10 Things You Need to Know For the Waste & Recycling Industry Today (April 17, 2014)

City putting its recycling hopes in One Bin “The city of Houston soon will learn whether its vision to nearly quadruple its dismal recycling rate will prove an innovative leap or a misbegotten attempt to tame its massive landfill costs with unproven technologies.” (Houston Chronicle)

Spokane to take over Waste-to-Energy Plant operations “The company that has operated Spokane’s electricity-producing trash incinerator on the West Plains for more than two decades is getting a pink slip. Wheelabrator Technologies Inc. was advised Wednesday by Mayor David Condon that the city won’t be renewing the estimated $21 million-a-year contract when it expires in November. The city intends to take over all plant operations, which officials say will provide greater flexibility to address coming changes as Spokane turns over control of the regional trash system to Spokane County.” (The Spokesman-Review)

NC gov. proposes new coal ash plan “North Carolina’s governor says he will propose new legislation aimed at strengthening government oversight of coal ash dumps following the massive spill at a Duke Energy plant that coated 70 miles of the Dan River in toxic sludge. Gov. Pat McCrory said Wednesday his plan would result in the ‘conversion or closure’ of the dumps and close legal loopholes that allowed Duke to avoid cleaning up groundwater contamination leaching from its 33 unlined ash pits clustered at 14 coal-fired power plants across the state.” (Citizen-Times)

Kentucky funds landfill gas-to-energy project “Kentucky Gov. Beshear has announced funding to help create an environmentally-friendly methane gas recovery system in the city of Glasgow, Ky., that will also save taxpayer dollars. The new system will harness the gas emitted from the Glasgow Regional Landfill and turn it into electricity. ‘This effort is the ultimate recycling project—using science and innovation to literally turn trash in to energy,’ said Gov. Beshear.” (Biomass Magazine)

Proposed waste-to-energy incinerator gets push back “A company hoping to build a waste-to-energy incinerator for the port lands in Hamilton is getting a lot of push back. Port Fuels and Material Services wants to build a thermal conversion plant for Pier 15 on Sherman Avenue North to turn things like tires and sewage sludge into synthetic gas.” (CHCH.com)

Port Angeles City Council member: Give landfill to county “A City Council member wants Clallam County to take over its buried landfill, a portion of which is threatening to fall into the Strait of Juan de Fuca. ‘I think it’s really clear, from my perspective, that a regional facility is the responsibility of the county, not the responsibility of one city,’ Councilman Brad Collins said at Tuesday’s meeting. The question arose during discussion of a $1.4 million contract with Seattle-based Anchor QEA to manage construction of the city’s upcoming $19.6 million effort to move decades of garbage back from the bluff at the west end of 18th Street.” (PeninsulaDailyNews.com)

Fairhaven hopes single-stream recycling saves some green “To boost recycling rates and savings, Fairhaven will move to a single-stream recycling system this summer. Department of Public Works Superintendent Vincent Furtado said that his office recently came to an agreement with ABC Disposal to start using larger trash and recycling carts, much like those now being used in New Bedford.” (SouthCoastToday.com)

Medina County could take over recycling after contract expires “Medina County officials are preparing for possible changes in how the county handles recycling. County commissioners on Tuesday agreed to hire an environmental consulting company to plan for the future of the county’s Central Processing Facility in Westfield Township. In January, a committee created to study the county’s trash recycling program recommended keeping the facility, but whether it should continue to be operated privately or be taken over by the county remains in question.” (The Medina-Gazette)

Stinky landfill prompts public meeting in Coloma Twp. “State Rep. Al Pscholka, R-Lincoln Township, will host a public meeting May 1 to address concerns about odors coming from the Orchard Hill Sanitary Landfill. The main purpose will be to inform the public about steps being taken by the landfill and state Department of Environmental Quality to mitigate the issue, he said. The meeting will be at 7 p.m. at the North Berrien Senior Center on Ryno Road in Coloma Township.” (The Herald-Palladium)

BoCC Bunts On Rural Recycling Pick-Up Plan “Orange County Commissioners on Tuesday backed away from a plan to create a solid waste service district tax to pay for rural recycling pick-up. ‘It seems clear to me at least, that a one-size-fits-all solution is not ideal,’ said Commissioner Mark Dorosin. The board side-stepped a vote on the proposed district tax in favor of what members called a more wholistic approach.” (Chapelboro.com)