concern to the City’s Solid Waste Management Program.
The City doesn’t own a landfill and must negotiate pricing for precious airspace commodity.
Area growth and development consuming nearby land which will also drive future disposal costs.
SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing

4. Houston Area Landfills
Direct Hauls / Lower Costs
Allied McCarty (NE)
Allied Whispering Pines (NE)
Allied Blue Ridge (SW)
WM Atascocita* (NE)
SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing

5. SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing

6. Wood Waste Recycling – Fiscal Issues
COH must be a good steward of public resources (tax dollars).
Wood waste material is easily recyclable.
Sufficient local markets for material.
Disposal Costs increase on average of approx. $900K per year.
Proper Environmental Stewardship as a “Green City”.
Carbon Credits to be gained.
Potential Revenue for the sale of Carbon Credits.
Greater Houston Area Density Projected to significantly increase in near future.
Houston, Sugarland, Baytown population expected to grow from 4.7M in year 2000 to between 8.4M – 11.1M by year 2040.*
Harris County Population expected to grow from 3.4M in year 2000 to between 5.8M – 6.6M by year 2040.*
* Texas State Data Center 2006 population projections.
SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing

7. SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing
Air Quality
Houston air quality is monitored very intensely by governmental units and private industry.
At least 141 air pollution monitors screening for up to 138 chemical compounds.
Several initiatives in process to improve Houston air quality.
Wood Waste Diversion contributes to improved air quality with landfill GHG reduction.
“Houston Smog”
SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing

8. Top 20 U.S. Counties in GHG Emissions
Harris, Texas (Houston) — million tons of carbon per year
Los Angeles, Calif. (Los Angeles) —
Cook, Ill. (Chicago) —
Cuyahoga, Ohio (Cleveland) —
Wayne, Mich. (Detroit) — 8.270
San Juan, N.M. (Farmington) — 8.245
Santa Clara, Calif. (San Jose) — 7.995*
Jefferson, Ala. (Birmingham) — 7.951
Wilcox, Ala. (Camden) — 7.615
East Baton Rouge, La. (Baton Rouge) — 7.322
Titus, Texas (Mt. Pleasant) — 7.244
Carbon, Pa. (Jim Thorpe) — 6.534
Porter, Ind. (Valparaiso) — 6.331
Jefferson, Ohio (Steubenville) — 6.278
Indiana, Pa. (Indiana) — 6.224
Middlesex, Mass. (Boston metro area) — 6.198
Bexar, Texas (San Antonio) — 6.141
Hillsborough, Fla. (Tampa) — 6.037
Suffolk, N.Y. (New York metro area) — 6.030
Clark, Nev. (Las Vegas) — 5.955
SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing

9. Greenhouse Gas Reductions
Reduce GHG Emissions by 14,980 MTCE
Equivalent to taking 10,785 passenger cars off the road for one year
*EPA Waste Reduction Model (WARM)
SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing

10. Wood Waste Diversion Low Hanging Financial Fruit
Average Annual Heavy Trash Collected by SWMD approx. 300,000 tons.
30% - 40% Green Waste
Average Tipping Fee of $32.00 per ton.
30% reduction equals 90,000 tons
Direct disposal savings of $2.9 Million.
Net after grinding savings of $1.71 Million.
SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing

11. SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing

12. Regional Population and Disposal Growth
SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing

13. Wood Waste Recycling Diversion
The amount of material to be diverted, approximately 90,000 Tons; or close to 660,000 cubic yards
If stacked on the playing field of Reliant Stadium, (54,000 sq. feet) would reach nearly 1000 feet high, the height of Chase Tower
SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing

14. Wood Waste Pilot Program
Approximately 47,000 homes in pilot area.
Estimated tons not landfilled 30% - 40% of normal service.
Estimated Cost Savings of $260,000 for pilot area.
Grinding Savings of $10 - $15 per ton donated by LETCO (pilot area only).
Council Districts Currently Affected: A, B, C, D, F, G, H
SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing

15. SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing

16. SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing
Pilot Area Review
70% Reduction in landfilled material.
$225,000 in disposal savings.
$97,000 contributed by LETCO for grinding pilot period.
SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing

17. SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing
Next Steps
Approve wood waste grinding contract.
Posted on council agenda within two weeks.
Implement Wood Waste Program Citywide
Immediately begin education process.
Community Meetings.
Direct Mail / Door to door.
Radio / TV / Phone Bank
Start Date of 1 October 2008.
SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing

18. Other Steps for Reduction - 1
Gain further waste reduction with yard waste diversion strategies – biodegradable bags.
SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing

19. Other Steps for Reduction - 2
Review/Expansion of Curbside Recycling Program
Drop low performing neighborhoods.
Add new “productive” neighborhoods.
Encourage and assist major business centers with recycling efforts.
Downtown
Texas Medical Center
Galleria Area
Energy Corridor
Bring a single stream processing facility to Houston Market Area.
SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing

20. Other Steps for Reduction - 3
Enhanced Community Education
Promote Backyard composting.
Partnerships
Keep Houston Beautiful
School Districts
Business Management Districts
Private Sector
SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing

21. SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing
Questions
SWMD - Wood Waste Briefing