2006-01-AU Audit of the County of Hawai‘i's Recycling and Diversion Grants Program

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Summary In contrast to mainland communities, cost- effective solid waste disposal in Hawaii County is complicated by several unique factors including geographic location, regulatory restrictions on marine transport, limited domestic markets for recycling and reuse of end products, and difficulty in providing convenient collection facilities due to numerous small rural population distributions. Thus, Hawaii County continues to significantly exceed the national average of pounds of solid waste generated and landfilled per capita as reported by the U. S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). As a result, the County needs to develop and implement methods to better measure the effectiveness of its recycling, diversion, outreach, and education programs. Best Practices for source reduction, recycling, and reuse should be researched to aid in development and implementation of more effective programs. In addition, source reduction programs should include importers, manufacturers, and packagers. Based on examination of program files, the auditors determined that responsibility for the Department's lack of progress in implementing timely and effective solutions to Hawaii County's solid waste needs does not rest solely with DEM. Funding deficiencies in previous years, changes in County governance, and the lack of County -wide accountability for failure to adhere to a solid waste management plan have also contributed to delays. The lead time for implementation of solid waste technologies and infrastructure is lengthy due to permitting and regulatory constraints, and therefore, requires the continued commitment of the County Administration and Council. However, the administrative and legislative branches have yet to agree upon or commit to a long -term plan for addressing solid waste that will provide clear direction to the Department irrespective of changes in elected officials. The County's Updated Integrated Solid Waste Management Plan (ISWMP) is outdated, and does not contain sufficient content for use as a guide and measurement tool for the County's progress in implementing solid waste solutions. It does not include standardized methods and specific criteria for use in determining which technologies, funding mechanisms, and labor sources will be used. It is not supported by a detailed "working plan" that delineates specific tasks, sets timelines, and assigns stakeholder responsibility for timely completion of tasks. The Department and its Special Programs Group do not have written policies and procedures relating to work flow, conmrnunications, procurements, contracting, program monitoring, control, evaluation and reporting, transaction processing, and manpower needs assessment. The Department has not implemented procedures to permit ongoing and accurate measurement of various solid waste components which results in inaccurate estimates of volumes to be processed under recycling and diversion contracts, issuance of numerous contract addenda to address additional volumes and expenditures, and a lack of independent data for reconciliation and validation of volumes claimed as processed.