County costs for processing yard waste going up
Some to be charged for dumping branches clippings at CPF
New fees are being considered for disposing of yard waste at Medina County’s Central Processing Facility. File photo
Beth Biggins-Ramer
MEDINA – The cost of keeping your yard and landscaping well groomed could be going up a little if the Medina County Solid Waste District institutes fees for disposing of yard waste at its Central Processing Facility.
A new fee for dropping off tree branches and other plant trimmings appears to be in the future because the county’s cost of disposing of that material has risen. What had been costing the solid waste district about $1,600 a year to turn that yard waste into mulch could cost the county about $130,000 this year.
That’s because the dynamics of the mulch and compost business in Medina County and much of Ohio has changed in recent years, according to Solid Waste Coordinator Beth Biggins-Ramer. The situation changed when a large paper mill in the middle of the state closed about two years ago and stopped accepting sawdust and wood chips from various lumber mills and furniture makers around the state.
That leftover sawdust, which was once turned into paper, has now become a nearly ideal clean and cheap ingredient for mulch and compost makers who are now producing a higher-grade product at less cost than in previous years. Consequently, local companies like Smith Brothers Inc. and Madden Brothers can no longer turn yard waste into mulch and compost at a competitive price unless they reduce their operating costs.
As a result, those companies have begun charging for processing yard waste, a service they used to perform for little or no charge.
Biggins-Ramer says Smith Brothers has had a contract to process the yard waste dumped at the CPF for the past two years. It charged the county only $100 a month to grind the yard waste dumped at the CPF and haul it to its Medina facility where it was screened and processed for use in landscaping.
With higher costs for processing yard waste on the horizon, the county solicited bids for the continued processing of yard waste at the CPF. Smith Brothers was the lowest bidder at $19.99 per ton and was expected to be awarded a new contract to manage the yard waste hauled to the CPF. With about 6,500 tons of ground waste hauled from the CPF last year, the annual cost to the solid waste district would be a little over $129,000.
Biggins-Ramer said the solid waste district has inquired about the policy for accepting yard waste at several composting facilities in the area and learned all have implemented a tipping fee for receipt of yard waste. The pricing structure is based on the number of vehicle axels or cubic yard.
“At a minimum, the district should consider implementing a policy that all commercial yard waste and tree companies pay a per axel fee,” Biggins-Ramer wrote in a memo to Sanitary Engineer Amy Lyon-Galvin. “Residents of Medina County could still deposit their yard waste for free in the Class IV area. This would ensure that the district does not receive an inordinate amount of yard waste due to its $0 tipping fee.”
A new fee for dropping off tree branches and other plant trimmings appears to be in the future because the county’s cost of disposing of that material has risen. What had been costing the solid waste district about $1,600 a year to turn that yard waste into mulch could cost the county about $130,000 this year.
That’s because the dynamics of the mulch and compost business in Medina County and much of Ohio has changed in recent years, according to Solid Waste Coordinator Beth Biggins-Ramer. The situation changed when a large paper mill in the middle of the state closed about two years ago and stopped accepting sawdust and wood chips from various lumber mills and furniture makers around the state.
That leftover sawdust, which was once turned into paper, has now become a nearly ideal clean and cheap ingredient for mulch and compost makers who are now producing a higher-grade product at less cost than in previous years. Consequently, local companies like Smith Brothers Inc. and Madden Brothers can no longer turn yard waste into mulch and compost at a competitive price unless they reduce their operating costs.
As a result, those companies have begun charging for processing yard waste, a service they used to perform for little or no charge.
Biggins-Ramer says Smith Brothers has had a contract to process the yard waste dumped at the CPF for the past two years. It charged the county only $100 a month to grind the yard waste dumped at the CPF and haul it to its Medina facility where it was screened and processed for use in landscaping.
With higher costs for processing yard waste on the horizon, the county solicited bids for the continued processing of yard waste at the CPF. Smith Brothers was the lowest bidder at $19.99 per ton and was expected to be awarded a new contract to manage the yard waste hauled to the CPF. With about 6,500 tons of ground waste hauled from the CPF last year, the annual cost to the solid waste district would be a little over $129,000.
Biggins-Ramer said the solid waste district has inquired about the policy for accepting yard waste at several composting facilities in the area and learned all have implemented a tipping fee for receipt of yard waste. The pricing structure is based on the number of vehicle axels or cubic yard.
“At a minimum, the district should consider implementing a policy that all commercial yard waste and tree companies pay a per axel fee,” Biggins-Ramer wrote in a memo to Sanitary Engineer Amy Lyon-Galvin. “Residents of Medina County could still deposit their yard waste for free in the Class IV area. This would ensure that the district does not receive an inordinate amount of yard waste due to its $0 tipping fee.”
