01-03-1985 Council Packet Special Meeting

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SOURCE SEPARATION Alternatives Source separation means that a generator sets aside waste materials that can be recycled. Separation is followed by processing and transporting the recyclable materials to manufacturers for reuse. Source separation is feasible for both municipal and industrial solid waste but to be successful, depends largely on the income derived from sales of recovered resources. Markets for recovered materials are subject to wide swings in prices that can affect decisions to recover or dispose of materials. Source separation relies heavily on the ongoing participation of the individual generators of waste. Municipal solid waste is generated by households and commercial and business establishments. This category does not include industrial -process wastes, agri- cultural wastes, construction and demolition wastes, mining wastes and sludges from pollution control and water treatment processes. Municipal solid wastes that can be separated are glass, metal, paper and yard waste. There are secondary materials markets in the region for glass, metal and paper. Yard waste may be separated and sent to composting sites where decomposed material may be used as a soil amendment. The small quantities of hazardous materials normally found in residential solid waste, such as aero- sols, paint cans and cleaning fluids can be separated by the household. Fed- eral and state efforts are being directed toward developing programs to deal with household hazardous materials. Most existing source separation programs for municipal solid waste are volun- tary and require citizen support. Mandatory source separation programs, which would require local communities to adopt separation ordinances, would receive significantly higher participation and recovery rates. Though a mandatory pro- gram would be difficult to enforce, many people would cooperate voluntarily because it is the law. A recent survey of public attitudes toward source separation in the region con- cluded that many of the region's residents indicated they would participate in source -separation programs if curb -side pickup were to be offered either for free or at a small monthly charge. Office waste is being effectively separated to some degree now. Programs have been started at private companies and at state gover :rental agencies to recover salvageable white paper. Industrial waste is often more homogeneous and less susceptible to changes in volume and composition than residential and commercial solid waste. Such waste often has an excellent potential for serving raw material needs. Many types of industrial wastes, however, are classified as hazardous wastes, to be managed in accordance with state and federal requirements and not to be mixed with solid waste. One technique to encourage source separation is to impose a deposit, a small extra charge to the consumer to encourage product reuse. The deposit is refunded when the reusable portion of the product is returned. State law would be required to implement mandatory deposit programs in Minnesota. 22