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Waste Management Collection Costs
The Works and Utilities Committee recommends the adoption of the following report (July 13, 1998) from the
General Manager, Solid Waste Management Services:
Purpose:
To identify the cost(s) of curbside and bulk lift waste collection in Toronto, based on the operating systems of the six
former municipalities.
Funding Sources, Financial Implications and Impact Statement:
There are no financial implications associated with the adoption of this report.
Recommendation:
That the Works Department, in conjunction with the Finance Department, develop a costing framework which provides a
uniform set of guidelines and principles for all activities and programs within the Solid Waste Management Division, and
which will provide accurate and standardized cost accounting and will allow for an activity based costing analysis.
Council Reference/Background/History:
At its meeting of April 22, 1998, the Works and Utilities Committee directed the Commissioner of Works and Emergency
Services to submit a report providing a comparison of costs for both curbside and bulk lift waste collection in the former
municipalities which now comprise the City of Toronto.
Comments and/or Discussion and/or Justification:
Due to the different cost structures and financial systems in each former municipality, the guidelines set forth by an
independent financial auditor for a previous analysis were used as a reference so as to attempt to provide uniformity in the
development of the 1997 curbside and bulk lift garbage collection costs reported by each former municipality. These
guidelines also prescribe the treatment of indirect costs associated with providing the collection service. Costs include
items budgeted within Solid Waste Management and costs incurred by other Divisions for services supporting garbage
collection.
Some municipalities charge cost items directly to the activity performed, while others may charge the same cost item to an
administrative account, departmental account or corporate account. In the latter three cases, for the purposes of this report,
most cost items have been estimated and allocated to the garbage collection activity based on such criteria as employee
time or as a percentage of the total solid waste tonnage collected. Each municipality was responsible for determining the
amount allocated for these costs.
Where appropriate, the following cost components were reported by each former municipality. Where actual costs were
available, they were utilized. Otherwise, costs were estimated and allocated to the garbage collection activity. In some
cases, due to former municipal policy, it was not appropriate to include any cost estimates.
(a)Direct Labour Costs:
These costs include the hourly rates and benefits of each person responsible for collecting garbage. These are actual costs
and are dependent on the number of permanent and casual employees required to carry out the activity.
(b)Truck Rental:
This includes the total cost for truck rentals in 1997. Costs reported are only for those vehicles that collect garbage. These
are actual costs and are dependent on the fleet size in each operation and the truck rental rates charged to the activity.
(c)Miscellaneous Expenditures:
These costs include all incidentals directly related to the operation (i.e., safety equipment and radio dispatch). These are
actual and estimated costs and are dependent on the operational requirements of the reporting municipality.
(d)Front Line Supervision:
These costs include the wages, benefits and vehicle costs of those employees who provide the direct supervision to the
collectors. These are actual and estimated costs and are dependent on the number of supervisors, salaries, benefits and the
vehicle rental rate charged to the activity.
(e)Operational Management and Administration:
These costs include all remaining management, administrative staff, promotion, building and maintenance, engineering, IT,
by-law enforcement and any other administrative functions necessary to the operation. These are actual and estimated costs.
These cost items tend to be charged outside the activity in most municipal reporting systems and may be incurred
departmentally or corporately. It is for this reason that an estimate has been applied for such costs. However, corporate
costs not charged directly to the activity, but related to such items as finance, human resources, legal, purchasing etc., have
not been included in any costs reported by the former municipalities. While it is recognized that these services are part of
the cost of doing business, with the current inconsistences in the treatment of such costs, it was not possible to accurately
apportion these costs by activity.
(f)Workers Safety Insurance Board Cost (formerly WCB):
This is the cost of employees on WSIB at any time during 1997. These are actual costs incorporated into this analysis.
(g)Modified Workers Cost:
This is the cost to Solid Waste Management for employees on modified duties regardless of which Department they were
assigned to.
While the above methodology was used for the purposes of this report, it is important to note that differences in costing and
reporting methods continue to partially contribute to cost variances between the former municipalities. In order to provide
an equitable manner in which to evaluate the costs incurred by each municipality, the total cost has been divided into two
categories. The comparable costs, such as the direct labour, supervision, fringe benefits and miscellaneous costs, which
have been calculated using common accounting principles, are in one category. The incomparable costs, such as truck
rental, modified worker, etc., which have been calculated using differing accounting principles amongst the various former
municipalities, have been put into another category.
Comparable Costs:
Direct operating costs including labour, supervision, fringe benefits and miscellaneous are known costs. Table 1
summarizes these costs for curbside garbage collected by municipal staff (non-contracted). Wage rates are for the direct
labour required to collect the product. Salary rate differences shown are a result of the varying policies and collective
agreements in the former municipalities. Once standard wage rates are established across the City, direct operating costs
can be compared without bias. Supervisory costs will differ among municipalities based on operational requirements and
the number of supervisors required to oversee front line employees and first level supervisors.
