TO: INTERESTED PARTIES
RE: CITY OF LOS ANGELES
        BUREAU OF SANITATION RECYCLING PROGRAMS

The Solid Resources Citywide Recycling Division (SRCRD) was created in August 1998 from three existing groups. The division provides technical expertise, contract management, grant and financial expertise, legislative support, publications, technical assistance to private industry, City Departments and City residents. The division’s goals are to increase solid waste diversion, reduce illegal dumping of hazardous materials, and increase constituents’ opportunities to improve their local environment without heavy regulation or landfill bans. Overall, SRCRD is responsible for the development and implementation of effective citywide source reduction, recycling, composting, buy-recycled, and reuse programs, campaigns, education, AB939 documentation and policies.

The division’s activities range from technical assistance, collection events, conferences, workshops, public events, corporate sponsorships, school programs, regional campaigns, and continue to attract thousands of city residents and businesses as participants and partners. Because of these partnership strategies, the City of Los Angeles achieved a 49% citywide diversion rate for 1999 and is a national leader in solid waste and hazardous waste management.

• Prepared and distributed over 60 guides to businesses, apartments, city departments, and other institutions in the City of Los Angeles.
• Developed the solid waste methodology that documented 45% diversion in 1995, exceeding the State's mandate (25%) by 20 percentage points.
• Conducted workshops, collection events, and seasonal campaigns on source reduction, buying recycled, recycling, and composting. In 2000 the City hosted the first Western Region "Take it Back Conference".
• For 1999, the City documented a 49% diversion rate.
• As a result of the SRCRD's research and technical assistance, City Departments have increased diversion levels by 100,000 tons each year since 1995.
• The City was selected in 1998 as one of the "best practice" models at the national level (by the Vice President of the U.S.) for construction and demolition recycling outreach.
• The first City-owned and fully permitted composting facility began operation in 1996 by the Organics Group of the SRCRD. To date, the operation of this facility in Griffith Park has resulted in the diversion and processing of 974 dry tons of biosolids, 9,840 cubic yards of green trimmings, and 2,890 cubic yards of zoo manure. The California Resource Recovery Association named the Griffith Park Composting Facility the Best Organics program in California in 1999.
• SRCRD personnel have conducted approximately 65 smart gardening workshops for 20,228 residents of Los Angeles. In addition, 12,000 backyard composting bins have been sold to the public, saving the City $153,200 per year in processing fees.
• In 1997, the Household Hazardous Waste Group collected nearly two million pounds of hazardous waste while serving 22,000 resident participants. In addition, two collection events for small businesses were held with minimal impact on the Division's budget. The Mayor of Los Angeles recently recognized the Household Hazardous Waste and Used Oil Program for providing excellent service to its residents and businesses. The program received a 2000 productivity award from the City of Los Angeles productivity commissioners.
• For 2000 SRCRD is implementing the largest waste study of its kind in the Country.

• BUSINESSES: Private waste haulers provide service to over 140,000 businesses located in the City of Los Angeles.
• APARTMENTS: The BOS does not provide service to apartment buildings of 4 units and over. Over 34,000 multi-family complexes are located in the City of Los Angeles and are serviced by Private Haulers.
• PRIVATE HAULERS: Over 150 private waste haulers provide services to apartments, businesses, and other institutions in the City of Los Angeles.
• MANDATES: The City of Los Angeles does not have a mandatory recycling ordinance, franchising, or commercial recycling requirements. The city's voluntary approach encourages programs to work with public/private sector partnerships.
• TOP THREE RECYCLABLES: Inerts, yard waste, and metals make up the top three citywide recyclables in the City of Los Angeles.

• MEETING AB939: The citywide diversion of solid waste from landfills is expected to exceed the 50% mandate of California State law AB 939.
• LOCAL GOAL: In a letter dated December 10, 1999, Mayor Riordan directed various city departments to develop "strategies to achieve the citywide recycling goal of 70% by 2020".
• CITY DEPARTMENTS: City Departments control over 38% of the Citywide waste stream and have developed various programs to achieve AB939. The General Services Department’s City Facilities Recycling Program has been in existence since 1991 and has won a number of national awards for their work.

• At 447 square miles, Los Angeles is the largest residential collection district in the United States.

• Recycling tonnage increased by 150% as a result of the citywide distribution of the automated blue 95-gallon containers and the single stream recycling method.

• The residential curbside program collection recycling percentage rate averages 39%.

• Collection cost per home for recyclables is $1.72; $3.24 for yard trimmings; and $5.75 for refuse* (*based on December 1999–January 2000; figures vary slightly from month to month).

• FLEET SIZE AND NUMBER OF ROUTES: L.A. operates 487 collection trucks per day citywide (224 for refuse; 137 for yard trimmings; and 126 for recyclables).

• CONTAINER SET-OUT: Standard set-out per home is one blue 95-gallon container for single stream recyclables; one green 60-gallon container for yard trimmings; and one black 60-gallon container for refuse.

• AUTOMATED COLLECTION SPEED: Drivers are required to collect 147 containers per hour with their automated truck.

• TONS COLLECTED: Every month, city forces collect approximately 19,000 tons of recyclables, 30,000 tons of yard trimmings, and 60,000 tons of refuse. The total tons per day (TPD) collected by L.A. is 5,200, making it the largest municipal daily residential collection in the United States.

