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Home My WebLink AboutWASTE MANAGEMENT, SPSA, RECYCLING UPDATECurbside Recycling Update LJ Hansen & Jessica Gilera | February 20, 2024 1.Recap of Issues and Actions 2.Public Engagement Results 3.RFP Findings 4.SPSA Update 5.Next Steps 6.Discussion Recycling Update | 2 Agenda •Automated (95 gallon) Cost per home/per month is $3.02 (Included in the Refuse fee) •Manual (18 gallon) Cost per home/per month is $3.10 (about 376 townhomes) •Average number of homes receiving curbside recycling services: 125,000 •Waste Management (WM) manages two recycling centers. Using two compactors at each site, WM hauls the recyclable material to TFC for processing. Cost - $5.64 per ton •Total price for services $4.66M annually Recycling Update | 3 Virginia Beach Recycling (Today) Recycling Update | 4 Waste & Recycling Tonnages 147,383 169,218 157,168 163,134 96,054 28,414 28,011 22,038 23,237 12,817 0 20,000 40,000 60,000 80,000 100,000 120,000 140,000 160,000 180,000 FY 19/20 FY 20/21 FY 21/22 FY 22/23 FY 23/24* FY 19/20 FY 20/21 FY 21/22 FY 22/23 FY 23/24* Rate 16.2%14.2%12.3%12.5%11.8% Recycling 28,414 28,011 22,038 23,237 12,817 SPSA 147,383 169,218 157,168 163,134 96,054 •Current Contract Expires 6/30/2024 •Vendor has notified us that they will not accept the contract identified five-year extension at current rates •Recycling costs were anticipated to double, leading to a potentially significant impact to the Waste Service Fee •Vendor service issues remain a significant annoyance for citizens and staff Recycling Update | 5 Recycling Contract Status Recycling Update | 6 Citizen Complaints 2131 2901 3747 5963 5664 5100 6163 4746 0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 Recycling Update | 7 Streets Not Serviced 267 615 925 1412 2361 2483 2617 3726 2606 -200 300 800 1300 1800 2300 2800 3300 3800 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 •Exchanging curbside collections with community convenience centers •Converting City-based curbside to resident- based subscription service •Allowing residents to opt-in/out of City-based curbside •Separate collections from processing •Make no changes – Other options? Recycling Update | 8 Some Potential Options Proposed Staff briefed City Council July 26, 2023,and identified several steps for staff to undertake: 1.Communications and PW staff would engage the public on what they would like to see regarding recycling 2.PW staff would issue a Response for Proposal (RFP) soliciting recycling services 3.Staff would engage with regional partners to identify possible solutions or ideas Recycling Update | 9 Plan of Action NAME OF PRESENTATION | p# Resident Engagement Recycling Update | 11 Recycling Update | 12 Summary •Timeline: •Aug. 28 – Oct. 1:Education portion of campaign. •Oct. 2 – Nov. 17:Public input/survey portion of campaign. •Objective: •Obtain widespread resident input on their recycling preferences to share with City leadership prior to any major decisions being made.Input was collected via a survey on SpeakUpVB.com and preferences were driven by pre-selected recycling options for residents to rank within the survey. •Results: •9,948 survey responses. •Including 92 paper surveys. Recycling Update | 13 We Heard From Those Currently Paying for Curbside •83.8%(8,333)of respondents report their primary residence as a single-family home. •83.6%(8,318) of respondents report currently paying for or receiving curbside recycling collection. •88.1%(8,764) of respondents describe themselves as “diligent” or “conscientious” recyclers. •86.9%(8,648) of respondents consider it “essential” or “important”to have curbside recycling services as part of Virginia Beach Waste Management services. Recycling Update | 14 Some are Able to Pay More •44.5%(4,428) of all respondents report $1-$4 monthly as the total amount they would be able to pay for the convenience of curbside recycling collection. •23.6%(2,345) report $5-$10 monthly as the total they are able to pay. Note: 9.7% (966) of respondents did not answer this question. Question: If you selected an option of increased fees for curbside recycling collection, what total amount would you be