v>EPA
United States
Environmental Protection
Agency
Policy, Planning
And Evaluation
(PM-221)
EPA230-B-93-002
April 1993
Guide To EPA's
Unit Pricing Database
Pay-As-You-Throw
Municipal Solid Waste Programs
in The U.S.
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NOTE ON DATABASE AVAILABILITY
The database referred in this document is now available on-line at the following URL:
http://www.epa.gov/pavt/comminfo.htm
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Acknowledgements
Preparation of this document and organization of the database for distribution was
conducted by Deborah Vaughn Nestor of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's
Office of Policy, Planning and Evaluation and Anne Marie Dantonio of the
Environmental Law Institute.
Database collection was coordinated by Glenn E. Morris of the Research Triangle
Institute with the assistance of Elizabeth R. MacArthur, Stanley W. Black, Gretchen E.
May and Andrew D. Bollman.
Technical support and database management assistance were provided by Don
Garner, Consultant to the Environmental Law Institute.
Neil Leary initiated this work and provided valuable comments throughout the
project.
Adam Saslow provided helpful comments on an earlier draft.
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Table of Contents
What is Unit Pricing? 1
About the Database
Method for Data Collection 1
Worksheet Format 3
Sample Applications
Instructions for Decompressing Data Files 5
General Program Characteristics 7
Elements of Community Solid Waste Programs 13
Pricing Structure 16
Summary 19
Appendices
A: Field Definitions Al
B: Unit Pricing Data by Community Bl
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WHAT IS UNIT PRICING?
Unit based pricing of solid waste refers to a pricing system that charges a
household by the amount of solid waste it disposes. This method of managing
municipal solid waste (MSW) has many variations. In a "pay-per-bag" system,
customers are charged for each bag of solid waste, but in a weight-based system, they
are charged by the pound. However, in all cases, unit pricing encourages consumers
to pay more attention to their waste generation practices. Specifically, they may
increase their source reduction/reuse behavior by purchasing goods that are more
durable or contain less packaging. They may also step up their recycling efforts,
reducing the amount of mixed waste they dispose. Since they pay only for what they
throw away, unit-based pricing gives households greater control over and an
incentive to reduce the amount they pay for solid waste services. The purpose of this
document is to describe the database of information collected from 109 communities
with unit-based systems.
ABOUT THE DATABASE
Method for Collection
Data from 109 communities with unit pricing programs were compiled by the
Research Triangle Institute (RTI). The database includes a variety of programs across
the country. Table 1 lists the number of programs in the database by state. To
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identify communities with unit pricing programs, RTI reviewed current literature on
unit pricing and contacted various state and local solid waste officials.
Table 1
Number of Programs in Sample by State
State
California
Florida
Georgia
Illinois
Michigan
Minnesota
Montana
New Jersey
Ohio
Oregon
Pennsylvania
Vermont
Wisconsin
Number of Programs
32
1
1
18
5
1
1
3
1
7
36
2
1
Percent of Total
29.4
0.9
0.9
16.5
4.6
0.9
0.9
2.8
0.9
6.4
33.0
1.8
0.9
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Worksheet Format
The database is presented by community in one-page descriptions relaying
three categories of information1. The first category, General Program Characteristics,
provides summary information on general traits of a community's unit pricing
program. Concurrent Programs, the following section, includes data referring to those
programs that are often operated along with a unit pricing program. Lastly, the
category Pricing Structure details the financial organization of a community's unit
pricing program.
The section General Program Characteristics provides summary information on
general traits of each community's unit pricing program, beginning with the
Community name, State, and the date on which unit pricing Began2 in the community.
For example, examine Arcadia, California, the first community listed in the database,
whose unit pricing program began in 1989. Area Served and Name refer to the portion
and name of an area served by the unit pricing program. All of the community of
Arcadia is being served. The Type of system that best describes Arcadia's unit pricing
program is a subscription can program. Participation in the program is voluntary
rather than mandatory. There are 19,000 households (No. of households) participating
in Arcadia. The program is available to multi-family residences (Multi-residences), but
the maximum number of units (No. of units) in the multi-family residences served is
See Appendix B for a complete view of the Unit Pricing Database Worksheets.
