Section 1 Wasteshed Analysis

Transcription

1 FINAL Section 1 Wasteshed Analysis R. W. Beck has evaluated the current and future market place for the Victoria Landfill. This section provides county by county assessments of collection and landfill/transfer operations in the region. The region was defined as an area within a 100 mile radius of the City of Victoria. This section provides an understanding of what landfills and transfer stations are currently being used, and evaluates the potential for them to send waste to the City of Victoria s Landfill based on factors such as pricing, transportation costs and existing contracts. R. W. Beck completed this review based on a combination of the following data sources: Interviews with cities, private haulers and disposal facility operators; Published solid waste planning reports (e.g., regional solid waste management plans); and Annual disposal facility reports submitted to the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality. The section concludes with R. W. Beck s research of disposal pricing and opportunities for the City of Victoria to be more competitive with these other facilities. Table 1-1 Current Disposal Fees at Victoria Landfill Description Disposal Fee Waste Collected in Victoria County Fee per Compacted CY $10.36 Fee per Uncompacted CY $8.86 Fee per ton $34.54 Waste Collected Outside Victoria County Fee per Compacted CY $11.79 Fee per Uncompacted CY $9.89 Fee per ton $ /19/06

2 Section 1 FINAL 1.1 Wasteshed Analysis R. W. Beck has organized the wasteshed assessment geographically into three subregions based on proximity to the City of Victoria, since hauling distance can significantly affect the feasibility of whether waste is disposed in the City s Landfill. The three areas are outlined in Figure 1-1. Figure 1-1: Wasteshed for City of Victoria Landfill Type I Landfills 1 - City of Victoria 2 - BFI El Centro 3 - J.C. Elliott 4 - Republic Seabreeze 5 - Clean Harbors Altair 6 - BFI Blue Ridge 7 - Fort Bend Regional 8 - BFI Tessman Rd 9 - WM Covel Gardens 10 - WM Austin Community 11 - BFI Sunset Farms 12 - Texas Disposal Systems 13 - Comal County 14 - City of Alice 15 - City of Kingsville 16 - McMullen Type IV Landfills 17 - Nido Inc 18 - Sprint Fort Bend County 19 - IESI Travis County 20 - City of Austin Transfer Stations 21 - Jackson County 22 - Yoakum 23 - Hallettsville 24 - Wharton 25 - Matagorda 26 - Weimar 27 - Sealy 28 - Country Waste 29 - Brenham 30 - Aransas County 31 - TDS Starcrest 32 - Live Oak 1-2 R. W. Beck 5/19/06

3 FINAL Wasteshed Analysis Counties Closest to Victoria County The counties that are adjacent to Victoria County or within a radius of approximately 40 miles are the most likely to have an interest in using the City s Landfill. Correspondingly, R. W. Beck s analysis is the most detailed for these counties, as compared to counties that are located further from the City of Victoria Aransas County The Aransas County Transfer Station located in Rockport handles approximately 6,700 tons annually with a gate rate of $12 per cubic yard. County staff estimate that primary customers are small commercial haulers (estimated at 75 percent of the volume at the transfer station). Additional waste comes to the transfer station from citizens. Transfer station waste is hauled to either the El Centro Landfill ($18 per ton) or J.C. Elliott Landfill ($20.75 per ton), both located in Nueces County. Distances to these two landfills are 55 to 65 miles, one way, from the transfer station (as compared to 65 miles to Victoria). When the J.C. Elliott Landfill closes within the next several years, Aransas County does expect the tipping fees in Nueces County to increase several dollars per ton (estimated to be $3 to $5 per ton). Interest in the Victoria Landfill: Since the hauling distance would be similar between landfills in Nueces County and Victoria (65 miles), Aransas County could have an interest in the Victoria Landfill, but only if the tipping fee would be competitive. This would likely mean a tipping fee in the range of $21-25 per ton. They are not contractually limited to using the landfills in Nueces County. Collection services for the cities of Rockport, Fulton and Aransas Pass are provided by BFI 1, which hauls the waste to one of its landfills in Nueces County (either J.C. Elliott Landfill or El Centro Landfill). 2 Dawson Recycling and Disposal provides hauling service from the Aransas County Transfer Station to either El Centro Landfill or J.C. Elliott Landfill. The contract rate is $140 per haul to El Centro Landfill and $125 per haul to J.C. Elliott Landfill for a 140 cubic yard container. The County is one and a half years into a two-year contract with Dawson and is very likely to renew this contract. Some smaller haulers haul directly to the J.C. Elliott Landfill. Interest in the Victoria Landfill: With significantly lower tipping fees at the two BFI Nueces County landfills compared to the Victoria Landfill, R. W. Beck would not expect that BFI would have an interest in hauling to the Victoria Landfill. Furthermore, BFI operates its collection vehicles from its Corpus Christi operation, which would mean that collection vehicles making a trip to the Victoria Landfill at the end of the day would have to drive back to Corpus Christi after unloading waste at the 1 BFI is also known as Allied. The company is in the process of changing its name from BFI to Allied on a national basis. The company is referred to as BFI in this report. 2 BFI owns and operates the El Centro Landfill. The J.C. Elliott Landfill is owned by the City of Corpus Christi, which has contracted with BFI for the operation of the facility. 5/19/06 R. W. Beck 1-3

