Boulder County

In December 2007, the Board of County Commissioners adopted a new ordinance (#2007-01) that requires changes in the way that trash, recyclables and compostables are collected in unincorporated Boulder County.* The County is working with trash haulers and recyclers to implement the provisions of the new ordinance by February 1, 2009. Some trash haulers are already working to implement these changes ahead of the deadline. Your trash hauler will send you a letter or communicate to you in some fashion when they start implementing the changes.

The new ordinance requires trash-hauling companies (haulers) to:

1. Charge residential customers based on the volume of waste that is set out for collection. This type of service is called “Pay-As-You-Throw” (PAYT), or “volume-based-pricing.” To understand how PAYT works, let's look at how we buy other products. We pay for apples by the pound, gasoline by the gallon, electricity by the kilowatt hour, etc. PAYT operates the same way. You pay for the amount of garbage you throw away.

Boulder County haulers are allowed to charge their customers either a straight per-can rate, or a base fee and a per-can rate. Haulers will no longer be able to offer unlimited trash services, or charge minimal amounts for extra trash, or charge extra for collection of recyclables and compostables.

2. Offer unlimited, weekly or bi-weekly recycling collection services to residents who contract with a waste hauler for trash service. Customers do not have to pay more to receive recycling services. This requirement does not apply to mountain customers.

3. Provide customers in certain areas of the unincorporated county with weekly or bi-weekly collection of up to 96 gallons of compostables (food wastes, yard wastes and other organics) at no additional cost.

4. The ordinance also requires all haulers of trash, recyclables and compostables to submit annual reports to the county on tons of materials collected.

*Service plans may differ among mountain, foothills, urban and eastern plains communities. Your hauler will notify you about the specific changes to your service.

Who is affected by the new ordinance?

This ordinance affects all residents who:

Receive trash and/or recycling collection services from a contracted hauler;
Live in a single-family residence in unincorporated Boulder County;
Certain residents will receive weekly or bi-weekly compost collection. Check with your hauler if you will receive this service.
Due to collection cost restraints, residents in mountain communities will shift to Pay-As-You-Throw plans but will not be required to sign up for recycling; if you live in the mountains, you are encouraged to either contract with an independent recycling hauler, to purchase pre-paid recyclables bags from your trash hauler, or to drop-off your recyclables for free at the Waste Transfer stations.

How will this affect me?

Several trash haulers serve unincorporated Boulder County and specific services may differ. Check with your hauler for details. In general, your trash collection:

Will be charged based on the volume of trash that you throw away.
Will include UNLIMITED, Single-Stream (one-bin) recycling.
Will no longer require that you sort different types of recyclable materials, such as separating glass and plastics from paper/cardboard/paperboard.

What will my new rates be? How do I change my cart sizes? When is my recycling day?

Rates, cart sizes, pick-up dates and other details of your service are determined by each individual hauler. Please contact your hauler for specific questions regarding your new trash, recycling and composting service level and collection schedules.

Chart comparing environmental benefits and cost comparisons (PDF)

Impact to large families

Just as electricity and other utilities are not discounted for based on family size, the Pay-As-You-Throw system charges based on total usage (i.e. waste generated) and thus larger households that generate more waste will likely pay more than smaller households that generate less waste. Nevertheless, all households, whether large or small, will have the ability to reduce, reuse and compost, which can significantly reduce the amount of waste set out for disposal and consequently lower your PAYT costs.

Because waste collection and disposal costs are averaged across all users by the waste collection companies, customers who generate small amounts of waste are actually subsidizing the cost of the disposal practices of those who generate larger amounts of waste.

Impact to elderly

The PAYT system’s incentives tend to work in favor of older residents, who tend to produce less waste and thus are likely to only need the smallest volume of service.

How will I know what services are going to be offered to me?

Your waste hauler will communicate to you about which services will be offered to you based on which "zone" that you reside in. A map is available to show you which zone you live in. There are four general zones:

PAYT Trash collection only (mountain areas)
PAYT Trash collection and unlimited recycling (north of Nelson Rd., east of foothills in unincorporated Boulder County)
PAYT Trash collection, unlimited recycling, food scrap & yard waste composting (south of Nelson Rd., east of the foothills)
PAYT Trash collection, unlimited recycling and yard waste composting (communities south of Nelson Rd., just east of the foothills and Eldorado Springs)

Why did the County change its ordinance?

Pay-As-You-Throw (PAYT) trash collection systems are extremely successful at reducing waste. They have been implemented in more than 7,000 communities in 46 states across the U.S. and in many other countries. About 25% of the U.S. population is now served with PAYT. Studies show that this is the single most effective strategy to increase recycling. In communities with PAYT trash collection, the rate of recycling increases by about 50% over pre-PAYT levels.

This new collection system will help Boulder County become a less wasteful community and will help the County move towards its Zero Waste goals. In 2005, the Board of County Commissioners passed a Resolution (#2005-138) that adopted Zero Waste as a guiding principal for all County operations, and committed the County to spread Zero Waste practices throughout the greater Boulder County community. The resolution also committed the County to waste reductions goals of 50% by 2010 and Zero Waste (or darn near) by 2025. See What is Zero Waste? for more information.

How can I cut down my waste so that I can use the smaller (less costly) container?

Start at the store:

Select products with minimal packaging so you don’t have to throw away all the packaging once you get home.
Use products in containers that can be recycled or composted locally.
Reuse your own canvas bags for shopping.
Bring your own containers to stores that sell products in bulk.

