Materials Recovery Facility Technology Upgrades

The District made a $3.5 million retrofit to its Materials Recovery Facility (MRF) in summer 2020 to improve diversion and increase revenue of recycled materials. Even with increased contamination in the recycling stream during the pandemic (from 20% to 30% year-over-year), the MRF has increased its diversion by one percent (1%). The MRF is also on track to increase revenue $1.1 million/year.

Bulk Handling Systems (BHS), the system designer and manufacturer, installed three pieces of equipment: (1) a cardboard separation screen, (2) an optical sorter to recover bottles and cans from residue line, and (3) a fiber optical sorting system that separates smaller brown-grade cardboard (like cereal boxes) from newspaper and junk mail.

The District anticipates the payback on the capital is about three years, while the upgrades will last at least ten years. The increase in revenue is achieved by lowering facility operational costs, improving the quality and marketability of recyclables, and recovering more recyclables like California Redemption Value (CRV) bottle and cans. This investment ultimately benefits rate payers and allows for future investments in technology that furthers efficiency and diversion, including robotics and other artificial intelligence systems.

You can read more about the report out on the Residential Single Stream Fiber and Residual Recovery Retrofit in the February 2021 board packet.

Here is a video of the fiber (aka paper) optical sorting system. On the left you can see the newly separated brown-grade cardboard, which has a higher market value and makes the paper bale quality higher.

 

Treated Wood Waste Banned from Class III Landfills starting January 1, 2021

Monterey Regional Waste Management District (MRWMD) will no longer able to accept any amount of treated wood waste (TWW) starting January 1st due to a change in state regulations overseen by the Department of Toxic Substances Control (DTSC). DTSC defines TWW as wood treated with chemical preservatives to prevent wood rot and decay from weathering, insects, and fungus. Examples of TWW include treated decking, fence posts, pilings, landscaping timber, sill plates, and guardrails.

TWW is considered hazardous waste and is accepted only at Class I Hazardous Waste Landfills that manage the most toxic materials. As a Class III Non-Hazardous Municipal Solid Waste Landfill that manages the least toxic materials, MRWMD will reject all loads containing TWW. Any loads found containing TWW will be subject to return to the customer, penalties, and potential criminal violations of illegal disposal of hazardous materials by a regulatory agency.

There are two TWW disposal options moving forward: (1) Arrangements can be made for pick-up by a certified hazardous waste contractor known by CalRecycle or (2) TWW can be taken directly to Class I Hazardous Waste Landfills.

Where is the closest Class I Landfill?

Clean Harbors Buttonwillow
2500 W Lokern Rd,
Buttonwillow, CA 93206
(661) 762-6200

Why is TWW Toxic?

According to the DTSC, TWW contains hazardous chemicals that pose a risk to human health and the environment. Arsenic, chromium, copper, creosote, and pentachlorophenol are among the chemicals used to preserve wood and are known to be toxic or carcinogenic. Harmful exposure to these chemicals may result from touching, inhaling or ingesting TWW particulate (e.g., leaching liquids, sawdust and smoke).

Why can’t I take TWW to MRWMD anymore?

The statute (HSC 25150.7) and regulations (22 CCR 67386.1 et seq.) that allowed TWW to be accepted at MRWMD due to alternative management standards are due to expire after December 31, 2020. Starting January 1st, 2021, all TWW managed in California will have to be stored and manifested as hazardous waste and transported to Class I hazardous waste landfills for disposal. For more information, visit DTSC’s TWW information page.

 

 

 

Update on Last Chance Mercantile Reopening Plan

Updated 10-26-2020

The Last Chance Mercantile (LCM) closed in March in response to COVID-19. Due to budgetary and safety constraints, LCM has remained closed and store employees were laid-off, while the District reassesses the best path forward. You can read the full press release explaining the economic necessity of the closure.

At the October 23rd meeting, Director of Communications Zoe Shoats provided the Board of Directors a verbal update on the LCM reopening plan. Members of the public were given an opportunity to provide comments, which they can do at every Board Meeting. Scheduled meetings, future agendas and past meetings can be found on the Governance page.

On October 8, the LCM task force met with former LCM employees for a second time. The LCM task force includes  Tim Brownell, Director of Operations, Peter Skinner, Director of Finance and Administration, and Zoe Shoats, Director of Communications. At the meeting, the task force heard details from staff about their proposal to operate the store, including suggestions for increasing revenue and reducing operating costs.

