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10. Discussion on Compost Site Banidmere Park Reopening in Spring 1 . I 1 la } C ITYOF I ,: , A CHANHASSEN 1 . , 690 COULTER DRIVE • P.O. BOX 147 • CHANHASSEN, MINNESOTA 55317 ', : (612) 937 -1900 • FAX (612) 937 -5739 1 - A. Action by C MEMORANDUM Endo _1/ DaJf_ TO: Don Ashworth, City Manager 1, ,. - I -77. 1 FROM Jo Ann Olsen, Senior Planner Da " ` I DATE: March 18, 1992 - " SUBJ: Reopening of the Compost Site 1 The Recycling Committee reviewed the reopening of the compost site on March 17, 1992. Initially, the Recycling Committee recommended that the compost site not be reopened due I to the poor participation of the site in the fall of 1991. After further discussion on March 17th, it was recommended that the site be reopened for this spring and fall to see if the participation would be better and to determine if there is a need for the compost site. The I Recycling Committee felt that residents should be provided with another option for disposal of yard waste. 1 The Recycling Committee made the following recommendations: 1. The site be reopened only for this spring and fall and any future openings of the site I be reviewed after these two time periods. The site would be opened this spring in mid -April through the first of June (April 18 through June 6). The fall dates have not yet been established. • I 2. The site would only be open on Saturdays from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. P Ys P 1 3. One employee would be hired to attend the site. 4. The site would charge a fee of 500 per bag for grass clippings and leaves and $1.50 1 per bundle of brush. I 5. The site would be open to all and not just limited to Chanhassen residents since it was felt that it would be difficult to determine who is a resident and the site attendant should not have to be the person to turn people away from the site. Also, I it was felt that the compost site has the potential to be funded again by Carver County who would want to see it opened to all Carver County residents. 1 , %s, PRINTED ON RECYCLED PAPER 1 1 I Mr. Don Ashworth March 18, 1992 Page 2 1 The attached memo was presented to the Recycling Committee and provides more detailed background on the compost site and discussion of the reopening of the compost site 1 (Attachment #1). STAFF RECOMMENDATION 1 Staff recommends that the City Council approve the reopening of the site with the following conditions: 1 1. The site will be reopened only for the spring and fall of 1992, and any future openings of the site shall be reviewed after these two time periods. The site will be 1 opened this spring in mid -April through the first of June (April 18 through June 6). 2. The site will only be open on Saturdays from 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. I 3. One employee will be hired to attend the site. 1 4. There will be a fee of 50¢ per bag for grass clippings and leaves and $1.50 per bundle of brush. 1 5. The site would be open to all and not just limited to Chanhassen residents. • 1 - ATTACHMENTS 1 1. Staff report to Recycling Committee. 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 CITYOF CHANHASSEN 690 COULTER DRIVE • P.O. BOX 147 • CHANHASSEN, MINNESOTA 55317 (612) 937 -1900 • FAX (612) 937 -5739 1 MEMORANDUM TO: Recycling Committee FROM: Jo Ann Olsen, Senior Planner j)e.) DATE: March 11, 1992 SUBJ: Reopening of Compost Site ' P g P L Ar At the February 11, 1992, Recycling Committee meeting, it was discussed whether or not to reopen the compost site at the Bandimere Park .location. The city opened the compost site in the fall of 1991, because it was felt that it was necessary to provide the site for residents since Carver County was closing the Minn' Regional Park compost site. The Recycling Committee went through a considerable amount of thought to determine a site for the compost facility and to determine what type of compost facility should be provided. It was finally recommended to the City Council that a compost site be opened at the Bandimere Park location and that it be a temporary compost site with the compost collected at the site in Roll -off containers and removed from the site on a weekly basis. The city did not, nor could not, provide a more permanent compost site with the materials collected and composted at the site. This would have involved a mucli larger land area, continuous maintenance by city personnel, and the need for expensive equipment. A permanent compost site would also have a potential for impacting existing neighbors. The compost site that was o ned in the fall of 1991, was open on both Saturday and Pe P Y Sunday, and had two city employees attending the site and collecting the fees. The site opened on September 28th and closed on October 27th, 