2In some instances, the exact date of unit pricing program implementation is
unknown. When Began is given in terms of the number of years of program operation,
use September 1992 as an approximate point of reference.
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not known. Arcadia's program allows the mixing of solid waste and yard waste (Mix
yw/sw?).
The section Concurrent Programs includes data referring to those programs
that are often operated in conjunction with a unit pricing program. Under the first
heading, Collection services, Curb-side and Drop-off ask whether the community offers
curb-side or drop-off recycling. Both are available in Arcadia, as well as white or
oversized waste (White/oversized) collection. Special yard waste collection is not
provided by Arcadia. Other collection services the community may offer are also
included in this section. Solid Waste Service, Yard Waste Service, Recycling Service refer
to the number of times per Period, weekly or monthly, the related waste is collected.
Arcadia services both solid waste and recycling once weekly. The final portion of this
section asks if the community has a charge for recycling (Re charge), and if so, the
amount of the charge (Re fee) and the period in which the recycling charge applies
(Re schedule). Arcadia does not have a recycling charge.
The section Pricing Structure details the financial organization of a
community's unit pricing program. The first portion of this section inquires as to
whether the community has a Fixed Charge for waste collection services, and if so, the
amount of that charge (Fixed fee) and the period for which the fixed charge applies
(Fixed schedule). Arcadia does not have a fixed charge for waste collection services.
However, if the community does have a fixed charge, the data next answers whether
that fixed charge covers any Base Service level. If so, then what are the base number
of containers covered by the fixed charge (Base no. containers), the volume of those
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containers (Base vol. containers), their unit volume (Base gal/lb), the type of containers
such as bag, can or cart (Base type containers), and finally, what is the period in which
the fixed charge for this base service applies (Base period)? The final segment of the
section presents incremental pricing information in table form. Arcadia's pricing
structure has three increments for the subscription can unit pricing program. In the
first, there is a Fee of $7.80 monthly (Period) for the first (To and From) 60 (Volume)
gallon (Gal/Lb) can (Container) of solid waste (SW/YW). In the second, the Fee is $ 9.44
monthly (Period) for the first (To and From) 90 (Volume) gallon (Gal/Lb) can (Container)
of solid waste (SW/YW). And in the third incremental pricing structure, the Fee is
$2.27 monthly (Period) for each additional (To and From3)3) 90 (Volume) gallon (Gal/Lb)
can (Container) of solid waste (SW/YW).
SAMPLE APPLICATIONS
This section details how a user of the database can retrieve and sort
information to answer specific questions. Examples are given of cross-tabulations and
possible ways to organize the data.
Instructions for Decompressing Data Files
The enclosed disk is a high-density (1.2 MB) 5.25" floppy disk. The data files on the
3The number 99 in the From column represents a place holder, meaning that there
is no constraint on additional numbers of containers that a household may purchase.
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disk are self-extracting compressed files in the following formats in Table 2:
Table 2
File Type
ASCII (comma-delimited)
Lotus 1-2-3 (all releases)
Paradox 4.0
Compressed File
Name
SW_ASC.EXE
SW_123.EXE
SW_PX4.EXE
Data File Names
SW.TXT and SWFLDS.TXT
SW.WK1 and SWFLDS.WK1
SW.DB arid SWFLDS.DB4
In order to decompress any or all of the data files, follow these steps:
1. Insert the disk in the appropriate floppy disk drive (usually A or B).
2. Make the floppy disk drive the default drive by entering the command
A: (or B:)
3. At the A:> prompt, enter [filename] [path] (substitute the appropriate file name and
path without brackets). For example, suppose you want to decompress the
delimited ASCII file to a directory named "DATA" on your C: drive. Type
SW-ASC C: \ DATA
4. At the A:> prompt, type "DIR" [path]. In our example you would enter
DIE C:\DATA
On the monitor you will see file information for the file SW.TXT and
SWFLDS.TXT.
