A new report issued by the Silver Spring, Maryland-based Solid Waste Association of North America’s (SWANA’s) Applied Research Foundation (ARF) documents the collection of yard waste, analyzing schedules, processes and costs. The report also examines opportunities to improve efficiency and mitigate risks.
The report, “Service Options for the Curbside Collection of Residential Yard Waste,” used the city of Charlotte, North Carolina, as a model to provide an analysis of the city’s current program and explore new yard waste collection options such as automated collection, reduced collection frequency on a seasonal or annual basis, and the required use of compostable bags.
“The city of Charlotte currently provides weekly yard waste collection services to over 216,000 single-family residences where collection personnel manually lift and debag the yard waste set out in plastic bags while collecting it at the curb,” SWANA’s Director of Applied Research Jeremy O’Brien says. “The city was interested in exploring options to reduce the costs and injury risks associated with this approach.”
According to the United States Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Sustainable Materials Management report, yard waste comprised 13.2 percent of the municipal solid waste stream in 2015, making it a high impact area, that if reduced, could lead to significant waste diversion in many cities.
“Yard waste is a significant component of the waste stream in many cities and counties, and this new ARF report provides powerful insights and data that will help solid waste management officials manage their yard waste collection systems and incorporate changes to make them more efficient and effective,” SWANA’s Executive Director and CEO David Biderman says.
The full report is currently only available to SWANA ARF subscribers. SWANA members receive free access to ARF industry reports one year after publication.
To learn more, the executive summary of the new report is available online.
Latest from Waste Today
- Iron Bull addresses scrap handling needs with custom hoppers
- REgroup, CP Group to build advanced MRF in Nova Scotia
- Brass Knuckle designs glove for cold weather applications
- WM, city of Denver partner to develop RNG facility at municipal landfill
- National Stewardship Action Council, Stewardship Action Foundation launch National Textile Circularity Working Group
- Nopetro invests $50M to construct Florida RNG facility
- USCC announces new Member Connect outreach program
- Aduro, ECOCE collaborate to advance flexible plastic packaging in Mexcio