The task force appreciated the research and thought that went into their proposal. Moving forward, the task force will be creating a District-operated store model based on many of their recommendations. The task force plans to share the draft model with the former staff for their input and recommendations.

Simultaneously, the task force has been working on securing interest from potential third-party operators.  On Wednesday, October 21, the District released a Request for Qualifications (RFQ) for the operation of the LCM store. The RFQ was sent directly to local organizations whom District staff identified could be a good fit.

The RFQ was also posted on the MRWMD homepage under the bulletin board section, as well as industry message boards on the Solid Waste Association of North America (SWANA) and Northern California Recycling Association (NCRA) websites. Responses to the RFQ are due by November 30 at 1 p.m. Staff will evaluate all responses to the RFQ, finish analysis of a staff-run District-operated model, and bring all options to the Board for consideration at the January meeting.

District staff appreciates the public’s continued support of the Last Chance Mercantile. We appreciate your understanding and look forward to reopening as soon as it is possible.

To publicly comment, you can attend virtual Board Meetings. For questions related to the RFQ, please contact lcmrfq@mrwmd.org.

CLOSED – RFQ for Operation of Last Chance Mercantile

The District is accepting Requests for Qualifications (RFQ) for the operation of the Last Chance Mercantile in partnership with the Monterey Regional Waste Management District.  Should your organization be interested in submitting a response to this RFQ, please do so no later than 1 p.m. on Monday, November 30. The RFQ can be found here.

If desired, staff at the Monterey Regional Waste Management District will make themselves available to answer any questions you may have to assist in the formation of your response. We also welcome any requests for tours of the facility.

Per the RFQ, please direct all future correspondence related to this RFQ to lcmrfq@mrwmd.org.

 

Current CRV Redemption Centers

CalRecycle keeps an updated map with information about where you can redeem your California Redemption Value beverage bottles and cans. View the current list of locations at : https://www2.calrecycle.ca.gov/BevContainer/RecyclingCenters

Fire Debris Removal Process

Before you bring fire debris to the District, you must go through the correct process.  All affected properties must participate in Phase 1 Household Hazardous Waste cleanup through the EPA, and all fire debris removal post Phase 1 requires sign-off by the Monterey County Environmental Health Department or Santa Cruz County Environmental Health Department. You can find resources for 2020 Fire Recovery on the Monterey County Office of Emergency Services website or Santa Cruz County Fire Recovery Environmental Health Resources website.

The EPA has also established a hotline for communities impacted by the Carmel, River, and Dolan Fires. If you have questions about Phase 1 of Debris Removal or questions about the status of your property, you can contact the EPA at (415) 793-8794.

You can read the District’s complete Fire Waste Screening and Acceptance Procedure that outlines the steps you must take.

Here is the District’s Waste Manifest Form that you must fill out and include in your submittal package.

 

California Waste District and Wastewater Treatment Plan Partner to Boost Their Bottom Lines

Arlene Karidis | Aug 26, 2020

In California, Monterey Regional Waste Management District (MRWMD) and its neighbor, wastewater treatment plant Monterey One Water, have entered a somewhat unusual relationship with unique benefits to each. And the relationship has payoffs for its shared customers too.

The District is delivering renewable gas, sourced from its methane and produced on site, to Monterey One Water to power its operation. The two entities are working on building infrastructure to be able to directly convey the energy from the district’s plant to Monterey One’s water purification system – bypassing the utility grid.

MRWMD now can sell power at higher rates than it sells on the stock market. For Monterey One, it means a guaranteed flow of energy at a predictable cost that is cheaper than if it were to get it from the grid.

This symbiotic relationship has become especially meaningful to address a challenge that arose years ago around the region’s drinking water supply. The Monterey region is not connected to California’s water system and had to rely on water largely from the river. Policy was established to reduce the draw on the river by 70% and that water had to be replaced. Monterey One Water began developing plans to convert their effluent, stormwater and other sources to drinking water. That water treatment process has proven extremely energy intensive.

“So, we at the District suggested to Monterey One Water that we could deliver 2 megawatts (MW) of renewable power sourced from landfill gas. That formed the nexus of the partnership opportunity we developed,” says Tim Flanagan, MRWMD general manager.

The waste conversion project now underway at Monterey One’s advanced purification facility will provide a new source of drinking water for Monterey Peninsula. The project will make about one-third of the drinking water for the residents and businesses of that region.

The roughly 2 MW per year of renewable gas the District provides should fully power the operation, according to Paul Sciuto, general manager of Monterey One Water.