4There are a number of other files, including report and screen formats. While they
are not necessary for use of these two databases, they give the option of printing reports
without redesigning them.
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5. Since the data file names are unique, you can decompress all the files into the
same directory without fear of overwriting any of the other data files in that
directory (assuming, of course, that you have no other files by that name from
previous decompressions).
6. Remove the floppy disk and save it in the event you need to decompress any of
the files in the future.
General Program Characteristics
Program Types
All unit pricing programs represented in the database are variants of volume-
based systems. Within this general category, it is useful to group the programs into
four sub-categories: simple bag/tag, fixed fee with no base service, fixed fee with
base service, and subscription can (see Figure 1). Each of these sub-categories
presents households with a different price signal and thus, affects the incentive for
households to engage in source reduction practices, as well as other measures to
reduce the amount of trash they send to the landfill.
Of the 109 programs in the database, 48 are simple bag-tag programs. In this type
of program, the hauler collects a customer's waste only if it is properly bagged or
tagged. Household service charges are collected as the proceeds from the sale of
official program bags or stickers (tags). Since it offers customers the most flexibility in
reducing solid waste fees through waste reduction, the simple bag tag program is the
purest form of unit-based pricing of the four variants of volume-based programs
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Figure 1
Classification of Unit Pricing Programs
Simple Bag/Tag 44.0%
FFNB 7.3%
FFBS 11.0%
Subscription Can 37.6%
FFNB=Fixed fee with no base service
FFBS=Fixed fee with base service
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represented in the database.
Eight of the programs are fixed fee with no base service programs. These are
similar to the simple bag/tag programs with the exception of an additional periodic
fee for participation in the program. The fixed fee ranges from $1.25 to
approximately $17 per month, averaging about $6.50 per month.5 The fixed fee, in
and of itself, will not inhibit household response to volume-based rates. However,
communities that assess a fixed fee in order to maintain lower volume-based rates are
likely to observe a lower aggregate reduction in the amount of waste sent to the
landfill. At lower prices, the typical household is likely to purchase more solid
waste disposal services.
Twelve programs are fixed fee with base service programs, another variant of
bag/tag pricing. In addition to the bag/tag charges and fixed fee, customers are
provided with some base level of service. For these programs, the fixed fee ranges
from $2.08 to about $17 per month, averaging $9.68 per month. The base level of
service varies quite considerably. For example, sometimes the base level may be
quite small, two 32 gallon bags per month, or as large as six 32 gallon bags per week.
Provision of a base level of service dampens the price incentive mechanism, since
households are not rewarded for reducing their waste below the base service level.
Thus, the greater the base service level, the greater the dampening effect on the price
incentive.
5The fee may be charged on an annual, quarterly, or monthly basis. For purposes
of comparison all fixed fees were converted to a monthly equivalent.
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Finally, 41 of the 109 programs are subscription can programs. In the
subscription can programs, households specify in advance, the level of service they
desire. For example, a household may request a service level of two 32 gallon
containers per week. Because households are not able to adjust this level
instantaneously, the price incentive is not as fully transmitted as is the case in the
bag/ tag programs. For example, if customers subscribe to two cans of service per
week, but only generate one can of garbage, they still have to pay for the second can.
Because of this "lumpiness" problem, the subscription can variant of volume-based
pricing is less flexible than the bag/tag variant of unit pricing.
Program Size and Age
The average number of households served in the programs is 10,605. The
smallest program applies to 200 households and the largest applies to 140,000
households.6 Figure 2 depicts the distribution of the size of the programs. Note that
over half (59 percent) fall in to the less than 5,000 households range. Over 96
percent, a total of 99 programs, serve less than 50,000 households while only four
programs apply to more than 50,000 households. The data, then, supports the notion
that unit pricing programs have been adopted predominately by smaller
communities.
