Item 005 - Diversion Rate Presentation — original pdf

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Zero Waste Metrics & Measurements Gena McKinley, Assistant Director February 2025 Zero Waste by 2040 Austin’s Material Generation Res idential Ma na ged by City of Aus tin Commercial & Multifamily Ma na ged by Priva te Ha ulers Data Sources • Res idential • Curbs ide collections • Recycle & Reus e Drop Off Center • Commercial & Multifamily • Contra cted third pa rty s tudies • Self-reported da ta from properties • Licens ed ha uler s elf-reporting Waste Composition Studies Comprehensive Plan Goals • Conduct routine mea s urement of per capita dis pos al ra te a nd capture rate, a nd tra ck over time, a iming for continua l improvement. • Require a ccura te da ta mea s urements in a ll wa s te collection contra cts . wa s te. • Continue to tra ck divers ion rate a s a mea s ure towa rd zero How is Diversion Rate Calculated? Divers ion Rate is a qua ntifica tion of how m uch genera ted wa s te is diverted from being la ndfilled Tons Diverted = Tons recycled + Tons com pos ted + Tons reus ed + Tons Reduced Divers ion Rate = Tons Diverted ÷ Tons Diverted + Tons Dis pos ed Aus tin ha s a city-wide (com m ercia l a nd res identia l) la ndfill divers ion ra te of 37% a s of 2020 The 2020 Com m unity Divers ion Study ca n be found online a t: www.aus tintexas .gov/ divers ion Municipal Diversion Rates City Portland Seattle Austin Minneapolis Phoenix San Antonio Fort Worth Denver Boston Dallas Year 2015 2018 2015 2016 2019 2019 2018 2019 2019 2016 Diversion Rate 47% 57% 42% 37% 36% 36% 30% 23% 21% 21% Year 2023 2023 2020 2018 2022 2024 - 2021 - 2020 Diversion Rate 44% 53% 37% 37% 36% 33% - 33% - 20% Capture Rate • Ca pture ra te is ca lcula ted by determ ining the percenta ge of m a teria l (eg a lum inum ) tha t is pla ced in the blue bin ra ther tha n the tra s h or com pos t. • Ca pture ra te is ca lcula ted: weight of a lum inum ca ns recovered ÷ (a lum inum ca ns recovered + a m ount of m a teria l dis pos ed) • Ca pture ra te of 90% is cons idered m a xim ized • Aus tin intends to m ea s ure ca pture ra te by Council Dis trict Per Capita Disposal • Per ca pita dis pos a l is directly tied to cons um ption • TCEQ ha s s een increa s es in per ca pita dis pos a l for deca des • The lower the num ber the better • Aus tin’s progra m s intend to educate • Ca ptures reduction a nd reus e. Direct m ea s ure of s ending les s to la ndfill on a lterna tives to cons um ption culture to m a inta in a per ca pita dis pos a l of 4 lbs with vis iona ry goa l of 1 lbs per hous ehold. • Aus tin ca lculates per ca pita dis pos a l a s the tota l tons of res identia l m a teria l dis pos ed of ÷ the num ber of hous eholds s erviced by the depa rtm ent. • Aus tin will explore expa nding this to include com m ercia l a nd m ultifa m ily properties . Per Ca pita Dis pos a l Ra te – ARR ha uled m a teria ls Trends from the EPA Generation Trends • Genera tion of pa per a nd pa perboa rd, the la rges t ma teria l component of MSW fluctua tes but is on a downwa rd trend. • Food wa s te a nd ya rd trimmings ha s increa s ed. Recycling and Compos ting Trends • Na tiona l recycling ra te did not exceed 15% until 1990, the 2018 ra te wa s 32.1% a nd ha s s ince pla tea ued. • Infra s tructure for la rge-s ca le food wa s te compos ting rema ins limited. Impacts to Zero Waste Progress • Ma teria l a nd product des ign/ pa cka ging • Lightweighting • Cons umer beha vior a nd ha bits • Remote work – s hifts in wa s te s trea m from home to office a nd vice vers a • Conta mina tion • Circula r pra ctices - Reus e/ Repa ir • End ma rkets for commodities • Legis la tive impa cts – s ta te a nd federa l