Chapter 4 – City-Run Collections Program
The Waste ReSources Collections staff collects garbage from all residents and businesses within the City’s service area, recyclable materials from single and multifamily residences, and compostable materials from residences and some businesses. Public collection ensures that Olympia’s waste is disposed of reliably and in a cost-effective manner, with minimal impact on the environment and public health and worker safety (Goals 3 and 4). The Waste Prevention and Reduction staff develops and maintains education and outreach programs to encourage waste reduction, reuse, and recycling (Goals 1 and 2) (Chapter 6).
In addition to regular residential and commercial collection, Waste ReSources staff empty downtown public garbage containers, remove waste from community events, and clean up illegal dumping while providing solid waste services to both sanctioned and unsanctioned homeless encampments. They design collection routes, provide onsite technical assistance and customer service, deliver, and remove City-owned waste receptacles, and handle billing for drop boxes and commercial dumpsters. The Utility has an opportunity to reduce its carbon emissions by efficient fleet management, electrifying its fleet, and encouraging recycling and composting.
Materials Collected by Waste ReSources
Any waste not separated for recovery is legally considered “garbage,” and thus can be regulated by the City. By law, the City can also regulate collection of residential source-separated recycled materials. However, commercial source-separated materials can be collected and hauled by any suitable private company. Waste ReSources relies on Thurston County and private facilities to take the material it collects. The City and County signed an interlocal agreement as part of signing onto the Thurston County Plan, which includes use of county disposal facilities.
Olympia’s collection trucks deliver garbage, organic materials (yard debris and food waste) and some construction debris to the county-owned Waste and Recovery Center (WARC) at Hawks Prairie in Lacey (Figure 14). In 2022, Thurston County awarded Republic Services a 10-year contract to operate the transfer station, with another 10-year option to extend. Republic Services will take over operations in May 2023. Recyclable materials and some C&D debris are delivered elsewhere.
Figure 14 Thurston County Waste and Recovery Center (WARC)
Source: Thurston County
Nearly all waste (garbage, recyclable, and organic materials) must be shipped to facilities and processors outside Thurston County. For most material, the Utility relies on a single location for dumping collection vehicles and some of these transfer sites have only a single-source outlet. These dependencies create a potential risk for the Utility. In addition, maintaining operational efficiency will become more challenging due to increased customers and lack of leverage over recycling processing fees and markets. To guide continued service during extreme weather and disaster events, the City of Olympia has a disaster preparedness page with specific emergency plans, including a page on debris clearing and management.
This section details how the garbage, recyclable and organic materials, and C&D debris are collected in Olympia.
Garbage
Waste ReSources provides garbage collection service to all residents and businesses within the service area. The Olympia Municipal Code (OMC 13.12) provides that “the collection, removal and disposal of garbage and refuse within the city are universal and compulsory.” In other words, all residents and businesses must pay for at least minimum garbage collection service.
Single-family garbage is collected every other week, and residents may choose a 20-, 35-, 65- or 95-gallon cart. Waste ReSources offers various sizes of containers to multifamily and commercial customers, depending on the disposal volume of clients.
Commercial garbage is collected on a variable schedule to meet customer needs in carts and containers. The two shared compactors in downtown areas allow multiple businesses to collect their garbage together, allowing collection crews to make fewer stops, less frequently.
The County passed an ordinance establishing flow control for all solid waste intended for disposal that is generated in the county to flow through the county transfer station. Waste ReSources pays a tip fee of about $119 per ton for garbage. Tip fees for garbage at the WARC have not increased since 2011, but the County will be conducting a rate study to determine whether or not to raise rates, which could impact the Utility rates in the near future.
Recyclables
Waste ReSources collects recyclable materials from single and multifamily customers at City drop-off sites and at special events. The Utility offers single-stream commingled recycling collection every other week to all single-family residences and collects garbage on alternate weeks. Most multifamily recyclables are picked up weekly, based on customer need. The Utility also offers glass bottle drop-off collection sites in three locations, after having removed glass from commingled recycling in 2020.