able to pay for the convenience of curbside recycling collection? Recycling Update | 15 Option Ranking •Option 1: Same Services, Increased Cost •36.2%(3,602) of respondents ranked this option first. This option also had the highest average ranking of 1.32. •Of the respondents who ranked this as their top option, 55.6% reporting being able to pay $1-$4 monthly, and 35.3% reported being able to pay $5-$10 monthly. •Option 3: Opt-in/Opt-Out Program •12.8 %(1,276) of respondents ranked this option first, with an average ranking of 1.81. •Option 2: Eliminate Curbside, Increase Convenience Centers •5.3%(530) of respondents ranked this option first, with the lowest average ranking of all options at 2.43. Note: Percentages do not sum to 100% because 45.6% (4,540) of respondents did not answer the option-ranking question. RFP Responses Recycling Update | 16 •RFP was issued on November 27, 2023, and closed January 10, 2024 •Informed potential offerors about civic engagement process •Identified potential Opt-In option •Requested that vendors submit on collection and/or processing for curbside recycling – to be awarded separately Recycling Update | 17 RFP Offered RFP is still open – Not able to disclose specific information at this point. •Two vendors submitted on the RFP •Neither vendor wanted to submit on Opt-In •Both vendors prefer to not separate collection from processing – One vendor only submitted this way and one submitted both ways with a significant markup to allow the separation of the two elements of recycling Recycling Update | 18 RFP Responses If we choose to retain curbside recycling, costs will rise sharply but nothing will change from a service standpoint •Choosing the lowest offered price, total yearly cost of $4.66M today will rise to approximately $9.02M with new contract - An increase of $4.36M annually or a 93.6% increase •Selecting the higher bidder would result in an increase of approximately $10.3M annually or an increase of 221% Recycling Update | 19 Early Take- Aways From RFP The Solid Waste Fee would require a monthly increase of $3.05/house/month to account for this contract increase Current monthly Solid Waste Fee - $27.50/house/mo •Recycling is $3.11 or 11.3% of overall fee Proposed monthly Solid Waste Fee - $30.55/house/mo •Recycling would be $6.16 or 20.2% of overall fee Recycling Update | 20 Impacts to the Solid Waste Fee SPSA Update Recycling Update | 21 •In 2018 SPSA went through a significant structure change •All 8 communities signed identical Use & Support Agreements (USAs) with a single Work Plan in place •Curbside recycling was specifically left out of the Work Plan but allowed for under other clauses in the USAs •At present SPSA does not have a curbside recycling service at play in any of the member communities Recycling Update | 22 SPSA & Recycling •Changes at the Portsmouth Naval Yard have made the financial viability of the waste-to-energy plant unsound – The facility is closing June 30, 2024 •SPSA is preparing to expand into Cell VII at the Regional Landfill and staff are working to permit cells VIII & IX •SPSA is evaluating alternative methods for the disposal of waste – higher up on the waste hierarchy than landfilling Recycling Update | 23 Changes at SPSA •As part of this process a Request for Information (RFI) was issued last year •Almost all responses proposed some type of pre- screening for recyclables before processing the remainder of the waste (largely organics) •An RFP has been released to solicit proposals •This is expected to have a significant impact on how we handle recycling and may reduce or eliminate our need for segregated curbside recycling Recycling Update | 24 Changes at SPSA (Continued) Next Steps Recycling Update | 25 •As part of the ongoing annual budget preparation, staff have submitted these numbers to the Budget and Management Services department for inclusion in the FY 2025 budget, for City Council review •Staff are prepared to work towards the completion the RFP process and ensure that the identified bidder can meet the established legal and contract requirements before June 30, 2024 Recycling Update | 26 Next Steps Discussion/Questions Recycling Update | 27