4 Section 1 FINAL Victoria Landfill. When disposing of waste in one of the Nueces County landfills, the trip to its vehicle yard after the last load is relatively short. Key Finding(s) There could be an opportunity for the Aransas County Transfer Station waste (6,700 tons per year) to go to Victoria, but it would require a significant pricing decrease to interest the County. It is unlikely that BFI s direct haul would be disposed of in the Victoria Landfill Calhoun County There is a transfer station in Calhoun County which is utilized primarily by residents in the unincorporated areas of the County. R. W. Beck estimates that the amount of waste collected at this transfer station is small relative to that collected in the incorporated areas of the County. Waste Management collects most of the waste for residential, commercial dumpster, and commercial roll-off customers in the City of Port Lavaca and other areas of Calhoun County. Waste Management also hauls the waste that is collected at the Calhoun County transfer station. All waste collected by Waste Management in Calhoun County is being disposed of at the Victoria Landfill. Most of the waste generated in Calhoun County is currently hauled to the Victoria Landfill by Waste Management. There are no significant opportunities to increase the tonnage going to the Victoria Landfill from Calhoun County DeWitt County The City of Yoakum is located on the county line of DeWitt County and Lavaca County. For purposes of discussion, R. W. Beck included the City of Yoakum in the DeWitt County section. The City of Yoakum operates a transfer station and has a contract with Texas Disposal Systems (TDS) to haul the waste to the TDS Landfill in Creedmoor, which is approximately 75 miles from Yoakum (Victoria is approximately 40 miles from Yoakum). Although staff at the Yoakum transfer station did not know the exact amount of tonnage transfer annually to the landfill, they estimated that three to four transfer trailer loads per day, five days a week, were hauled to the landfill. Based on this information, R. W. Beck estimates that between 18,200 and 22,750 tons are hauled from the Yoakum transfer station annually. 3 Although staff at the Yoakum transfer station was not able to provide the disposal rate at the TDS Landfill, the gate 3 Based on an average of 3.5 trailer loads per day, and between 20 and 25 tons per load. 1-4 R. W. Beck 5/19/06

