United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Solid Waste and
Emergency Response
(5306W)
EPA-530-F-99-017k
October 1999
www.epa.gov/osw
Loveland, Colorado
56% Residential Waste Reduction
Overview
In the early 1990s, Loveland overhauled its waste
management system in response to rising worker
compensation insurance rates and aging trash trucks in need
of replacement. The city instituted a dual-collection system
for trash and recycling and a separate system for curbside
collection of yard debris. In addition, the city instituted pay-
as-you-throw (PAYT) trash fees to encourage waste
reduction. In 1996, the city diverted 56% of its residential
waste from disposal; 19% was recycled and 37% was
composted. Average trash landfilled per household dropped
from 6.6 pounds per day in 1989 to 2.6 pounds per day in
1996 — a 60% reduction. Residents pay a mandatory flat
monthly fee for recycling and composting services plus a fee
for each bag of trash disposed. They can also subscribe to
weekly curbside pick-up of yard debris or take the material
to a central drop-off site. A drop-off site for recyclables not
collected at curbside is also available. The new waste
management system, fully implemented citywide in 1993,
results in fewer staff injuries, integrates recycling with trash
collection, and contains costs.
Keys to High Waste Reduction
Keys to Loveland s high diversion rate are PAYT trash
rates, convenient collection of recyclables, and diversified yard
debris recovery. PAYT trash fees encourage participation in
curbside and drop-off waste reduction programs.
Residents must either buy a stamp
($0.85 for 30 gallons or $0.45 for 13
gallons) to place on their own trash can
or bag, or they must purchase special
trash bags printed with the city logo
($1.00 for 32-gallon blue bags and
$0.55 for 15-gallon green bags). The
city's weekly curbside recycling
program accepts eleven different
materials. The city provides
recycling bins to participating
households and requires minimal
DHALU
POPULATION: 37,352
(1989); 44,300 (1996)
HOUSEHOLDS: 17,476
(1996); 15,220 single-
family households, 2,256
multi-family units
1989
1996
Tons Per Year
15,680
17,973
Percent Diverted
Recycled
Composted
0%
0%
0%
56%
19%
37%
Average Ibs./HH/day
6.63
5.86
Net Program Costs/HH $63.16 $85.48
Disposal Services $63.16 $40.36
Diversion Services $0 $45.12
Notes: 2,880 households served in 1990 ;2,928 in 1997. 1990
dollars adjusted to 1997 dollars using the GDP deflator.
Numbers may not add to total due to rounding.
Source: Institute for Local Self-Reliance, 1999.
This profile is part of the fact sheet Cutting the Waste Stream in Half: Community Record-Setters Show How (EPA-530-F-99-017).
-------
sorting of materials by residents (two major
segregations are required: paper and
commingled containers). Loveland residents
have a variety of options for diverting their
yard debris from disposal. They can subscribe
to the seasonal curbside collection service,
which operates from April through November
at a cost of $4.25 per month; use the city's
drop-off site; or handle their own materials
through mulch mowing and home
composting. In 1996, drop-off accounted for
two-thirds of yard trimmings collected for
composting in the city program.
Cost-Effectiveness
In 1996, the city spent about $1.45 million
to provide trash, recycling, and yard debris
services to 16,422 households — about $90
per household served. Materials revenues
reduced this by $81,000 to $1.40 million (or
$85 per household served). Per household
costs are higher under Loveland's current waste
management system than they were before the
MATERIALS RECOVERED
CURBSIDE:
newspapers, corrugated cardboard
brown grocery sacks
glass containers
cans
scrap metal (including aluminum foil, pie, food trays, white goods, and
aerosol cans)
narrow-necked #1 and #2 plastic bottles
grass clippings, leaves, brush, and other yard and garden debris
DROP-OFF:
magazines and catalogs, mixed office paper, phone books
motor oil, antifreeze, transmission fluid
automotive
batteries
fluorescent tubes
grass clippings,
leaves, brush, and
other yard and
garden debris
RESIDENTIAL WASTE GENERATION
PER HOUSEHOLD PER DAY
8.0
7.0
5.0
4.0
3.0
2.0
1989 1996
] Trash ] Recycling
Source: institute for Local Se!f-Re!iance, 1999.
changes ($63 in 1989; $85 in 1996). However,
residents receive more services than before, and
waste reduction may also ensure future cost-
effectiveness for Loveland's waste management
systems as it cushions Loveland against
expected increases in landfill tip fees.l The
city estimates it saves $100,000 per year
through its dual-collection system as compared
to separate trash and recycling collection.
Tips for Replication
Be prepared for resistance to change.
Try to anticipate likely questions.
Enact PAYT trash fees.
Do your own homework to
fit program to your community.
Sell program to those
active in the community.
1At $10 per ton, Loveland pays the lowest tip fee of the
record-setters profiled (and among the lowest in the
country). If tip fees had been just $25 per ton in 1989, per
household costs for solid waste management would have
dropped between 1989 and 1996.
Contact
Bruce Philbrick, Solid Waste Superintendent
Mick Mercer, Manager of Streets & Solid Waste
Services
Solid Waste Management Utility
City of Loveland
105 West Fifth Street
Loveland, CO 80537
PHONE: 970-962-2529
FAX: 970-962-2907
------- |