The average age of the programs is nine years, the newest being about five
6Six of the communities were unable to estimate program size and are excluded from
the tabulation.
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Figure 2
Distribution of Program Size
70 -T
60 -
50 -
40 ~
30 -
20 -
10 -
0 -1
Less than 5,000
5,000-1.0,000
10,000-25,000
25,000-50,000
Ili 50,000-100,000
CD Greater than 100,000
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months old and the oldest program being almost 77 years old.7 In fact, two
California communities have programs over 50 years old; Richmond's program began
in 1916 and Berkeley's in 1924. Thus, while unit pricing has become increasingly
popular in recent years, the concept is not new. Table 3 lists the age structure of unit
pricing programs in the database.
Table 3
Age Structure of Unit Pricing Programs in Database
Program Type
Minimum Maximum Mean Median
All Programs
Simple Bag/Tag
5 months 77 years 9 years 8 years
10 months 22 years 4 years 3 years
Fixed Fee Without Base Service 1 year
13 years 4 years 5 years
Fixed Fee With Base Service
Subscription Can
11 months 23 years 8 years 2 years
5 months 77 years 17 years 5 years
Of the four types of programs, the subscription can programs are, on average,
the oldest and largest with an average size of 20,036 households and average age of
7Eight communities were unable to estimate program age and are excluded from
these calculations.
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17 years. In contrast, the average sizes for the simple bag/tag, the fixed fee with no
base service, and the fixed fee with base service are 5,013, 7,002, and 2,436
households, respectively. The average ages for the simple bag/tag, the fixed fee with
no base service, and the fixed fee with base service are 4.4, 8.2, and 3.8 years. Figure
3 depicts a comparison of average age and average size across the program types.
Elements of Community Solid Waste Programs
Typically, communities implement other types of programs when they adopt
unit pricing. The data include information regarding whether the communities in the
database have four of the most common types of programs operated in conjunction
with unit pricing: curbside recycling, drop-off recycling, a yard waste program, and
an oversize goods program. Figure 4 shows the percentage of communities across all
programs and within each of the four types of programs that have adopted these
concurrent programs.
Across all programs, 84.4 percent have implemented curbside recycling. The
subscription can programs are most likely to have curbside recycling with 98.6
percent of these programs in the database operating a curbside recycling program.
The fixed fee without base service programs are least likely to have curbside
recycling; only 62.5 percent. On average, drop-off recycling programs are less popular
than curbside recycling. Roughly 44 percent of the programs in the database operate
drop-off recycling programs.
Approximately 53 percent of the programs have implemented a special
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Figure 3
A comparison of average age and average size across program types
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All Programs
Simple Bag/Tag
FFNB
FFBS
Subscription Can
0
Figure 4
Elements of Unit Pricing Programs
20
|HJ Curbside Recycling
| | Drop-off Recycling
[__J Yardwaste Program
Oversize Goods Program
40 60
FFNB=Fixed fee with no base service
FFBS=Fixed fee with base service
15
80
100
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program for yard waste. Again, the fixed fee without base service programs are most
likely to operate such a program with 62.5 percent collecting yard waste under a
special program. Subscription can programs are least likely to have a yard waste
program. Only 46.3 percent of the subscription can programs in the database run
such a program.
An oversize goods program is the second most popular program with 80.7
percent of the communities collecting oversize goods under special conditions. All of
the fixed fee without base service programs in the database have oversize goods
programs. The subscription can programs are least likely to have an oversize goods
programs, about 68 percent.
The data also include information on various other aspects of the communities'
solid waste programs. In the database, sixteen of the 109 communities have extended
the concept of volume-based pricing to the yard waste component of the solid waste
stream. Further, eight of the communities charge a fee for participation in the
recycling program--the fee ranges from $.21 to $1.84 per month. Finally, in 32 of the
communities, household participation in the unit pricing programs is purely
voluntary.