1991, due to the Halloween 1 blizzard. A total of 135 yards of waste was collected, with 106 cars /trucks using the facility. The cost of the collection for the site by R & W Roll-off service came to a total of $1,055.00. Additional costs for the site including, signs for the site, mailings, employee costs, gravel and gate for the site brought the total cost of the compost site to $5,043.86. A total of $266.75 was collected in fees for use of the compost site (The compost site was charging 25¢ per bag of leaves and grass clippings and $1 per bundle of brush.) Therefore, the total 1 t41 PRINTED ON RECYCLED PAPER 1 1 ' Recycling Committee March 11, 1992 Page 2 1 cost of the compost site was $4,777.11. The use of the site ranged from 17 cars one day to as low as 2 cars per day. At the February 11, 1992, Recycling Committee meeting, it was felt by the Committee members that the use of the compost site was low and that the expense to run the compost ' site was high. The Recycling Committee's position on recycling has always been to have the emphasis on education for reduction of waste and this also pertained to the yard waste. Therefore, it was felt that the emphasis should be on reducing the yard waste through ' composting on site. With the low use of the compost site in the fall of 1991, the high cost to run the site and the goal to educate the residents on other means of disposal, the Recycling Committee recommended that the compost site not be reopened in the spring of 1 1992. Marcus Zbindin from Carver County was in attendance at the February 11, 1992, Recycling ' Committee meeting. At this meeting, Marcus expressed his concern that the city was not going to reopen the compost site because he felt that the residents would then be pressuring Carver County to provide an alternative means of disposal. Marcus expressed that Carver " 1 County's position is that each city should provide their own compost site rather than Carver County bearing the responsibility for yard waste disposal. These concerns were repeated at the Carver County Solid Waste Advisory meeting (see attached). Carver County is also 1 concerned that they reimbursed the city $4,777.11 for the compost site and that this included site improvements and not just the actual cost of the disposal of the compost. From the meeting minutes, it appears that haulers also stated that if the City of Chanhassen does not recommend the compost site that it would create many problems for them. The Solid Waste Advisory Committee members felt that Chanhassen should continue to operate the ' compost site for at least one more year. In speaking with haulers who service Chanhassen, staff found that they will collect leaves • and grass clippings, but at a cost, and they would prefer to not have to collect yard waste material since it is difficult for them to dispose of. Although staff still prefers to pursue other means to deal with yard waste, rather than the provision of a permanent compost site, it appears that there is pressure to have the compost site reopened at least for this spring and fall. If the Recycling Committee should reconsider to open the compost site, staff is suggesting the following recommendations: 1 1. The fees to use the site be increased so that the fees more closely recover the cost of running the site. The fees collected in the fall of 1991 was 25¢ per bag of leaves 1 and grass clippings and $1 per bundle of branches. Staff would suggest that the fee for bags of leaves and grass clippings be increased to 75¢ or at least a minimum of 500 per bag and the cost for disposal of a bundle of branches be increased to either $ 1.50 or $2.00 per bundle. These fees are still less than what some haulers are charging. 1 1 1 Recycling Committee March 11, 1992 Page 3 2. Another means to reduce the cost of the site is by reducing the number of employees 1 attending the site from two to one. 3. The site should continue to be a temporary compost site where materials are 1 collected in Roll-off boxes and removed from the site on a weekly basis. Even though this results in a short term higher cost of the site (from hauling), the city is I not in a position to run a more permanent compost site. 4. The site should be opened only for a few weeks in the spring and fall and not be I open during the summer months. It has been suggested that the Chanhassen compost site should only be open to Chanhassen I residents. It is the opinion of some that since the city is subsidizing the cost of the site, that only Chanhassen residents should be permitted to use it. I have raised concerns over this position in that it would be difficult to determine who is a Chanhassen resident since I Chanhassen residents include three different mailing addresses (Chaska, Excelsior and