Ca. County Shy of Recycling Standards

At a hearing last week, the California Integrated Waste Management Board approved Tracy's request for an alternative waste diversion rate. The board allowed the city to divert 45 percent of waste from landfills until the end of 2004.

Tracy had a 37 percent diversion rate in 2000, the last year for which numbers are available. Manteca's diversion rate, which has hovered at or under 20 percent in past years, is under review.

State law enacted in 1989 required cities to divert at least 50 percent of their waste streams by 2000. 

Those cities that failed to divert at least 50 percent of their garbage from landfills by 2000 could face fines of up to $10,000 per day, although most cities that have not met those goals have been given extensions. Three small cities – Fortuna, McFarland and Gardena – and Fresno County have been warned that they could face fines if their diversion totals don't increase.

"Thanks to the support of local officials, residents and businesses, California has become a state that values the conservation of resources and remains at the forefront of national efforts to protect our natural resources for future generations," said board chair Linda Moulton-Patterson in a statement.

In Alameda County, the quest to divert more garbage from landfills is paying dividends, as both Dublin and Livermore recently reached compliance with state laws.

Both cities were notified last week that they had met California's 50 percent waste diversion goal.

Dublin kept 54 percent of its waste out of landfills in 2000, while Livermore diverted 50 percent. Pleasanton, which had a diversion rate of 48 percent, in June was granted an extension until December 2003.

In Contra Costa County, Danville's diversion rate for 2000 was 51 percent, while San Ramon was reported to divert 50 percent of garbage from landfills.

The amount of garbage being diverted from landfills may be rising in part because of new recycling measures. Over the past year, both Dublin and Livermore adopted ordinances requiring construction crews to increase their recycling efforts. In Dublin, for instance, crews must divert 50 percent of their construction and demolition waste.

The materials can be reused for a variety of purposes. Concrete, for example, can be ground up and used as a road base.

Diverting more debris from construction areas is significant because construction materials are usually heavier than, say, plastic bottles, and thus have a greater impact on diversion rates.

Jason Behrmann, administrative analyst with the city of Dublin, said most contractors reacted favorably to the new diversion regulations.

"There was not a lot of opposition to it," he said, "Many are finding out it is cheaper to recycle the materials than dumping it into the landfill."

Most construction crews, he said, are exceeding the local ordinance by diverting 60 to 70 percent of construction waste.

New programs for residents have also helped divert more refuse, said Aimee Burastero, public education manager for Livermore-Dublin Disposal, a unit of Waste Management Inc. For instance, the green waste pickup program in Livermore went from a biweekly to a weekly basis beginning in August, she said.

"Both cities have very good recycling programs," she said.

There are no statewide regulations requiring cities to divert any more garbage than the 50 percent goal set some 14 years ago, although officials in Alameda County have discussed raising the local goals to 75 percent by the year 2010.

Regardless Burastero said officials will keep seeking to raise the amount of garbage that is diverted from landfills.

"We are striving to divert as much as possible," she said. – Tri-Valley Herald