2005-07-26_PWETC_AgendaPacket - Laserfiche WebLink

Home

April 28, 2005 Page 5 The WMIRAA report provided a separate breakdown of products and process residue from both the "single stream process system" (i.e., paper recovery line) and the "container process system" (i.e., container recovery line). The first paper ("single stream") line produced about two percent residue of total input. The second, container line produced about four percent residue of total input. Color-mixed, broken glass was defmed as a product by the WMIRAA study and represented II percent of the total input. Color-sorted glass, in contrast, represented two percent of total input. The residue estimate of 5.95 percent of total input is reasonable if the mixed-color, broken glass is assumed to be a marketed, recycled commodity. If not, the total residue, including such mixed-color glass, is about 17 percent. The other constituents of the residue make up a minor fraction (e.g., film plastic such as bags, fluff, fines, grit, other trash and floor sweepings). Therefore, one of the key, remaining questions not answered by the WMlRAA report is how much more does mixed-color, broken glass increase within the single stream process system at the WMIRAA Minneapolis MRF as compared to glass from two stream collections processed directly into the container process system at the MRF. Without a comparable two-sort test and analysis, it is not possible for the Project Team to estimate. Other Available Data Several recent studies and municipal recycling contracts are directly relevant to this analysis of processing residuals. Eureka Recycling (Minneapolis, MN), under its former structure within the Saint Paul Neighborhood Energy Consortium, published an extensive study of a similar pilot collection study as conducted in 2001. Six different collection pilot routes were established similar to the Roseville pilot study design. (For more details, see the Eureka web page: www.EurekaRecvcling.org.) The Eureka study analyzed their pilot results for many of the same variables, including: . Percent increase in tons recycled; . City-wide materials that could be collected (as projected by pilot results); . Percent material loss during processing; . Net program material recycled; and . Net overall percent increase in tons recycled. The Eureka analysis estimated processing residuals from a national study conducted by Governmental Advisory Associates (GAA) in 2002. The estimates from GAA, as reported by Eureka, stated the average residual rate among the surveyed single stream programs was 16.6 percent. Eureka further analyzed their pilot results with two alternative definitions of "material loss during processing": 01-00253-10101-01011070001 I 13500 P:\13500 Ramsey Co. 2003\RTA\Roseville\FA\DraftResidualsMemo04280S.doc DRAFT