Chanhassen). Another concern is that hopefully the site will continue to be funded also by Carver County and Carver County may not agree that if they are subsidizing the site that I it can only be opened to Chanhassen residents. Also, if other cities, such as Victoria, do not have a compost site and are directed to our site, that city should be required to help fund the site. If this is the case, Carver County should bear responsibility for the cost of the site. ' The following are suggestions that the committee should still pursue as far as the educational side of yard waste disposal: I • 1. Continue to pursue the compost demonstration site in Chanhassen that would I demonstrate how a resident can their yard waste. 2. Continue with educational materials on composting through the city newspaper and I newsletter. 3. Consider a program, that other cities in the country are now pursuing, in which the I city subsidizes the purchase of composters for residents. In speaking with haulers and other people knowledgeable in composting, it seems that the new trend to promote composting has been for cities to purchase composters for residents or I subsidize the cost of a composter for residents for use at their home. In one case in a city in California, such a pilot project resulted in over 50% of the residents composting materials themselves on their site rather than looking for a means of 1 disposal. Staff will have more information on these pilot programs for the committee to review. 1 1 1 Recycling Committee March 11, 1992 Page 4 RECOMMENDATION It appears that there is a demand for the Chanhassen Compost Site to be open for at least this spring and fall. There will be a higher than usual demand for disposal of leaves and 1 grass clippings this year as a result of the big snow on Halloween which came before everyone had their yard work completed. In addition, until we have another alternative, such as a means to highly promote on site composting, we should probably provide a 1 collection site for those who at this time have no alternative. 1 1 • 1 1 • 1 1 1 • 1 -. 1 1 1 1 1 RECEIVED � KC �T MAR 041992 1 Q' g 4 _ � � CITY OF Cr!. Jar k _, ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES _..e ; < - / CARVER COUNTY COURTHOUSE 1 (612) 448 -1217 4 e- 600 EAST 4th STREET, BOX 3 (800) 535-7570 4v MINNESOTA 55318-2186 FAX (612) 448 -1206 _ � L SO COUNTY Of CAINEQ 1 MEMORANDUM DATE: March 3, 1992 1 TO: City and Township Clerks FROM: Anne Thorson, Solid Waste SpecialistO"C 1 SUBJECT: Solid Waste Advisory Committee Meetings Enclosed is a copy of the January and February Solid Waste 1 Advisory Committee meeting minutes. These minutes are being mailed to help keep you informed on solid waste issues and programs at the County level. 1 The Solid Waste Advisory Committee (SWAC) meets monthly, and you • are invited to join us at these meetings. The meetings are held the second Thursday of the month at 7:30 p.m. at the Carver • County Courthouse in the County Board Room. If you have any questions or comments on the enclosed minutes, - please feel free to contact me. /ch 1 Enclosure 1 1 1 1 Affirmative Actmn /Equal Oppootunitp Employer Printed on Rec',ded Paper 1 • SOLID WASTE ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING Minutes of the Meeting of February 13, 1992 Members Present: Staff/Officials Present: Eldon Herrmann Earl Gnan Ivan Kahle Jan Gustafson ' Gary Lano Anne Thorson Russ Leistiko Harold Trende Joe Neaton Marcus Zbinden Lenny Peitz ' Dan Ress Others Present: Orlin Schneewind Lisa Sotebeer Kevin Tritz Tim Schweizer Joe Walto 1. Minutes 1 Minutes of the January 9, 1992, meeting were reviewed. No comments were received. 2. Resource Recovery Update Commissioner Trende gave a brief update on the Scott /Carver 1 Composting facility. He re that both counties are still committed to the project, but the time delay is ,causing problems. Jan Gustafson, Met Council staff, added that the Met Council's I , Solid Waste Advisory Committee met in February to discuss the completed Environmental Assessment Worksheet (EAW). Due to the absence of a quorum, a decision could not be made. The committee will meet again on February 25, and hopefully a recommendation will be made to the Met Council. • 3. - Recycling Center Update Marcus Zbinden reported that on January 28, 1992, the Carver County Board of Commissioners agreed to begin contract ' negotiations with TVS Development, Inc. to own and operate Carver County's recycling center. Zbinden informed the committee that contract negotiations commenced last week and a rough draft of the contract was reviewed by TVS and county staff. The committee was solicited for suggestions as to the correct procedure for handling disputes with rejected loads of recyclables brought to the