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Collection Costs | Improving Recycling's Economic Profile | Tools for Local Government Recycling Programs | US EPA
Wastes - Resource Conservation - Tools for Local You are here: EPA Home Wastes Resource C onservation Tools for Local Government Government Recycling Programs
Recycling Programs Improving Recyclings Economic Profile C ollection C osts
Collection Costs
Note: EPA no longer updates this information, but it may be useful as a reference or resource.
Collection costs are related to the programs set out requirements (i.e., how material is to be sortedfor example, separate containers for glass, paper, and cans), frequency of collection, and level of community participation. By adjusting the variables that affect collection costs, communities can lower these costs. In general, the per ton or per household costs of collecting recyclables: Increase with the number of separately segregated commodities. Single-stream is the least costly to collect, followed by two-stream, etc. Increase with the frequency of collection. Collecting half as frequently (e.g., every other week instead of weekly) can reduce collection costs by approximately 25 percent, assuming traditional two-stream set outs. Decrease as more materials are collected by the program. If few households participate in the program and the program does not collect many commodities, the per household cost soars, as it is costly to drive a recycling truck past household after household that has not set out recyclables. Table 1 below provides an example of the average curbside collection costs to a typical community for different set out requirements (single-stream versus. two-stream), two frequencies of collection (every week versus every other week), and at two levels of participation in the curbside program (40 percent diversion rate versus 25 percent diversion rate). The higher diversion rate is consistent with a program that accepts many materials, such as all types of paper, corrugated cardboard, all types of containers (i.e., #1 through #9 plastics), and some additional materials such as aseptic containers or textiles. The lower diversion rate is consistent with either a wide range of acceptable materials but a lower participation, or a narrower range of acceptable materials. As the table illustrates, both crew productivity and collection costs are significantly affected by the set out method, frequency of recycling collection, and the level of participation in the program. Table 1: Collection Costs for Various Frequencies of Collection, Set Out Methods, and Diversion Rates Two-Sort Set Out Variable Once a Week High Diversion 480 4.5 Every Other Week High Diversion 480 6.0 Single-Stream Set Out Once a Week High Diversion 480 6.0 Once a Week Lower Diversion 480 6.0 Every Other Week High Diversion 480 6.0
Minutes/shift Tons/load
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Collection Costs | Improving Recycling's Economic Profile | Tools for Local Government Recycling Programs | US EPA
Recycled Percent diverted Pounds/household/collection day Collection time/household (loading and travel between, in seconds)
40%
40%
20%
40%
30.77 37.64
15.38 28.64
7.69 28.64
30.77 28.64
$192,658 $192,658 $192,658 $19,500 $20,428 $34,571 $212,158 $213,086 $227,229 $54.40 $139 $52.15 $278 $32.86 $89.38
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Collection Costs | Improving Recycling's Economic Profile | Tools for Local Government Recycling Programs | US EPA
A second variable that affects collection costs is the frequency of collection. Consider the effects of frequency of collection on collection cost as shown in Table 1: Holding the diversion rate constant at 40 percent, the two-sort method costs about 22 percent less per household for every-other-week collection than for weekly collection ($45.76 for every other week, compared to $58.67 for weekly collection). Again holding the diversion rate constant at 40 percent, the single-stream method costs only $32.86 per household for every-other-week collection, compared to $54.40 for weekly collection a 40 percent reduction in collection costs.
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