School District Diversion Report 2000: Appendices

Model Waste Assessment Methodology

Introduction

There is a tendency of waste management specialists, be they local jurisdictions, CIWMB staff, nongovernmental organizations, or private consultants, to offer school districts a full menu of waste management strategies, organizational models and promotional materials with the expectation that school districts will immediately see the merits in effective waste management and rise to the challenge of reducing waste. Given the combined challenges of the day-to-day business of education, the focus on student performance, and the growing mandates imposed on schools, this expectation is unrealistic.

Employing an incremental strategy that suggests an initial set of waste reduction practices that are “cheap, easy, and convenient” and that have clear financial benefit to the district will more likely prove successful. The focus should be on waste reduction programs for those segments of the district waste stream that have the most immediate benefits to the districts.

This particular strategy is appealing if the local jurisdiction is trained and equipped to work closely with the district, assisting the district in improving waste reduction over time. With an initial set of facts and strategies for getting started, a continuing working relationship between the districts and the local jurisdiction can be initiated. The task of motivating schools districts to act on waste reduction programs should be approached incrementally, building on small successes over time. It is clear that to expect too much too soon is bound to result in disappointment, if not failure, in institutionalizing waste reduction practices in the district. To initially ask school districts to understand, let alone implement, an entire suite of waste reduction, hire a recycling coordinator or create a team of personnel to focus on waste reduction is unrealistic and likely to result in a lack of action by administrators.

The technique of “dumpster diving” is not required to determine the elements of the waste stream that represent the greatest potential for recycling or waste reduction. In fact, the statewide waste characterization data for schools contains sufficient information for this purpose. The primary purpose of the interviews and facility tours is to ascertain the physical and procedural aspects of the district’s waste management practices.

The pilot project team found department heads and school principals to be most knowledgeable of their facilities, albeit less familiar with the details of waste management practices. Interviews continued during the facility tours with the department heads, principals and facility staff provided an adequate understanding with which to make reasonable judgments regarding the types and quantities of wastes, the degree of employee participation in waste reduction practices, equipment utilization and other information useful for the assessment.

However, calculating cost savings for moving materials from the trash bins, which the districts must pay for, to the recycling bins for which they typically do not pay, proved more difficult due to the limited time spent by the assessment teams on site. To the extent this information is necessary to sufficiently motivate school administrators to initiate recycling programs, more detailed observations over a longer time is required.

Careful attention should be given to make a confident estimate of actual utilization of both disposal and recycling bins. Obviously, the longer the observation period, the more accurate the estimate of utilization. However, basing conclusions on the disposal and recycling bin capacity rather that estimated utilization will still result in a reasonable estimate of the waste stream and the rate of recycling.

It is suggested that this method of calculation accomplishes the desirable purposes of (1) reasonably estimating disposal and recycling rates, and (2) providing adequate information with which to convince school administrators that closer attention to waste management and waste reduction practices can provide substantial savings.

Disposal and recycling capacity in the pilot districts was calculated by multiplying the number by the size of disposal and recycling bins. It was presumed that the waste hauler provided no more or no less than adequate capacity to appropriately service the customer. It is possible, however, that a waste hauler might supply more disposal bins than required because revenue is generated from this service. On the other hand, haulers typically supply recycling bins and service them at no additional charge. Presumably, it would not be in the hauler’s interest to over supply this non-revenue producing equipment.

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Model Waste Assessment Methodology

The result of this methodology is sufficient information upon which to justify the design and implementation of district-wide waste reduction and recycling programs.

• An assessment team led by the local jurisdiction recycling coordinator and accompanied by the waste hauler, if possible, should conduct the assessment.
• Purchasing, disposal, and recycling records including level of service and cost data for a year should be obtained from the district or the waste hauler and reviewed in preparation of the assessment activities.
• An introductory meeting of about one hour should be conducted with the superintendent, chief business official, and department heads explaining the assessment objectives, procedure, timing, demands on district personnel, and the nature of the report. The superintendent should be asked at this meeting to designate one of his managers to assist the assessment team in making appointments with managers, obtaining documents, and directing questions to the appropriate district staff.
• Documented interviews with all department heads and selected principals should be conducted. The interviews should be conducted with a common questionnaire that takes approximately one half hour to conduct.
• Tours of each type of facility, accompanied by the appropriate department heads and if desirable, operational personnel, should be conducted. Facilities include at least one of each school type (elementary, middle, high). The interview process should continue during the facility tour as observations are made and recorded.
• Observations about the district’s waste management practices, disposal and recycling bin utilization, equipment utilization, and activities and machinery that produce waste should be discussed and recorded during the facility tour.
• Information gathered from the interviews and facility tours is compiled and analyzed to ascertain primary and secondary opportunities for waste reduction and cost savings. The CIWMB’s resources for school waste reduction is a useful source of information.
• Prepare a waste assessment report of the facts and observations, and recommendations for an initial set of easily implemented waste reduction opportunities and a list of other opportunities for waste reduction for future implementation.
• Always include a recommendation for the adoption of district-wide waste reduction and environmentally preferable purchasing policies.
• Conduct an exit interview to discuss the draft report and its recommendations with the district superintendent, chief business official, and managers that attended the introductory meeting.
• The exit interview provides an opportunity to stress that the local jurisdiction is available to assist the district in implementing the initial and secondary opportunities and any financial, technical or other resources available to the district. The local jurisdiction should take the opportunity to make appointments with managers to begin implementation following the meeting.
• Finalize the waste assessment report and present it to the district and local jurisdiction recycling coordinator.
• The local jurisdiction should follow up within a month of the exit interview to begin implementation of the recommendations.

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Last updated: April 04, 2008