“Until now, we had been getting most of our power from the grid,” says Sciuto.

Work is underway to find and hire a tech company to build an interconnection.“Sooner than later we want to connect landfill gas to our advanced water purification facility where we put wastewater through four treatment stages to ultimately be used as a drinking water supply. If we get construction funds to move forward, we will go to full-blown conversion to renewable energy,” says Mike McCullough, director of external affairs at Monterey One Water.
Sciuto says there could be a possible expansion of the existing treatment plant to produce more water, creating demand for more renewable power yet.

“We are moving full steam ahead on the current project. Through this relationship with the District we realize lower rates for electricity, and we talked about the possibility of further sharing resources in the future where we would take some of their organics for our anaerobic digester, or we would send our digester gas to them for their CNG facility. And or we could possibly put together a microgrid to benefit our customers,” says Sciuto.

Historically the two entities have tried to work together in areas of common interest. Collaboration has made sense because they are located next to each other and share the same access road, which was an intentional design.

“The landfill was already built and there was only a little over a mile to go to build an outfall for the water treatment operation’s effluent. By co-locating they did not have to haul their biosolids. They could literally send it next door. So, the agencies are well aligned due to good, visionary public policy planning,” says Flanagan.

Among earlier partnerships between the two entities, the District had been running an anaerobic digester until October 2019 and distributing a small amount of power –about 80 kW –to Monterey One as a pilot.
“The project operated for six years and is part of a larger program of the District to evaluate organic waste processing methods. This is another example of us collaborating to make the most of our gas,” says Guy Petraborg, MRWMD director of engineering.

A few other solid waste and wastewater treatment plants have entered partnerships, though to co-digest wastewater sludge with organics that would otherwise go to landfill. As with the Monterey project, it’s been a way to supplement energy to power the wastewater operation and provide a means for landfills to deal with organic waste and or resulting methane.

But these resource-combing and resource-sharing relationships are not very common, especially for projects like the one between Monterey One and the District.

The relationship with the District adds value in many ways, notes McCullough.

“With the increasing cost of power and gas it’s a way to be more efficient and environmentally conscious, as well as achieve economic benefits,” he says. “It’s a win-win: We get a renewable source that’s cheaper (than grid electricity). The District’s customers and our customers win because we can pass along our cost savings. And the environment benefits too.”

Per Waste 360’s article.

How do we plan for SB 1383?

SB 1383 targets greenhouse gas reductions through statewide residential and commercial organics recycling collection, edible food recovery, as well as the procurement of recycling paper, compost, and renewable natural gas. To meet deadlines for its implementation in January 2022, we need to start planning now. Learn more about the future of organics in California and how our community can plan for SB 1383.

Governor Newsom Authorizes Roadmap for Return to Reusable Bags

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
June 22, 2020

Sacramento–On behalf of Californians Against Waste, Executive Director Mark Murray has issued the following statement following today’s expiration of Governor Newsom’s Executive Order to temporarily suspend California’s bag ban:

“We are grateful that Governor Newsom has allowed the temporary suspension of California’s ban on single use plastic bags to expire this week.

We understand that, out of an abundance of caution, in the early days of the Covid-19 pandemic, some retailers and even some county public health officers chose to temporarily discourage consumers from bringing their own reusable bags into stores.

Along with many other changes in the way consumers conduct business, consumers will be obligated to bag their own groceries and ensure that store employees or other customers do not come in contact with their reusable bags.

We are appreciative that public health officials, including those at CALOSHA, and the public health officers in Alameda, Contra Costa, Mendocino, San Francisco, San Luis Obispo, and Santa Clara Counties have made it explicit in their orders and guidance that consumers are authorized to bring their reusable bags to retail stores, but must prevent those bags from coming in contact with store employees, other customers, and the checkstand. Health officials agree that when consumers bag their own groceries in their own reusable bags there is no risk to public health.

The discontinued use of reusable bags at many California retailers has resulted in a severe shortage of recycled paper bags and the temporary return of single-use plastic bags by some retailers. It’s projected that as many as 1 billion single-use plastic bags were distributed in California in April and May alone, costing consumers more than $20 million in higher grocery costs.

The quick return to the practice of bringing reusable bags will reduce an unnecessary source of plastic pollution, reduce grocery costs for stores and consumers, and relieve the shortage of recycled paper bags.”

Contact: Mark Murray, Californians Against Waste, 916-995-8655

https://www.cawrecycles.org/

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