Pricing Structure
The communities in the database have adopted a spectrum of schemes for
volume-based pricing. The rates structure varies across the four types of programs;
the variation is especially distinct between the bag/tag variants of unit pricing and
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the subscription can programs. There is also variation within program types.
Possible reasons for the variation within program types may be found in cost
differences of providing solid waste disposal services or perhaps in the number and
type of concurrent programs available.8
At the simplest end of the spectrum, the simple bag/tag programs assign a
single price to a standard size container (e.g., bag or can). The standard container
size typically falls in the 30-33 gallon range. The standard size is 30 gallons in 19 of
the communities, 32 gallons in 13 of the communities, and 33 gallons in 13 of the
communities. In one case, Dillsburg, Pennsylvania, customers are given the option of
using a 20 or 30 gallon bag, the price being $1.00 and $1.25 per bag, respectively.
On average, in the simple bag/tag programs, the price for a 30 gallon
container is $1.45, ranging from $.70 to $2.00. For a 32 gallon container the average is
$1.35 with $.75 the minimum and $2.00 the maximum price charged. Finally, the 33
gallon container price ranges from $.50 to $1.83, averaging $1.24.
The fixed fee both with and without base service programs have volume-based
pricing structures quite similar to the simple bag/tag programs. In the fixed fee
without base service programs, the standard size container falls between 30 and 33
gallons in all cases. Again, in one instance, in Bozeman, Montana, customers are
offered the choice of a 20 gallon bag at $.65 each or a 33 gallon bag at $.90 each. For
the fixed fee with base service programs, the most popular standard container size is
8Analysis of the reasons behind the variations is beyond the scope of this
document.
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30 gallons, seven of twelve programs using this as the standard. The price for the 30
gallon container ranges from $.75 to $1.80, averaging $1.36.
The subscription can programs have adopted, by far, the widest range of
pricing schemes. The schemes range from the very simple, much like the bag/tag
programs, to the very complex, with price varying across two or more dimensions.
The first difference between the subscription can and bag/tag programs is that in the
subscription can programs, the volume-based charges are assessed per unit of time.
That is, customers are charged, say a monthly rate. This monthly rate is determined
by the volume of service provided.
Beyond the time aspect, some of the subscription programs have rate
structures quite similar to the bag/tag programs. In Fairfax, California, for example,
households pay $15.10 per month for each 32 gallon can (collected weekly). This rate
structure is similar to the bag/tag, rate structures in that it involves: 1) one standard
container size and 2) a rate that is charged uniformly across increments in service
level.
The rate structures in other subscription can programs are more complex. In
some communities, the households are assessed a rate which varies according to the
increment in service level. For example, in Hillsborough, California, households pay
$11.95 per month for the first 32 gallon can of service (collected weekly). Households
are assessed a rate of $10.16 per month for each additional can. In other
communities, the rates vary according to container size. In Gladstone, Oregon,
households pay $13.55 per month for each 32 gallon can (collected weekly) and $10.16
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per month for each 20 gallon can. Finally, some subscription programs apply rate
structures which vary both according to the increment in service level and container
size.
SUMMARY
Unit pricing systems of municipal solid waste charge households by the
volume or amount of waste disposed; thus, in unit pricing systems, disposal practices
favor greater incentive to reduce waste. This document recounts the Environmental
Protection Agency's Unit Pricing Database, a collection of information from 109
communities with unit pricing systems of managing waste. The database describes
three sections of each communities unit pricing program: General program
characteristics, Elements of community solid waste programs, and Pricing structure.
Each of the three sections are outlined in detail, as well as possible methods for
retrieving and organizing the data to answer specific questions. The database is
available on diskette in ASCII, Lotus 1-2-3, and Paradox 4.0.
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