5 FINAL Wasteshed Analysis rate at the TDS Landfill is $7.10 per compacted cubic yard versus $11.17 per compacted cubic yard at the Victoria Landfill for waste from outside the County. The City of Cuero operates a citizens collection station (CCS) for collection of waste and recyclable material. The City of Cuero hauls waste collected at the CCS to the Yoakum transfer station. Interest in the Victoria Landfill: R. W. Beck was not able to confirm the expiration date of the TDS contract with City of Yoakum. City of Yoakum staff indicated that they are content with the current relationship with TDS. The waste from the City of Cuero is discussed in more detail in the section below. The City of Cuero provides solid waste collection services for residential and commercial accounts. The City direct hauls this waste to the transfer station in Yoakum, which is approximately 18 miles from Cuero, for a disposal fee of $10.40 per compacted cubic yard. Cuero is approximately 28 miles from the Victoria Landfill and the disposal fee for waste coming from outside Victoria is $11.79 per compacted cubic yard. Cuero was previously a customer of the Victoria Landfill and hauled approximately 5,000 to 8,000 tons there annually. According to staff at the City of Cuero, the unincorporated areas of DeWitt County are primarily serviced by a number of smaller private haulers (i.e., haulers other than BFI, Waste Management, IESI, or TDS). One of these haulers is Country Waste, which hauls the waste to their transfer station in Bellville; see Section for further information. Interest in the Victoria Landfill: The City of Cuero pays $10.40 per compacted cubic yard at the Yoakum transfer station compared to $11.79 if it were to haul to the Victoria Landfill. Additionally, the one-way haul distance to Yoakum is approximately 10 miles less than the distance to Victoria. The City of Cuero is a previous customer of the Victoria Landfill and stated that turn-around times at the Yoakum transfer station are shorter than at the Victoria Landfill. Cuero is in the second year of a five-year contract with the City of Yoakum for disposal at the transfer station. The key to increasing the amount of waste going to the Victoria Landfill from DeWitt County is capturing the waste from the Yoakum transfer station. If TDS continues to haul this waste, it is unlikely that the waste will be hauled to the Victoria Landfill unless the cost to do so is significantly less than the hauling and disposal costs associated with using their own landfill in Creedmoor. If and when the City of Yoakum decides to open the hauling and disposal for bid, another contractor could win the business, assuming the disposal cost at the Victoria Landfill enabled the contractor to submit a competitive bid. Additionally, since the City of Yoakum does not haul the waste, the private contractor would likely have to be willing to provide this service. 5/19/06 R. W. Beck 1-5

6 Section 1 FINAL For the City of Cuero, there is currently little incentive to haul waste to Victoria. The City of Yoakum transfer station is less expensive and closer. The disposal cost of the Victoria Landfill would have to be low enough to offset the increased distance, as well as compensate for other factors such as the ease and quickness of dumping waste at the transfer station versus at a landfill Goliad County Goliad County operates three citizens collection stations in the County. These facilities are located south of Goliad, in Berclair and Waesatche. The County does not have specific records concerning the quantity of waste collected at each site; however, it is estimated to be in the range of 800 to 1,200 tons per year. 4 BFI services the station near Goliad. Collected waste is hauled to a BFI landfill in Nueces County. While not independently confirmed, BFI is thought to collect most of the waste in the County since they are servicing the largest station, which accounts for approximately two-thirds of the collection station waste. Goliad County does not have a contract with BFI for their services. Waste Management services the Waesatche and Berclair facilities; this waste is transferred to the Victoria Landfill. Goliad County does not have a contract with Waste Management for their services. The City of Goliad is 26 miles from Victoria and 72 miles from BFI s El Centro Landfill. Interest in the Victoria Landfill: BFI is not likely to send collected waste to the Victoria Landfill under the current contract since the company already sends the waste to a BFI facility for disposal. The City of Goliad signed a five-year contract in January 2006 with Texas Disposal Services (TDS), which owns and operates a landfill in Creedmoor, for residential and commercial collection within the City. 5 TDS also provides some collection services in the unincorporated areas of the County. R. W. Beck estimates that TDS collects 1,500 to 2,500 tons per year. B&B Trash Services of Victoria is the only other company in the County that provides collection services in the unincorporated areas of the County. B&B is currently a customer of the Victoria Landfill. 4 Based on estimates provided by Goliad County concerning the number of collections per year between open-top and compacting containers. Further estimates were calculated based on container size and compaction ratios. 5 The City previously contracted with BFI for waste collection services, but elected to pursue another provider due to customer service issues with BFI. 1-6 R. W. Beck 5/19/06

