August 25, 1998
To:Works and Utilities Committee
From:Angelos Bacopoulos
General Manager - Solid Waste Management Services
Subject:New Fee for Residues from Recycling Operations
Purpose:
To seek authority to establish a new solid waste management fee for residues from recycling
operations which will be used for daily cover material at the Keele Valley Landfill Site.
Funding Sources, Financial Implications and Impact Statement:
It is recommended that a new fee of $10.00/tonne be established for residues from recycling
operations that is lower than the fee of $50.00/tonne for mixed waste. Recycling residues
may be utilized as an alternative to soil for daily landfill cover subject to approval for such
use by the Ontario Ministry of Environment (M.O.E.). This will generate additional revenue
and provide operating savings to the City.
It is assumed that approximately one-half of the daily cover requirements at the Keele
Valley Landfill site may be obtained from recycling residues. This amount of alternative
daily cover (ADC) equates to approximately 500 tonnes per day or approximately 130,000
tonnes per year. If a new fee of $10.00 per tonne is established for this material, revenues of
approximately $1,300,000.00 may accrue to the City on an annual basis.
The use of this material as daily cover will also offset the operating costs incurred in
excavating and transporting clean soil to the tipping face. This operational saving is
estimated to be $130,000.00 per year.
Recommendations:
It is recommended that:
(1)a new solid waste management fee of ten dollars per tonne ($10.00/tonne) be established
at the Keele Valley Landfill site for soil-like residues from recycling operations for use as
alternative daily cover (ADC) at the landfill site, conditional upon approval by the Ministry
of Environment for such use;
(2)the quantities of materials described in Recommendation No. 1 be limited to a maximum
of 1000 tonnes per day and that this material be accepted on a first come first served basis;
and
(3)the appropriate City of Toronto officials be authorized to give effect thereto.
Council Reference/Background/History
The operation of the Keele Valley Landfill Site requires that the tipping face be covered at
the end of each working day to provide litter, odour and vermin controls. Typically, six
inches of clean soil is used which incurs costs for excavating and transporting the soil to the
tipping face. To partially offset these operational costs, we are presently accepting clean soil
delivered to the site at a fee of $10.00 per truckload. In 1997, we received a total of 26,652
loads. Materials other than soil for daily landfill cover have been tested and used as a
common practice in numerous landfills in North America and the Province of Ontario. An
opportunity exists to use soil-like residue from recycling operations as alternative daily
cover at the Keele Valley Landfill.
Discussion and Justification:
In recognition of the fact that alternatives exist to using soil for daily cover at landfills in
Ontario, the M.O.E. has prepared a guideline entitled "Procedures for Gaining Approval to
Use Alternative Material to Soil as Daily Cover in Landfills that Receive Only Municipal
and Non-Hazardous Solid Waste." City of Toronto staff have applied to the M.O.E. to use
dewatered paper fibre and soil-like residue from recycling operations for alternative daily
cover at the Keele Valley Landfill Site. Staff expect that a source of revenue from such
materials can be realized and that operating costs for excavating and hauling daily cover can
be reduced. A photograph of such typical residues are attached to this report for reference.
The relatively high fee for mixed waste is a deterrent to generators of these recycling
residues to dispose of the material as mixed waste at the Keele Valley Landfill Site.
Presently, this recycling residue is being accepted free of charge at other landfills as daily
cover material. Hauling costs to these landfills vary from $6.66 to $12.00 per tonne. A lower
fee competitive with their total disposal cost is required so that the generators of recycling
residues will bring their materials to the Keele Valley Landfill Site to be put to beneficial
use. In addition, their existing disposal sites are insufficient and having Keele Valley
Landfill as another avenue for disposing of their residue material will allow them to expand
their recycling operations.
City staff applied to the M.O.E. on August 10, 1998, (for a six-month trial period) to use
two types of recycling residues as alternative daily cover at the Keele Valley Landfill Site:
paper fibre and soil-like residue from recycling operations. Paper fibre created in producing
recycled paper sometimes contains small pieces of glass and plastic which make it
unacceptable in producing finished paper. This product is therefore rejected from the paper
producing process but it is an appropriate material to use as daily cover. Paperboard
Industries who produce paper fibre have expressed interest in bringing their rejected paper
fibre to the Keele Valley Landfill Site for use as alternative daily cover material at a fee
lower than that for mixed waste.
Harbour Front Recycling, Harkow Recycling and Rancor Wood Recycling each have
Certificates of Approval from the M.O.E. to accept, handle, recycle, and transport
construction and demolition material. The recycling process involves removing recyclable
materials from the waste streams. It includes shredding and screening the material in the
process which yields a relatively homogeneous, finely ground soil-like material suitable to
use as daily cover. All three companies have expressed interest in bringing this residual
material to the Keele Valley Landfill Site for use as alternative daily cover material at a fee
lower than that for mixed waste. The proposed SWM fee of $10.00/ tonne has been
discussed with these generators. Staff has received feedback that if the fee were set higher
than $10.00/tonne, the generators would not deliver the material to Keele Valley.
A list of criteria has been described in the letter of application to the M.O.E. for the
utilization of paper fibre and soil-like products from recycling operations as alternative daily
cover. These criteria include maximum allowable levels of specific chemical compounds,
maximum leachable levels of specific chemical compounds, maximum particle size, passing
of a slump test, minimal odour, minimal dust, and no wind blown litter. Each generator will
be required to prove that their residue complies with these criteria prior to acceptance at the
site.
It is recommended that a maximum of 1000 tonnes per day of recycling residue be accepted
at the Keele Valley Landfill Site. This is based on the daily requirements for daily cover
material assuming current disposal rates of approximately 7000 tonnes per day, an in-place
waste density of approximately 650 kilograms per cubic metre, a density of the recycling
residue of 500 kilograms per cubic metre and a ratio of waste to daily cover of 5.7 to one by
volume.
Although a maximum of 1,000 tonnes per day is required, existing suppliers cannot provide
this amount. Based on this uncertainty in supply, if it is assumed that approximately 500
tonnes per day of these residues are delivered to the Keele Valley Landfill, annual revenues
of approximately $1,300,000 may accrue to the City (500 tonnes x 260 days/year x
$10.00/tonne).
The ADC material would offset current annual costs of excavating and hauling 500 tonnes
of on-site soil for daily cover by approximately $130,000.00 (500 tonnes x $1.00/tonne x
260 days /year)
Conclusions:
Establishing a new solid waste management fee for paper fibre and soil-like residues from
recycling operations which are of beneficial use for alternative daily cover at the Keele
Valley Landfill should create a source of revenue to the City of approximately
$1,300,000.00 per year. Utilization of residue as ADC should offset annual operating costs
of approximately $130,000.00. Upon approval from the Ontario Ministry of Environment to
use these residues as substitutes to daily cover, it is recommended that a SWM fee of $10.00
per tonne be applied to these materials.
Contact Name:
Lou Ciardullo. Sr. Eng. - Keele Valley Landfill
Solid Waste Management Services
Phone: (905) 832-0682 (235) Fax: (905) 832-4944
E-mail: Lou_Ciardullo@metrodesk.metrotor.on.ca
Angelos BacopoulosBarry H. Gutteridge
General ManagerCommissioner
Solid Waste Management ServicesWorks & Emergency Services
AH/LC/CC:kl/agadcfee1
cc:Committee
G. Rempe
