14 - California Assembly Bill No. 1594 Costa Mesa Sanitary District …an Independent Special District Protecting our community’s health and the environment by providing solid waste and sewer collection services. www.cmsdca.gov Memorandum To: Board of Directors From: Scott Carroll, General Manager Date: September 25, 2014 Subject: California Assembly Bill No. 1594 (D-Williams) – Waste Management Summary Currently, most green waste (e.g. grass clippings, shrubs, tree branches, leaves, weeds, etc.) in Orange County and in California is used as landfill cover instead of topsoil, which is called Alternative Daily Cover (ADC). For years, ADC has counted as being diverted from landfills which allowed cities and counties to meet AB 939 mandate of diverting 50% of waste away from landfills. AB 1594 will eliminate ADC by 2020. Staff Recommendation That the Board of Directors receive and file this report. Analysis When the landmark bill, AB 939, was passed in 1989, the State provided incentives to encourage recycling and meet the 50% diversion mandate. Providing diversion credit for green waste used as landfill cover was one of those incentives because end use markets for green waste composting remained uncertain. However, twenty-five years after AB 939 was passed the infrastructure for composting and conversion technology has matured where there is now environmental and economic value for recycling organics. AB 1594 will end the practice of counting ADC as diversion credit by 2020. This bill has passed both houses in the State Legislature and its now on the Governor’s desk for signing or vetoing. The Governor has until September 30 th to sign or veto AB 1594. If he does not sign or veto AB 1594, the bill will still become law. As of the day this report was prepared, the Governor has not signed or vetoed AB 1594. Staff will have an update on this bill at your September 25 th meeting. ITEM NO. 14
Board of Directors September 25 , 2014 Page 2 of 2 In 2013, Orange County cities and the county covered 532,601 tons of ADC at Orange County landfills, which is 10,242 tons a day (source: CalRecycle website). Currently, there are eight permitted composting facilities in Orange County; however, these faci lities are permitted to accept a total of 5,270 tons a day. In fact, one of the eight facilities can only accept 20 tons of green waste a day and three more facilities can accept only 150 to 200 tons a day. It should be pointed out that not all ADC is gr een waste. Other materials used as ADC is ash, sludge, shredded tires, construction and demolition waste , but the vast majority of ADC is green waste and staff believes if AB 1594 becomes law, there will not be enough composting facilities to handle the d eman d. Other counties in California will experience the same dilemma. Fortunately, CMSD will be in a good position if AB 1594 becomes law because the organization recently approved the Organics Recycling Program where residential green waste and food scr aps will be converted into renewable natural gas by using anaerobic digestion (AD) technology from CR&R. CMSD is guaranteed the lowest rate from CR&R for being the first organization in Orange County to use this state of the art technology. Strategic Ele ment & Goal This item complies with Strategic Element 5.0, Administrative Management and Strategic Goal No. 5.3, Stay informed on applicable federal, state and regional regulations. Legal Review Not applicable Environmental Review A review of proposed legislation is not a disturbance of the environment similar to grading or construction and is not a project under CEQA or the District’s CEQA Guidelines. If and when the District initiates programs in response to the legislation, an environmental review w ill be performed at that time. Financial Review There are no financial impacts to the District if AB 1594 becomes law. Public Notice Process Copies of this report are on file and will be included with the entire agenda packet for the September 25 , 2014 Board of Directors regular meeting at District Headquarters and on the District ’s website. Alternative Actions 1. Direct staff to report back with more information