Figure 15 Single-Family Residential Recycling Carts Ready for Collection
Source: Waste ReSources Staff
Materials collected for recycling include newspaper, cardboard, mixed paper (including junk mail, magazines, and phone books), aluminum cans, tin cans, plastic bottles, dairy tubs, flowerpots, and buckets.
Although voluntary, participation rates are high. Over 99% of the City’s single-family residences have recycling carts. More than 142 multifamily properties with about 8500 households subscribe to recycling. Single-family residential customers can choose 35-, 65- or 95-gallon carts for recycling service. Multifamily buildings use 95-gallon carts.
For commercial customers, private haulers offer collection for traditional recyclables, including clean paper, cardboard, cans, plastics, and glass. The Utility and private companies collect other specific materials such as construction debris, scrap metal, and rubble. Downtown shared compactor enclosures used by some businesses and operated by Waste ReSources also include organics, and on-site recycling.
Olympia residents may drop off a variety of other recyclable items at the WARC for free or for a reduced fee. These include refrigerators and other appliances, TVs, computer monitors and other electronic equipment, tires, scrap metal, furniture, and reusable items.
Waste ReSources delivers recyclable materials from its residential customers and a small number of commercial customers to Waste Connections/LeMay at a site near to the WARC (Figure 16). Materials are baled and shipped by long-haul truck to a regional materials recovery facility near Tacoma for sorting (Figure 17). Commercially generated recyclables are delivered to Waste Connections/LeMay and shipped to the same sorting facility. A few exceptions include state offices and others who self-haul their recyclables.
|
Figure 16 Unloading Recycling at LeMay Source: LeMay Pacific Disposal |
Figure 17 Pioneer Recycling Services Source: Pioneer Recycling Services |
Organic Material — Food and Yard Debris
Organic materials, including yard debris, food waste and food-soiled paper, are collected regularly from residents and businesses. Yard waste is also accepted on Saturdays at the City drop-off site.
Olympia collects organic materials from both residential and commercial customers. Single-family service is provided in 95-gallon carts for a separate fee. The service is voluntary, and approximately 64% of the City’s single-family residences subscribe. Businesses can subscribe to the commercial organics service for a separate fee and can choose 95-gallon carts and 1-, 1.5- and 2-cubic yard dumpsters.
About 172 businesses subscribe to Olympia’s commercial organics program. Businesses can also choose to have organic materials collected by a private hauler. The numbers of customers and tons collected by private companies are not known. Organic materials collection service is available to multifamily customers but is not heavily promoted or widely used. Downtown shared compactor enclosures operated by Waste ReSources also include organics collection.
Businesses and residents can also obtain temporary container service for large quantities of yard debris. Olympia provides free Christmas tree pick up in January for all residents, including apartments and condominiums.
Waste ReSources pays a tip fee of about $37 per ton for organics (over 10 cubic yards) delivered to the WARC. Most materials are currently sent to Silver Springs Organics, a large-scale composting facility near Rainer in Thurston County. The organics processing facility will most likely change with the execution of the new Republic contract for the WARC in 2023.
Construction and Demolition Debris
Waste ReSources collects mixed C&D debris for disposal, and some separated C&D debris for recycling. Recycling of C&D materials depends on the current markets. Currently, local markets only exist for metal, concrete, brick, and rubble. C&D debris is accumulated in temporary containers placed at the job site and picked up on request. Waste ReSources can deliver some C&D that meets specification to DTG Recycle in Tacoma (formerly owned by Recovery 1). Rubble material is delivered to Concrete Recyclers in Tumwater.
C&D materials make up significant portion of the waste stream, but diversion is difficult for many reasons. The county transfer station accepts construction materials for recovery, but the disposal fee is the same as for garbage. Local options for processing and marketing C&D material are limited to metals, concrete, brick, and clean wood waste. Other materials must be hauled to the Tacoma area or further. City of Olympia and private companies haul some mixed C&D material to out-of-county processors such as DTG in Tacoma, but recent tip fee increases have reduced demand for the service. The amount hauled by the private sector is not known and it is difficult to track. Because Thurston County lacks a mixed C&D waste processor, the economic and logistical hurdles for recycling this material remain high. The fee to empty a truckload of C&D material needs to offset the higher transportation cost. Thurston County Solid Waste has no immediate plans to establish a separate C&D recovery center at the transfer station.