recycling center by a hauler. Zbinden suggested that a third ' party mediator, such as a county staff person, be called in to review the materials and make a decision about the acceptance /rejection of the materials. Committee members began a lengthy discussion regarding contaminated recyclables. Several haulers added that it is difficult to determine where the contamination originated, especially with commercial customers. ' Other members felt that more public education was necessary to avoid recyclables from becoming contaminated, or possibly enact an enforcement /penalty mechanism. The committee felt that a third party mediator would be appropriate to handle disputes concerning contaminated recyclables. The Environmental Services staff and the Assistant County Attorney will continue to work on a contract with TVS Development. It is hoped that the contract 1 1 -i will be completed by the end of March. The committee was 1 informed that a public hearing will be held on February 18, 1992, for application of a conditional use permit for the recycing center. 1 4. Button Battery Collection Anne Thorson reviewed the concept of establishing collectj.on 1 points for button batteries and provided a list of retailers that are interested in collecting household button batteries. She further explained that collection program costs would be minimal - approximately $15 - $20 for battery disposal and $200 for 50 collection boxes. The committee felt this program is needed and supported the collection of button batteries. Thorson, along with the Assistant County Attorney, will prepare a service agreement with Mercury Refining Company, a battery recycler in Albany, New York. 5. Hnusehold Hazardous Waste Collection Thorson informed the committee that tentative plans were underway to conduct a HHW collection in April, possibly in the Waconia area. The committee was asked for suggestions for a suitable location for the event collection. Thorson reported the collection site would need to be paved, approximately the size of a football field, with running water and sanitary facilities available, and room to stack 20 - 30 cars at one time. The possibility of using the County fair grounds in Waconia was discussed. A few of the buildings are paved and are large enough for cars to drive through and for contractors to work in. Orlin Schneewind, a County Fair Board member, stated that boats are currently being stored in the buildings and may be in the buildings until May. The possibility of using the beer tent area was discussed. 6. Chanhassen Recycling Committee Zbinden reported that he attended the Chanhassen recycling committee meeting on February 11. He expressed concern about the committee's discussion to possibly change the curbside recycling pickup to every other week, instead of the current weekly pick- up. Members of the committee who are haulers felt this would generate confusion among residents and bi- weekly recycling collection would not necessarily reduce costs. Zbinden also expressed concern about the of closing the Chanhassen compost site. He reported that the Chanhassen recycling committee discussed closing the compost site because they didn't feel it was used that often and that it was bothersome to operate the site. Haulers reported that residents do use the site and it would create many problems if the site were to be closed. Zbinden reminded the committee of the fact that the County gave $5,000 to the City of Chanhassen last year, to develop the compost site. Eldon Herrmann and other committee members felt that the City of Chanhassen should continue to operate the compost site for at least one more year. Meeting adjourned at 9:30 p.m. 2 SOLID WASTE ADVISORY COMMITTEE MEETING MINUTES OF THE MEETING OF JANUARY 9, 1992 1 Members Present: Staff /Officials Present: Chris Boatwright Jan Gustafson Eldon Herrmann Mike Lein I Jay Johnson Anne Thorson Ivan Kahle Harold Trende Kevin Kubasch Marcus Zbinden Gary Lano Russ Leistiko Michael Mason Joe Neaton Florence Olson Lenny Peitz Dan Ress ' Orlin Schneewind 1 1. Minutes Minutes of the December 5, 1991, meeting were reviewed. No comments were received. • 2. Resource Recovery Update Mike Lein reported on the recent trip he and two Scott County township officials took to Portland, Oregon, to view the solid waste composting facility located there. The facility is the ' same "name brand" as the planned Scott /Carver facility but has many differences. This facility experienced odor problems last summer when it began operations. The purpose of visiting it MI was to check on the operations of the facility and to assure township officials that the Scott /Carver facility was different in design and location and would not have the same problems. 