HomeMy WebLinkAboutCOM 0227.001 1998-2000 - - Rural Community
Assistance Corporation RECEIVED
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PRESENTATION TO HAWAII COUNTY COUNCIL pate --r';-~--
t:o~ntY ~µncil~ .
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March 8,1999 ~ '
You have all probably heard the three R's of integrated solid waste management--Reduce, Reuse,
Recycle. Although recycling gets the lion's share of attention, the other two R's can have very
significant impacts on a county's resource management costs. My assignment here this morning
is to focus on Reuse.
Recycle Hawaii and Public Works staff recently calculated that waste management costs the
citizens of this county nearly $80 per ton. That is bad enough for rubbish. But many of the things
going into the two landfills are items that are still usable or items that could be a source of parts
for repairing similar items. Do you really want to be paying $80 per ton to bury items that are still
perfectly good and useful?
Rural Community Assistance Corporation (RCAC) has been funded by the Clean Hawaii Center,
a program within the Department of Business, Economic Development & Tourism, to conduct a
reuse feasibility study for the Big Island. The purpose of this study is to determine whether it is
feasible to establish a reuse facility on this island.
As part of the reuse study, I have been observing loads being dumped at our transfer stations and
landfills. I have also been talking to the people dumping those loads, to county solid waste
attendants, and transfer station security guards. Many people are frustrated with the state law that
prohibits scavenging. They recognize the value of reusable items and attempt to keep them out of
the landfill by setting them beside the transfer station chutes so they can be claimed by others.
However, the county has a policy that prohibits items from being left outside the chutes. So, if
reusables are not claimed quickly, they get thrown into the chutes by county attendants and
security guards. This is not meant to be critical of county personnel and contractors. They are
simply doing their jobs as best they can. The point is that there is a conflict between state and
county policy and the desire of county residents to allow reusable items to be claimed by people
who need them.
People using the transfer stations tell of being ordered by employers to dump truck loads of new ~ ~
or almost new items at a landfill. They tell of seeing loads of brand new items dumped in a ~ 3
landfill. Rather than costing county residents $80 per ton for disposal, reusable items could be ~ ~
easily diverted. Many new reuse centers are being established across the United States by local n~ u. a'
governments, nonprofit organizations, and even private companies. These centers capture N ~ $ 00
reusable items before they get to disposal facilities and return them to the public at nominal fees N ~ ~
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Reuse can play a vital role in any integrated resource management system developed on this z °
island. As a component of Recycling and Reuse Enterprise Parks, reuse can reduce disposal S Z t~
costs, stimulate the economy, and help low-income residents get things they need at a reasonable
COSt. ~ ~ ~
Hamaii office: 234 Waiaouenue avenue, Suite 218 Hilo, Hawaii 96720 808/934-8987 FaXX 808/969-7727
Corporate office: 2125 19th Street, Suite 203 Sacramento, California 95818 916/447-2854 Fa%: 916/447-2878
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