7 FINAL Wasteshed Analysis Per Goliad County staff, there are a few construction contractors working in the County, and they typically self-haul material directly to the Victoria Landfill. This is not thought to be a significant amount. Interest in the Victoria Landfill: R. W. Beck would not expect for TDS to use the Victoria Landfill since it has its own. Key Finding Under current conditions, there is not a great likelihood that the opportunity exists to increase the quantity of material taken to the Victoria Landfill as R. W. Beck would not expect BFI and TDS to change their current practices. However, a change in the terms of the current Victoria Landfill contract or a new operations contract could increase the opportunity for waste from the citizens collection stations to go to the Victoria Landfill, which would represent approximately 500 to 800 tons annually Jackson County The Jackson County Transfer Station is located near Ganado, which is approximately 35 miles from the City of Victoria. This transfer station accepts approximately 2,262 tons of municipal solid waste per year for disposal. The tipping fee at the transfer station is $49.11 per ton. Most of this waste is disposed of at the Victoria Landfill (1,562 tons). The County does send the remaining 700 tons to the Clean Harbors Landfill in Altair, which is approximately 48 miles from the transfer station. Material sent to this landfill is primarily dense waste (e.g. construction and demolition debris) since their pricing is on a per cubic yard basis ($9.75 per cubic yard). The County also sends waste to this facility when the County needs to haul other material back to the County from companies located near Altair. Interest in the Victoria Landfill: While Jackson County uses the Victoria Landfill as its primary disposal location, the County does send approximately 1/3 of its waste stream to the Clean Harbors Landfill in Altair. There is a potential that the Clean Harbors Altair Landfill could offer a better price in the future as the landfill is currently seeking a permit amendment that would significantly increase its disposal capacity, which was approximately 14,700 tons in County staff also have expressed interest in hauling waste to the TDS Landfill in Creedmoor, which can offer disposal rates of $20 to 25 per ton, but with a hauling distance of 123 miles it is unlikely that this would be a viable option given recent increases in fuel pricing. County staff specifically stated that the high tipping fees at the Victoria Landfill prompted them to explore their options. 5/19/06 R. W. Beck 1-7

8 Section 1 FINAL Jackson County is definitely a customer that has a strong interest in using the City s landfill, based on its current practice. However, there is also a chance that the County would use another facility (e.g., Altair Landfill) if it would receive a lower price. Haulers operating in Jackson County either take their waste to the County transfer station or to the Victoria Landfill. TL Services, an independent hauler, takes all of the waste it collects in the County to the transfer station per County staff. Waste from several of the smaller towns (e.g., Lolita and Vanderbilt) are also taken to the transfer station. Waste Management, which services Edna and Ganado, hauls waste collected in Jackson County directly to the Victoria Landfill (Edna 6,300 tons and Ganado 1,100 tons). Based on this information, most of the haulers in Jackson County are sending their waste to the Victoria Landfill directly or indirectly via the Jackson County transfer station. Key Finding The opportunity may exist to gain another 700 tons that is currently going to Clean Harbors. However, Victoria needs to recognize that this is a customer that is considering other options such as TDS and Clean Harbors Lavaca County The City of Hallettsville has a transfer station. This facility handles approximately 800 tons annually. This waste is transported by BFI to its Tessman Road Landfill in San Antonio, 120 miles away. The City of Hallettsville is 45 miles from Victoria. This transfer station is serviced as a part of the residential and commercial contract that the City has with BFI. This contract will be in effect for approximately three more years. The gate rate at the Tessman Road Landfill is $20.50 per ton. The City of Yoakum is located on the county line of DeWitt County and Lavaca County. See Section for information pertaining to solid waste operations in the City of Yoakum. Interest in the Victoria Landfill: As long as BFI has the contract with the City of Hallettsville, this waste will in all likelihood continue to be landfilled at the Tessman Road Landfill. BFI provides collection services for several cities in Lavaca County, including Halletsville, Shiner and Moulton. Collection vehicles serving these locations are based out of BFI s San Antonio facility. Since these trucks need to return to San Antonio and can typically make one daily load, they use BFI s Tessman Road Landfill. The City of Halletsville s contract with BFI will be in effect for approximately three more years. When this contract is going to expire, the City would have an interest in exploring options for other service providers if they could attain a better price. 1-8 R. W. Beck 5/19/06

