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HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0521.038 2002-2004 Mfr or H Harry Kim : ~ Dixie Kaetsu E. Mayur Managing Director ~"~~.•;;•N;.+~ Peter L. Hendricks Deputy Managing Director ~uuntp of ~aiuai`i 25 Aupuni S[reey Room 215 Hilo, Hawaii 96720-4252 • (808) 961-8211 Fax (808) 961-6553 KONA: 75-5706 Kuakini Highway, Suite 103 Kailua-Kona, Hawaii 96740 (808)329-5226 • Fax (808)326-5663 r.; r`~ 0 May 25, 2004 ~ ~ ~ c The Honorable James Y. Arakaki, Chairman r_; ro and Members of the Hawaii County Council ~ Q= 25 Aupuni Street ~ Hilo, Hawaii 96720 ~ r~ - _ ~ Subject: Sort Station Facility Funding _e Dear Chairman Arakaki and Members of the Council: On May 19, the Council amended the proposed operating and capital budgets by removing all funding for the staffing, operations, and expansion of the planned East Hawaii Regional Sort Station and maintenance facility. Based on the discussion at the Council meeting, it appears that the Council believes there would be no adverse consequences to the Hilo Landfill closure date by delaying the implementation of the Sort Station. Please be aware that the projected closure date of the landfill is based on the assumption that the Sort Station will become operational during next fiscal year, and will increase the amount of material diverted from the landfill. If the Sort Station Facility is delayed, more material than projected will go into the landfill and it will probably reach capacity sooner than projected. In addition, if the landfill reaches capacity before the Sort Station is in operation, commercial rubbish haulers will be forced to truck their loads to Pu`uanahulu themselves, resulting in over 90 trucks daily driving from East Hawaii to the West Hawaii Landfill, instead of the 10 to 12 truckloads projected when the Sort Station's Reload Building is operational. The Department of Environmental Management (DEM) understands that the reasons for the budget cuts are: 1) to expedite the selection of the ultimate waste reduction technology and get it online quickly, without the intermediate step of an independent Sort Station Facility; and 2) to test the private sector's offers to finance the construction and operate the reload component of the facility, with funding through the commercial landfill tipping fees. The Council does not want to create new County positions and prefers private funding to construct and operate the facility. Our Proposal We do understand the Council's concern on these two points, and would like to offer what we believe is a compromise that would address some of the Council's concerns and still allow us to proceed immediately with the Sort Station so the life of the Hilo Landfill can be extended for the maximum possible period and no time is lost in bringing the Sort Station on line. We propose that the County proceed to construct the recycling and reload facility, but that it b Z • Comm. No. , I Ref. Ta PrereeMd Hawaii County is an equal opportunity provider and employer. R@f, pQ}@ May 25, 2004 The Honorable James Y. Arakaki and Council Members Page 2 privately operated and the construction costs be recovered from the successful vendor of the alternate technology eventually selected. The DEM is prepared to publish the Invitation for Bids for the construction of the East Hawaii Regional Sort Station within the next two weeks. This is important so the recycling and reloading facilities can be constructed as soon as possible. When the construction is underway, an Invitation for Bid for the private operation of the reload building will be published. The recycling operations will continue to be performed by private contractors as they are now. This eliminates the need to create new County jobs to operate the Sort Station Facility. When the Request for Proposals for alternate technologies is issued, it will inform potential vendors that the Sort Station Facility is available for incorporation into their project, as well as contain a statement that the County expects its construction costs expended for the Sort Station Facility to be recovered either up front or over time. Integrated Solid Waste Management Plan and Its Implementation For the last two years, the DEM has been proceeding on implementation of the County's Integrated Solid Waste Management Plan (ISWMP), which was adopted by the Council. As you know, this plan involved increasing diversion of material from our landfills through recycling and reuse, as well as development of thermal gasification, anaerobic digestion, or incineration (waste to energy) as an alternate to replace the Hilo Landfill and handle the portion of East Hawai`i's solid waste than cannot be recycled. The Kea`au Recycling and Reuse Center is very successful, and a similar Center is under development at the Kealakehe Transfer Station. In addition, we are in the process of procuring recycling services for the other transfer stations. The Sort Station is an integral part of our islandwide solid waste services., providing an area for processing recyclables from islandwide collections. In addition, with the recent issuance of the Request for Information on alternate technologies, we are taking the appropriate steps to responsibly implement the next step of the ISWMP, which is the selection and implementation of an alternate technology to replace the Hilo Landfill. Conclusion We respectfully recommend that by going ahead with the construction of the first phase of the East Hawaii Regional Sort Station, built by the County and operated by a private contractor, we can address the Council's concerns about adding new employees to the County payroll and about the County bearing the cost of construction, while at the same time allowing us to reach our projected recycling levels so the life of the Hilo Landfill can be extended as long as possible. May 25, 2004 The Honorable James Y. Arakaki and Council Members Page 3 We request your support by restoring the funding for new positions that was deleted on May 19 and appropriating it to the Miscellaneous Contractual Services account in the Solid Waste Fund. This will enable us to continue our implementation of the ISWMP without unnecessary delay so we can minimize the hauling of solid waste to Pu`uanahulu. Aloha, arry Kimv MAYOR cc: Barbara Bell, Director of Environmental Management