Household Hazardous Waste
The County operates a household hazardous waste collection facility, “HazoHouse,” at the WARC, which accepts household hazardous waste from county residents for free. The WARC also accepts asbestos-containing waste, with advance notice and special preparation, for a fee higher than the normal garbage rate.
Collection Operations
The Collections Program is currently budgeted for 24 full-time employees: a supervisor, two lead workers, one dispatch coordinator, three maintenance workers, and 17 refuse collectors.
Customers and Equipment
The Collections Program serves over 13,500 single-family residential billing customers, accounting for nearly 16,000 households, 142 multifamily properties, and over 1,300 commercial customers. Single-family residential waste is collected in carts. Most garbage from multifamily customers is collected in dumpsters; a few customers have compactors or carts. Multifamily recyclables are collected in carts, with the exception of large quantities of cardboard collected in front-load dumpsters, and two properties use a drop box. Waste from commercial customers is collected in carts, cans, dumpsters, drop boxes, private compactors, or shared Utility-provided compactors.
Waste ReSources operates a fleet of 16 heavy-duty vehicles. Figure 18 shows the four truck types.
• Six fully automated side-load refuse trucks for residential carts, including multi-family recycling service. The number of trucks used each day varies by the service area and material being collected, with between four and six trucks in service each day. During a five-day week, all six trucks are used on two of the days, just five on two other days, and only four on one day. On days when all six trucks are used, there is no spare truck to account for equipment breakdowns. In summer 2022, City Council approved the purchase of six new side-load trucks to replace aging vehicles.
• Four front-load refuse trucks for commercial containers on two dedicated garbage routes; one is used for cardboard, and one is a dedicated spare.
• Three rear-load refuse trucks for commercial containers and commercial organics (dumpsters and carts), one of which is a spare. The oldest truck will be replaced in 2023.
• Three roll-off drop-box trucks, one of which is a spare. The spare truck is often scheduled as a third truck to meet growing demand.
View Figure 18 Waste ReSources Collection Trucks
Source: Waste ReSources Staff
Commercial Collection
Waste ReSources customizes collection for commercial, multifamily, and mixed-use buildings. These customers vary widely in terms of size, amount and type of waste generated, and space for containers.
The Utility seeks to minimize rear-load collection because using a two-person crew is much more costly than front-load collection. However, front-load collection does not work for all business locations, particularly in the downtown area where collection is often in narrow alleys. Elsewhere, some buildings lack space for safe collection that is efficient.
To address these challenges, the Utility has been using two strategies. First, Waste ReSources works closely with its customers and the City’s Community Planning and Development Department to ensure adequate garbage and recycling infrastructure for each customer and for newly constructed or remodeled buildings. Second, the Utility has begun operating two shared compactors in downtown areas (Figure 19) to serve businesses that would otherwise require rear-load collection.
Figure 19 Downtown Shared Compactor
Source: Waste ReSources Staff
Because Olympia does not collect commercial recycling, most businesses have two haulers, Waste ReSources for garbage and a private company for recyclables. Organic material is collected by both Waste ReSources and private companies. Some businesses have expressed desire for all services to be available through Waste ReSources and on one bill.
Residential Collection Areas and Drop-Off Sites
Commercial and multifamily customers are served on a variable schedule to meet their needs. Single-family residential customers are served on a fixed schedule in four residential collection areas. Tuesdays through Fridays, four to five automated trucks collect garbage or recycling on alternating weeks. These same trucks collect organic materials from one-half of the City on Mondays. This balance has proven effective for over a decade.