1 Lein reported that the facility was successfully composting garbage but had experienced odor problem because of its design ' and location. The facility was designed to compost waste by simply piling the shredded waste and blowing air through it to speed the composting process and limit odor production. However, this system has proved inflexible and the facility experiences odor since the air does not reach all parts of the • pile and the pile can not be turned to mix it or reach the trouble spots. The facility is also located on a - small site surrounded by many close neighbors who will quickly be impacted by odors if they are generated. Businesses exist within 100 feet of the processing and composting areas. Houses are located within half a block. 1 1 • The Scott /Carver Facility has been designed so that the composting waste is turned regularly as well as having air blown through it. This allows much more control of the process. Lein stated that the Portland facility did show that solid waste can be composted and that the shredding drum was capable of shredding American solid waste. - Several members inquired as to the status of the Scott /Carver facility. Kevin Kubasch expressed frustration over the length of time the project was taking to develop. Commissioner Trende discussed the status of the project. ' 3. Recycling Markets Update _ Marcus Zbinden reported that markets for many recycled materials are at low points and that some haulers are having difficulty in marketing these materials. Some plastics markets are currently charging as much as $100 per ton to accept plastics that are not sorted or baled. The SWAC then had a ' lengthy discussion on markets and things residents or the County could due to influence the markets. The SWAC considered the issue of encouraging the use of glass 1 over plastic since plastics markets are low and a local fairly strong glass market exists. Problems with this glass market were discussed. Jan Gustafson, Met Council staff, reported on market develop efforts by the Met Council. 4. Recycling Center Update Mike Lein reported that the County Board is continuing to review and discuss options for a new updated recycling Center. County staff had prepared a scenario that compared a County owned and operated Recycling Center with the two private option under consideration. It appears as though at least one of the private options would be less expensive. The County Board is scheduled to act on these options next week. 5. Battery Recycling , Anne Thorson reviewed the issue of recycling household batteries and provided the Committee with information on the types of batteries that are potential environmental concerns. A discussion of battery types, the cost of recycling programs, and recent battery related legislation followed. Several members requested more information on the cost of a program and questioned how active a role the County should take in the actual collection program since some retailers already collect some types of batteries. Other members highlighted the need for educating the public on this issue as many people are not aware of the different battery types and hazards. 2 1 1 a 6. Tire Management The Committee briefly discussed the need for a used tire collection program. Staff felt that a program could be held in 1 late spring or early summer and asked for direction on charging for the collection. The Committee seemed in agreement that the County should try to get a low price from a tire ' collector and then pass this price off on the people bringing in the tires. Staff estimated the actual cost for a car tire to be between $0.50 and $1.00 per tire. Meeting adjourned at 9:58 PM. 1 1 1 • 1 1 1 1 e 1 . 1. 1 1 1 3 1 1 . . SUMMARY OF COMPOST BITE -FALL OF 1991 The site was open on Saturdays from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. and Sundays from 12 p.m. to 4 p.m... The compost site collected grass, leaves and brush. The cost was .25 /bag of leaves and grass clippings and $1.00 /bundle of brush. The total amount of money collected was $266.75. The cost of the compost site was $5043.86. The total cost of the compost site was $4777.11 ($5043.86- 266.75). DATE YARDAGE USAGE COST 9 -28 -91 11 cars trucks 20 yards $160 9 -29 -91 2 cars /trucks 1 10 -5 -91 10 cars /trucks 20 yards $130 II 10 -6 -91 2 cars /trucks 10 -12 -91 19 cars /trucks 30 yards $230 10 -13 -91 6 cars /trucks 10 -19 -91 17 cars /trucks 45 yards $275 10 -20 -91 9 cars /trucks 10-26-91 19 cars /trucks 1 40 yards $260 10 -27 -91 11 cars /trucks TOTAL 135 YARDS 106 CARS \TRUCKS $1055 ADDITIONAL COSTS 1 Signs for the site $438 Postmaster for mailing $611.56 Printing of mailings $922.40 _ 1 Employees $450 Gravel for the site $1549 1 Gate for the site $17.90 TOTAL COST (HAULING COSTS 6 ADDITIONAL COSTS) $5043.86 1 • 1