Incomparable Costs:
(a)There are differences in the modified work program costs reported by each former municipality. The modified worker
costs and WCB costs are long-term costs which would remain with the City whether collection services were being
provided by private sector or public sector forces.
(b)Administration and non-budgeted costs including promotion costs related to the activity, salaries and benefits related to
administering the activity and other related costs (i.e., by-law enforcement, customer service) will vary among
municipalities based on staffing levels, operational requirements, building maintenance costs, etc. In addition, the former
City of Toronto is the only municipality that budgets for services that are incurred to cover some functions that may be
considered to be corporate (i.e., cost control, payroll and personnel).
(c)Each former municipal operation may differ based on previously determined operational needs and budgeting rationale.
For example, some municipalities included the costs associated with furniture and large item collection within the curbside
refuse collection budget, while others have identified it as a separate budget activity.
(d)There is a variation in the rate charged for the use of vehicles from one municipality to another. The rate is based on
varying accounting principles which do not allow for a fair cost comparison. Table 2 summarizes the incomparable costs
associated with each of the former municipalities that collect curbside garbage with municipal staff.
Table 3 and Table 4 summarize the total costs associated with providing curbside garbage collection and bulk lift garbage
collection, respectively, in each of the former municipalities. As three of the six municipalities use a combination of
municipal and contract forces, both direct and indirect costs have been appropriately allocated. It is important to note that
certain costs would remain within the activity even if the entire operation were to be contracted out. For example,
municipal staff would still be required to supervise the daily operation and administer the program (i.e., by-law
enforcement, promotion, education and customer service).
Conclusions:
While every attempt has been made to provide an accurate costing analysis, further work is required to ensure that costs
related to such things as building maintenance, human resources and general governance are reported in a consistent
manner. In addition, common fleet/labour rates and accounting methods must be developed in order to standardize costs for
programs previously provided by the former municipalities.
Contact Name:
Catharine Daniels, Waste Management Analyst
Solid Waste Management, Scarborough District
Phone: (416) 396-5205; Fax: (416) 396-4156
E-Mail: daniels@city.scarborough.on.ca.
Table 1
Comparable Costs for Non-Contracted Curbside Garbage Collection
Former
Municipalities |
Tonnes of
Curbside
Garbage |
Direct Labour & Fringe
Benefits Cost |
Supervisory and Other
Cost |
Total Cost |
Total |
Per Tonne |
Total |
Per
Tonne |
Total |
Per
Tonne |
East York
Etobicoke (All
contracted)
North York
Scarborough
Toronto
Toronto Day
Toronto Night
Toronto Total
York (All
contracted)
Total
(Non-contracted) |
11,497
N/A
98,945
64,646
125,987
75,474
201,461
N/A
376,549 |
$284,771
N/A
$4,434,322
$1,923,512
$4,734,984
$3,043,051
$7,778,035
N/A
$14,420,640 |
$24.77
N/A
$44.82
$29.75
$37.58
$40.32
$38.61
N/A
$38.30 |
$30,071
N/A
$442,632
$121,693
$672,133
$373,188
$1,045,321
N/A
$1,639.717
|
$2.62
N/A
$4.47
$1.88
$5.33
$4.94
$5.19
N/A
$4.35
|
$314,842
N/A
$4,876,954
$2,045,205
$5,407,117
$3,416,239
$8,823,356
N/ A
$16,060,357 |
$27.38
N/A
$49.29
$31.64
$42.92
$45.26
$43.80
N/A
$42.65 |
Table 2
Incomparable Costs for Non-Contracted Curbside Garbage Collection
Former
Municipalities |
Tonnes of
Curbside
Garbage |
Truck Rental Cost |
Operational
Management
& Administration
Cost |
WCB Cost |
Modified Workers
Cost |
Total Cost |
Total |
Per
Tonne |
Total |
Per
Tonne |