9 FINAL Wasteshed Analysis The City of Shiner s contract with BFI expires in While the City has contracted with BFI since 1992, City staff are undecided about whether this service would be renewed or re-bid in The City of Moulton s contract with BFI expires in October When this contract expires, the City would have an interest in exploring options for other service providers if they could attain a better price. Country Disposal Systems provides collection services in unincorporated areas of Lavaca County. See Section for further information. Interest in the Victoria Landfill: Options to use the City of Victoria Landfill are unlikely as long as BFI is the service provider. If these municipal contracts are re-bid in the future, opportunities to use the Victoria Landfill could arise if another company would win the contract(s). Opportunities for waste to go to the Victoria Landfill are very limited over the next few years. BFI has a long-term history of providing collection services within this County, and would generally be expected to pursue this work, which would likely mean that the waste would go to the Tessman Road Landfill. However, if another company would win any future contracts, it could potentially mean a tonnage increase for the Victoria Landfill Refugio County There are no transfer stations or landfills located within Refugio County. BFI and Absolute Industries are the primary haulers operating in Refugio County. BFI provides collection services for the City of Refugio. All residents and businesses within city limits must use the City s designated contractor, in this case BFI. Refugio has had a contract with BFI since September The latest renewal to the contract became effective September 2004 and is for a five year term. BFI hauls the waste to one of its landfills in Nueces County (either J.C. Elliott or El Centro). Although City staff was not able to provide the amount of tons collected and disposed by BFI, R. W. Beck estimates that it is in the range of 2,000 to 3,500 tons per year. Absolute Industries, based in Nueces County, provides collection services in the unincorporated areas of the County. Absolute Industries only collects one truckload of waste per collection day, and the company disposes of its waste at the El Centro Landfill, which is relatively close to its yard, for a disposal fee of approximately $22.01 per ton. 6 6 Based on the gate rate of $21.25 per ton plus 3.61 percent fuel surcharge ($0.76 per ton). 5/19/06 R. W. Beck 1-9

10 Section 1 FINAL The City of Refugio is approximately 45 miles from both the Victoria Landfill and BFI s El Centro Landfill. Due to the Victoria Landfill contract terms, Waste Management can not dispose of waste collected in Refugio County in the Victoria Landfill. If allowed, Waste Management has estimated that it may be able to collect approximately 40 tons annually from commercial sources. The quantity could increase if Waste Management would win any municipal collection contracts. The waste that BFI collects in the City of Refugio is being hauled to one of the Nueces County landfills. Although the distance to the Victoria Landfill is similar to the landfills in Nueces County, the per ton disposal fees at these landfills are in the low $20 range, versus $39.14 for the Victoria Landfill. Additionally, BFI stores its collection vehicles in Corpus Christi so that collection vehicles making a trip to Victoria at the end of the day would have to drive back to Corpus Christi after unloading waste at the Landfill. When disposing of waste in one of the Nueces County landfills, the trip after the last load is disposed is relatively short. While BFI is collecting waste in the City of Refugio, it is unlikely it will be disposed at the City of Victoria Landfill. If Refugio were to choose another contractor when the current BFI contract expires on August 31, 2009, the Victoria Landfill could potentially compete for the waste if the disposal cost was competitive with other landfills in the region, specifically those in Nueces County. Absolute Industries also faces a short trip to its yard after disposing of waste at the El Centro Landfill. Because of this, it is unlikely waste they collect will be disposed at the City of Victoria Landfill Victoria County The Victoria Landfill is located within Victoria County. Within the City of Victoria, all waste is collected by the City (residential) and Waste Management (commercial). All of this waste is disposed of in the Victoria Landfill. Waste Management provides most of the collection operations in other parts of the County, and all of that waste is disposed of in the Victoria Landfill. The only other hauler in the County is B&B Trash Service, which has approximately 300 customers. Virtually all of the waste collected in Victoria County is disposed of in the Victoria Landfill R. W. Beck 5/19/06