At your home:

Be sure you know the recycling guidelines – post them for everyone to see.
Be sure you know the pickup schedule.
Purchase only the food you will eat so there is no waste.
Compost your food scraps and yard waste.
Reuse items when possible. Donate unwanted clothing, furniture, etc. to charity.

What about the recyclable items that aren’t accepted in my recycling bin?

There are many items that your hauler may not collect from your recycling bins, but many of these items don’t belong in a landfill. You can keep these out of your trash (and save space in your trash bin) by taking them to the appropriate location listed below:

Center for Hard-to-Recycle Materials (CHaRM)

For electronics, white block foam, durable #2 plastics, plastic bags, shoes, textiles, porcelain toilets and sinks, fire extinguishers, cooking oil, bike tires and inner tubes, books and manuals.
Located at 5030 “old” Pearl St., Boulder.
Open Monday-Saturday, 9 a.m.-4 p.m. Call 303-444-6634.

ReSource

For construction and demolition materials such as doors, windows, lumber, etc. in good shape.
Hours of operation vary.
Check www.resourceyard.org or call 303-419-5418 for updated information

Boulder County/ City of Boulder Waste Drop-off Center

For yard waste, such as grass clippings, branches, etc.
Located at 5880 Butte Mill Rd., Boulder.
Free for Boulder residents.
County residents pay a discounted rate.
Call 303-441-4234.

Boulder County Household Hazardous Waste Facility

For proper disposal of household chemicals such as paint thinner, cleaners, fertilizers, etc.
Located at 5880 Butte Mill Rd., Boulder.
Open Wednesday, 8 a.m. – 3:30 p.m., and Friday/Saturday, 8 a.m.- noon.
Call 303-441-4800.

When will this ordinance go into effect?

Boulder County is working with all licensed trash haulers to implement the provisions of this new ordinance by February 1, 2009. Your waste hauler may implement these changes sooner.

What is Zero Waste?

Zero Waste is an approach to dealing with our waste – everything from food scraps to packaging – in a way that minimizes the amount thrown away. This system mimics the waste-free and self-sustaining systems seen in nature. It advocates eliminating waste as much as possible and viewing the remaining “discards” as important resources to be returned to the market place (through recycling) or to nature (through composting).

It sounds hard to believe, right? But it is obtainable. Zero Waste starts with our purchasing and consumption patterns. By buying used and/or recyclable items and by choosing products with the least amount of packaging, we can immediately cut down on the amount of waste we generate. Also, organic items such as food scraps, branches and grass clippings can be composted and turned into valuable materials to help gardens grow. Finally, we can keep recyclable products out of the landfill and turn them into products that return to the market. Glass, plastics, metals and certain types of papers can all find new life.

Why is being a Zero Waste community important?

Reducing waste significantly reduces greenhouse gas emissions and is extremely important in addressing climate change.

Excavating raw materials, manufacturing products and containers, and transporting products to market uses huge amounts of energy and thus generates huge amounts of greenhouse gas emissions. Downstream activities such as landfilling also cause greenhouse gas emissions, particularly methane, a potent greenhouse gas.

As an added benefit, recycling materials uses less energy than the production of new items – thus saving energy, reducing consumption of resources and reducing greenhouse gas emissions associated with energy use.

Zero Waste supports local economic development and job creation. Recycling and other waste reduction activities result in up to 10 times more jobs than landfilling, and these jobs are arguably more productive and meaningful.

More recycling and composting will increase the cost efficiency of publicly and privately supported facilities and programs. Boulder County has invested nearly $20 million in tax dollars in the publicly owned Boulder County Recycling Center. It generates more than $5 million in revenues each year, employs more than 50 people and indirectly supports several recycling businesses in the County. This facility has capacity to support higher levels of recycling and will benefit from higher throughput.

How can I help Boulder County move towards becoming a Zero Waste community?

Rethink your purchases: consider how they are packaged and whether there are alternatives that use less packaging. Buy recycled-content paper and other items. Don’t use disposable dinnerware (especially Styrofoam) – use compostable if you must. Don’t take styrofoam take-out containers. Let your local businesses know you support green businesses. Buy environmentally friendly products whenever possible.

Reduce consumption.

Purchase less – especially things that you won’t keep for a long time and items that come in a lot of packaging.
Buy in bulk.
Reuse bags.
Conserve electricity and water.
Xeriscape your yard or plant an “edible garden” (e.g. food and herbs) instead of lawns.

Reuse everything possible, and take reusable items to the thrift store rather than sending them to the landfill.

Repair any items that you can. Mend clothes, glue handles back on cups, fiddle around and see if you can get that clock working again!

Rescue items from a sad fate at the landfill.

Recycle our precious resources! Respect our Earth.

Compost all food scraps and yard waste. Tissues, paper towels, pizza boxes, and non-recyclable paper can all be composted.

Share what you know about recycling, composting and zero waste with your neighbors and friends to create an intentionally sustainable community!

Won’t illegal dumping increase due to the new PAYT system?

Illegal dumping is a frequently raised issue. Although people often assume that illegal dumping will increase once residents are asked to pay for each container of waste they generate, most communities with PAYT have found this not to be the case. This is especially true when communities like ours offer residents recycling, composting and other programs that allow individuals to reduce waste legally.

Since the ordinance requires your hauler to provide curbside collection of approved recyclables, it is to your advantage to utilize the program. You can save money on gas and the recycling truck will be coming down your street to collect your neighbors recyclables anyway.