Total |
Per
Tonne |
Total |
Per
Tonne |
Total |
Per
Tonne |
East York
Etobicoke (All
contracted)
North York
Scarborough
Toronto
Toronto Day
Toronto Night
Toronto Total
York (All
contracted)
Total
(Non-contracted) |
11,497
N/A
98,945
64,646
125,987
75,474
201,461
N/A
376,549 |
$105,084
N/A
$2,065,742
$510,205
$1,725,357
$1,081,192
$2,806,549
N/A
$5,487,580 |
$9.14
N/A
$20.88
$7.89
$13.69
$14.33
$13.93
N/A
$14.57 |
$50,020
N/A
$416,254
$303,871
$1,045,757
$672,081
$1,717,838
N/A
$2,487,983 |
$4.35
N/A
$4.21
$4.70
$8.30
$8.90
$8.53
N/A
$6.61 |
$14,655
N/A
$20,494
$93,875
$963,497
$603,773
$1,567,270
N/A
$1,696,294 |
$1.27
N/A
$0.21
$1.45
$7.65
$8.00
$7.78
N/A
$4.50 |
$31,412
N/A
$156,946
$180,000
$1,497,204
$938,220
$2,435,424
N/A
$2,803,782 |
$2.73
N/A
$1.59
$2.78
$11.88
$12.43
$12.09
N/A
$7.45 |
$201,171
N/A
$2,659,436
$1,087,951
$5,231,815
$3,295,266
$8,527,081
N/A
$12,475,639
|
$17.50
N/A
$26.88
$16.83
$41.53
$43.66
$42.33
N/A
$33.13 |
Table 3
1997 Curbside Garbage Collection Costs
Former
Municipality |
Collection
Type |
Tonnes
Collected |
Units
Served |
Frequency of
Residential
Garbage
Collection |
Frequency of
Commercial
Garbage
Collection |
Furniture & Large
Items Picked Up
with Regular
Garbage |
Total Cost |
Cost/Tonne |
Comparable |
Incomparable |
Total |
York |
100%
Contracted |
38,632 |
32,000 |
1x/Week |
1x/Week
3x/Week
(Eglinton Av) |
Yes |
$1,337,968 |
$31.74
|
$2.89 |
$34.63 |
East York |
50% Municipal |
11,497 |
13,150 |
1x/Week |
2x/Week |
Yes |
$516,013 |
$27.38 |
$17.50 |
$44.88 |
50%
Contracted |
10,729 |
12,940 |
$432,654 |
$36.25 |
$4.08 |
$40.33 |
Total |
22,226 |
26,090 |
$948,667 |
$31.66 |
$11.02 |
$42.68 |
Toronto |
Daytime -
100%
Municipal |
125,987 |
181,000 |
1x/Week
2x/Week
(Summer
Collection to
50,000
households) |
2x/Week
(Commercial)
5x/Week
(Restaurants) |
No |
$10,638,932 |
$42.92 |
$41.53 |
$84.44 |
Nighttime -
100%
Municipal |
75,474 |
25,100 |
$6,711,505 |
$45.26 |
$43.66 |
$88.92 |
Total |
201,461 |
206,100 |
$17,350,437 |
$43.80 |
$42.33 |
$86.12 |
North York* |
100%
Municipal |
98,945 |
102,168 |
2x/Week |
2x/Week |
Yes |
$7,536,390 |
$49.29 |
$26.88 |
$76.17 |
Scarborough |
70% Municipal |
64,646 |
97,034 |
1x/Week |
2x/Week |
No** |
$3,133,156 |
$31.64 |
$16.83 |
$48.47 |
30%
Contracted |
29,518 |
23,200 |
$1,388,966 |
$44.83 |
$2.22 |
$47.05 |
Total |
94,164 |
120,234 |
$4,522,122 |
$35.77 |
$12.25 |
$48.02 |
Etobicoke |
100%
Contracted |
69,375 |
70,000 |
1x/Week |
2x/Week
3x/Week
(Lakeshore) |
Yes |
$2,847,790 |
$38.87 |
$2.18 |
$41.05 |
NB:Units Served = Residential and Commercial, where applicable, within the activity.
*Includes automated garbage collection.**As of April 1998, Scarborough combined the furniture and large item collection with curbside garbage collection.
Table 4
1997 Bulk Lift Garbage Collection Costs
Former
Municipality |
Collection Type |
Tonnes
Collected |
Units Served |
Total Cost |
Cost/Tonne |
Cost/
Unit |
York |
100% Contracted |
13,907 |
22,862 |
$210,551 |
$15.14 |
$9.21 |
East York |
100% Contracted |
12,682 |
19,553 |
$220,578 |
$17.39 |
$11.28 |
Toronto |
100% Contracted |
47,118 |
101,000 |
$965,324 |
$20.49 |
$9.56 |
North York* |
25% Municipal |
15,643 |
24,713 |
$332,823 |
$21.28 |
$13.47 |
75% Contracted |
52,315 |
74,138 |
$1,116,266 |
$21.34 |
$15.06 |
Total |
67,958 |
98,850 |
$1,449,089 |
$21.32 |
$14.66 |
Scarborough |
100% Contracted |
56,800 |
72,451 |
$636,486 |
$11.21 |
$8.79 |
Etobicoke |
100% Contracted |
38,831 |
50,000 |
$689,264 |
$17.75 |
$13.79 |
NB:Units Served = Residential and Commercial, where applicable, within the activity.
Each former municipality provides 2x/week bulk lift garbage collection.
*The total cost includes the collection of furniture and large items placed in bulk bins from multi-family residences.
The other municipalities report furniture and large item collection as a separate budget item or include the costs in
the curbside collection budget.
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