Waste ReSources collects residential organic materials on Mondays and commercial organic material on Mondays and Thursdays (Figure 20 and Figure 21). This system is nearing operational capacity for the current complement of trucks and drivers. Adding resources and collection days may be necessary to accommodate customer growth and a growing demand for service.
 |
 |
Community members can also drop off recyclable materials and yard waste at several sites. Waste ReSources operates the Saturday Drop-Off Site east of downtown Olympia. From March to mid-November, the Utility staffs the Saturday Drop-off Site from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. for yard waste for a fee and commingled recyclables, scrap metal, cardboard, and glass for free. The Utility also allows residents to drop off glass and cardboard 24 hours a day and 7 days a week all year at the Saturday Drop-Off Site. Glass drop-off is also available from dawn to dusk at the Yauger Park on Olympia’s west side. Elsewhere in the county, residents can drop off glass at Concrete Recyclers in Tumwater and many more recyclable materials at the WARC during their operating hours.
Operational Efficiency Improvements
Waste ReSources started collecting residential recyclables at the curb in 1988, multifamily recyclables in 1994, and yard debris in 1996. The Utility focuses on improvements designed to collect all types of waste more efficiently and with maximum safety for workers. These changes allow the Utility to be more cost effective by absorbing customer growth without additional trucks and staff (Figure 22).
View Figure 22 Increase in Residential Collection Efficiency, 1997 to 2021
The City’s switch to every-other-week residential service in 1998 is still considered a model for efficiency. The most significant gains occurred between 1998 and 2003 due to switching from manual to semi-automated to fully automated collection and from weekly to every-other-week collections. The switch to one-side road collection reduced miles driven and time spent collecting residential waste, while adding GIS-routing and tablets further reduced miles driven and improved tracking of improper customer setouts (Figure 23). Since 1998, improved efficiency in residential collection has resulted in a 60% decrease in the number of trucks and staff required, despite a 20% increase in the number of customers.
Figure 23 Collection Driver Using GIS Routing with Tablet
Source: Waste ReSources Staff
On the commercial side, the Utility has also increased efficiency in commercial collection by switching as many customers as possible from rear-load collection, which requires two collection staff, to front-load collection, which requires only one driver and increases safety. Table 5 describes these improvements in collection efficiency.
In 2009, the City began offering commercial organics collection to its customers. Because of efficiencies gained by switching to mostly front-load commercial garbage collection in 2004, Waste ReSources was able to provide this service with existing trucks and equipment. Commercial organics collection is performed by the rear loading truck crew, who also pick up garbage in the downtown core, and other select areas where front-load does not work.
In 2011, to further increase safety and reduce driver incidents, Waste ReSources worked with the International Academy for Professional Drivers (IAPD) to adapt its training program for drivers of solid waste collection trucks. Two staff members became certified driver trainers who can administer annual certification to collectors. Staff turnover has resulted in a pause in IAPD training; however, a high emphasis on driver awareness and safety remains. Since implementing driver training, accident claims have dropped from a high of 30 in 2011 to 3 in 2021. Injuries are down from 14 in 2011 to 1 in 2020 and zero in 2021. Drivers are encouraged to report even the smallest incident for review so Waste ReSources can better understand how to eliminate them in the future.
|
Year |
Change |
Benefit |
|---|---|---|
|
1998 |
Alternating every-other-week garbage and recyclables pick up and cart-based collection Changed from three recycling bins to a two-compartment cart (paper versus containers) |
• Reduced trucks and staff • Increased recycling • Added all plastic bottles to curbside collection |
|
2003 |
Fully automated collection and single-stream recycling |
• Reduced trucks and staff • Increased customer convenience • Reduced worker hazards and injuries |
|
2004 |
Front-load commercial |
• Reduced staff • Reduced worker hazards and injuries • Increased collection efficiency |
|
2008 |
Added food scraps to yard waste |
• Increased diversion • Increased customer convenience |
|
2009 |
Implemented commercial organics |
• Increased diversion • Customer convenience • New service without additional trucks and staff |
|
2011 – 2015 |
One-side-road collection for single-family |
• Reduced miles driven • Reduced fuel consumption • Absorbed growth without adding trucks and staff |
|
2020 |
GIS routing and tablets |
• More efficient routing • Improved tracking of improper or missing setouts |