Memorandum

City of Lawrence

Public Works Department

TO:	David Corliss, City Manager Charles Soules, Public Works Director
FROM:	Tammy Bennett, Assistant Public Works Director
CC:	Craig Pruett, Solid Waste Operations Supervisor Kathy Richardson, Waste Reduction and Recycling Operations Supervisor
Date:	April 16, 2012
RE:	Implementation of roll-out carts for solid waste trash service

Please place the following item on the June 12, 2012 City Commission consent agenda:

Approve trash cart implementation recommendation and authorize staff to proceed with bidding carts. 

Background:

The Solid Waste Task Force Report was presented to the Lawrence City Commission on February 28, 2012.  During the study session and city commission meeting, much discussion focused on worker safety in the collection of single family residential trash. 

The Solid Waste Task Force (SWTF) recommended providing roll-out carts for residential services, which can be utilized immediately with the current fleet of semi-automated trucks.  The SWTF further recommended the initial implementation of a cart system for trash that includes a standard cart in the base solid waste rate.  At the February 28, 2012 meeting, the City Commission stated the provision of carts was a top priority because of worker safety.  The City Commission requested an implementation plan that would address costs, program implementation, and any immediate equipment changes required.

Recommended cart program and implementation plan

Staff recommends the standard trash container to be a 65-gallon roll-out cart.  The standard cart would be included in the residential solid waste rate of $14.94 per month.  The 65-gallon cart should be adequate for average trash set-outs for a household of four, particularly those that recycle at least some of their waste.  Larger carts of 90-gallon capacity will be available for an additional $1.00 per month.  The 90-gallon carts are a good alternative for larger households and those who regularly exceed the 65-gallon capacity.  Route drivers and supervisors will keep a log of households that regularly exceed the 65-gallon cart.  The fee covers the additional landfill tonnage between the two cart sizes. 

Staff recommends that 35-gallon carts be made available to households that cannot accommodate the standard cart.  For the first year of the container program, staff recommends the 35-gallon carts be available on a swap-out basis but households that choose the 35-gallon carts do not receive a discount to their monthly solid waste rate.  As the task force learned from other communities, people tend to underestimate their trash volumes by a significant margin.  Staff cautions against providing a financial incentive to under-size the trash container.  The solid waste rate structure will be evaluated in future years to consider utilization of various cart sizes, frequency of households exceeding cart capacity, and so on. 

The financial impact on households for this program is neutral or positive.  There will be no change in the monthly solid waste rate for households that currently do not rent a city cart.  Their monthly fee will remain $14.94 and a cart will be delivered for their use.  There will be a savings for households that currently rent a cart from the city, between $1.00 and $2.00 per month, depending on cart size.  Residents who keep the 90-gallon cart will save $1.00 per month.  Households that keep a 65-gallon cart will save the $1.50 rental fee monthly.  Households who currently rent a 90-gallon but switch to a 65-gallon cart will save $2.00 monthly.  There are currently over 7,000 households renting city carts at this time, most of which are 90-gallon carts.

Additional carts would be available for a monthly fee of $3.00 and $4.00 for 65- and 90-gallon carts, respectively.  Fees for additional carts cover capital costs, labor time, and landfill fees.

Funding

The cost estimate for the initial capital expenditures is $1,136,250, if all options are added.  The Solid Waste Fund has $1,120,000 available in equipment reserve for the implementation of a cart program.  The remaining $16,250 would be paid from the operating budget for 2012.  Available funding will be sufficient to cover the implementation costs. 

Further, staff has completed a preliminary budget recommendation for the 2013 budget year which balances revenues and expenditures with no annual solid waste rate increase. Revenue projections for roll-out cart rental were reduced by $170,000.  The budget recommendation will include reduction of one staff position (currently vacant) and evaluation by the Fleet Manager in 2013 for eliminating one stand-by trash truck.  The budget recommendation anticipates rising costs in landfill price per ton, fuel, employee benefits, and equipment maintenance.

Education and outreach

Dedicated customer service, along with education and outreach will be critical to successful implementation of the cart program.  Cart manufacturers have experience with large scale roll-outs and can provide valuable assistance with customer call-in needs for a fee.  A comprehensive communication plan will be developed to include most of the following items:

City of Lawrence communication tools:

· News releases

· City Manager’s report to the City Commission

· City email subscription - Solid Waste Task Force, Sustainability Advisory Board and Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

· The Flame - city’s newsletter

· Utility bill insert

· Channel 25 - slides or video/commercial

· Websites - lawrenceks.org and lawrenceks.org/wrr

· Facebook - facebook.com/CityOfLawrence and facebook.com/LawrenceRecycles

· Twitter

· The Phoenix - city employee newsletter

· Posters at each city building

Other communication tools:

· Developing brochures or flyers

· Hosting an event to let citizens look at the carts

· Cart display at City Hall

· Staffing booth at a city event (Earth Day and Energy Fair)

· Staffing booth at other community events

· Presentations at neighborhood association meetings and other community groups

· Community listservs - Neighborhood Associations, Sustainability Action Network and Lawrence Sustainability Network

Paid advertising:

· Direct mail postcards or door hangers

· Newspapers (print ads) - Lawrence Journal World and University Daily Kansan

· Newspapers (online ads) - ljworld.com, Lawrence.com and Kansan.com

· Radio - KPR and KLWN

· Commercial - Knology

· Movie theatre screen ads

We will dedicate staff to assist residents who have problems or concerns both before carts are delivered and after. 

Timeline

Technical specifications for injection-molded roll-out carts can be ready for bid within two weeks.  The cart bid can be awarded by early summer.  Cart delivery to homes would be targeted to start in mid- to late-September. 

Equipment

All rear load trash trucks are equipped with two semi-automated cart dumpers.  The Solid Waste Division will be able to reduce manual lifting of containers as soon as the roll-out carts are delivered.  A dual side-loader with four cart dumpers was deployed in the fleet in 2011.  As equipment is replaced, staff will evaluate increasing types of automation where it is feasible to do so.   

Old trash cans

Residents have asked what can be done with their trash cans currently in use. The primary recommendation for existing trash cans is reuse, particularly for yard trimmings or excess spring / fall clean up.  For residents who do not wish to keep their old trash cans, recycling options will be available for a defined period of time after the new city carts are delivered.  Cart vendors submitting bids will be asked if they offer a recycling service for plastic trash cans.  Some reuse the resin as an input for new roll-out carts.  Reuse and recycling options will be highlighted in outreach materials.

Recommended action:

Approve trash cart implementation recommendation and authorize staff to proceed with bidding carts.