• HISTORICAL BACKGROUND: The city converted to automated collection of refuse and yard trimmings as well as manual curbside collection of two-stream recyclables beginning in 1991. The Bureau of Sanitation implemented a pilot program in spring 1996 to determine the impact of increased container capacity (from a 16-gallon yellow bin to a 95-gallon blue container) and improved convenience in converting from a two-stream sort to single stream recycling. The impact was so immediate and highly positive that the City distributed 95-gallon blue containers to 720,000 residences in 14 months, culminating in December 1998.

• CUSTOMER APPROVAL RATING OF THE NEW BLUE CONTAINERS WAS SURVEYED AT 92%.

• RECYCLING CONTAINER SET-OUT RATE SOARED TO 82%.

• AVOIDED LANDFILL TIPPING FEES DUE TO THE DIVERTED TONNAGE IN THE RECYCLING PROGRAM ARE ESTIMATED AT $6,000,000 ANNUALLY.

• STAFF REDUCTIONS DUE TO THE EFFICIENCIES OF AUTOMATED COLLECTION AND ENLARGED ROUTES ARE 25%.

• STAFF OVERTIME REDUCTIONS HAVE BEEN SIGNIFICANT DUE TO THE EFFICIENCIES OF AUTOMATED COLLECTION AND OTHER ADVANCEMENTS IN TECHNOLOGY.

• EQUIPMENT SAVINGS DUE TO THE EFFICIENCIES OF AUTOMATED COLLECTION (E.G. FLEET REDUCTION OF 130 TRUCKS AT $125,00 PER TRUCK, UNIVERSALITY OF FLEET) HAVE BEEN SIGNIFICANT.

• SCAVENGING REDUCTION HAS BEEN DRAMATIC DUE TO THE SIZE OF THE CONTAINER AND THE INCREASED DIFFICULTY AND TIME REQUIRED FOR SCAVENGERS TO PULL OUT SPECIFIC COMMODITIES.

• THE "RECYCLE THE BLUE WAY" AUTOMATED RECYCLING PROGRAM WON ONE OF THE CITY OF LOS ANGELES'S PRODUCTIVITY COMMISSION AWARDS IN 1999.

The Solid Resources Engineering and Construction Division (SRECD) began as an organization that developed and operated the City's only active solid waste landfill and performed closure on inactive City landfills. Over the past five years, the SRECD has evolved into an organization that provides both technical and construction services to other Solid Resources Divisions - SRCD, SRCRD, and other City departments. In this new role, the SRECD maintains its focus on the core activities of collection, resource management, maintenance of closed City landfills, and infrastructure development.

The division is divided into two groups with distinctly different but complementary responsibilities: the Technical Services Group and the Construction Services Group.

• Planning and engineering to support collection, resource management, and infrastructure development.
• Special services, including construction and maintenance of closed lanfills.

• Disposed of up to 4,000 tons of rubbish per day when the Lopez Canyon Landfill was active (closed in 1997) and operated a household hazardous waste exclusion (load check) program to ensure the health and safety of the public.
• Designed, installed, maintained, and monitored over 15 miles of pipe and 450 gas collection wells from the methane recovery system at Lopez Canyon.
• Operated and maintained the gas collection system in an agreement with Lopez Canyon Energy Partners for the beneficial use of landfill gas, which has resulted in annual revenue of $520,000 to the City.
• Saved approximately $8 million by employing an innovative geosynthetic liner system on the slopes of Disposal Area "C" during expansion of Lopez Canyon. Otherwise, 400,000 tons of refuse would have been disposed at an alternate location.
• Contracted with private industry to use gas from the Sheldon-Arleta and Toyon Canyon landfills. This resulted in $200,000 of annual revenue to the City.
• Developed the closed Bishop Canyon Landfill into an active recreational park that now provides baseball facilities for over 400 youths in the Northeast Los Angeles area involving Little League, high school, and neighborhood communities.
• Leased and improved four acres adjoining the East Valley District Yard that provides additional parking, an interim office building, and container storage for roll-out of the automated recycling program.
• Coordinated the purchase of a five-acre parcel and utilized City staff to design and construct a satellite yard for parking collection trucks and storing automated recycling containers resulting in a savings of $95,000.
• Reduced out-sourcing (consultant) costs by increasing the planning and engineering workload performed by City staff since 1993.
• Implemented a monolithic cover system at the Lopez Canyon Restoration Project to improve future maintenance, which received a $2 million reimbursement from the Lopez Canyon Trust Fund.

• Completed the construction of Lopez Canyon Landfill, the largest earthmoving project undertaken by the council-controlled City forces (excavation and placement of over nine million cubic yards of dirt).
• Disposed of up to 4,000 tons of household rubbish per day.
• Designed, installed, maintained, and monitored over 15 miles of pipe and 450 gas collection wells for the methane recovery system.
• Operated a household hazardous waste exclusion (load check) program to ensure the health and safety of the public.
• Operated the Griffith Park Composting and Harbor Mulching facilities for annual saving of $600,000 in private processing fees - producing a quality mulch product, which generates revenue for the City.
• Provided construction services for the Northridge Metrolink Station.