11 FINAL Wasteshed Analysis Counties within a Radius of 40 to 70 Miles R. W. Beck also completed a review of solid waste facility and hauling operations for counties that are within a radius of 40 to 70 miles from the City of Victoria Bee County There are no transfer stations or landfills located within Bee County. BFI provides collection services for the City of Beeville, the county seat of Bee County and its largest town in terms of population. BFI hauls the waste collected to one its landfills in the Corpus Christi area. City staff was not certain of the total tonnage hauls by BFI, but R. W. Beck estimates that the amount is likely in the 10,500 to 17,500 tons per year range. Beeville is approximately 55 miles from Victoria and 58 miles from Corpus Christi. Interest in Victoria Landfill: The City of Beeville s existing contract with BFI has been renewed through June At this time, the City is unsure whether they will renew the contract or re-bid it, but staff added that BFI has traditionally offered some incentives to renew the contract. If BFI continues to haul waste for the City of Beeville, the waste will not likely be hauled to Victoria since, as previously discussed, the vehicles used to haul this waste are stationed in Corpus Christi. However, since Victoria is as close to Beeville as any other landfill, there would be an opportunity for another contractor to haul its waste to Victoria, if the disposal fee allowed them to make a competitive bid for collection services Colorado County Clean Harbors owns the Altair Landfill in Colorado County. The Altair Landfill is near its permitted capacity and only accepted 18,000 tons in 2004, according to TCEQ s Municipal Solid Waste in Texas: A Year in Review, 2004 Data Summary and Analysis (TCEQ 2004 Annual Report). However, Clean Harbors is actively pursuing a permit expansion, which would allow them to significantly increase the amount of waste accepted at the site. The Altair Landfill is located near Columbus, which is approximately 85 miles from Victoria. The City of Weimar operates a transfer station. The City operates the transfer station, but has a contract with TDS to haul the waste to their landfill in Creedmoor. The City of Weimar is approximately 72 miles from the City of Victoria and 85 miles from Creedmoor. Although staff at the Weimar transfer station did not know the exact amount of tonnage transfer annually to the landfill, they estimated that 14 transfer 5/19/06 R. W. Beck 1-11

12 Section 1 FINAL trailer loads per week were hauled to the landfill. Based on this information, R. W. Beck estimates that between 14,560 and 18,200 tons are hauled from the Weimar transfer station annually. 7 The gate rate at the TDS Landfill is $7.10 per compacted cubic yard. The Weimar transfer station accepts waste from the cities of Columbus (Colorado), Schulenburg (Fayette), Flatonia (Fayette), and Waelder (Gonzales). Additionally, commercial haulers bring in waste from the surroundings area. R. W. Beck estimates that most of the waste collected in Colorado County is taken to the Weimer transfer station and subsequently the TDS Landfill. If Clean Harbors is successful in permitting a landfill expansion at the Altair Landfill, they will likely be aggressive in marketing the landfill to increase the amount of waste accepted. For areas north of Victoria, this represents an alternative disposal location. The City of Victoria should monitor the progress of Clean Harbor s expansion effort at the Altair Landfill. The Weimar Transfer Station is closer to Victoria than the TDS Landfill in Creedmoor. However, since TDS is hauling the waste, it is unlikely that it would be taken to the Victoria Landfill unless the disposal fees were lower than TDS s cost to dispose of the waste at its landfill. However, once the contract with TDS expires, there would be an opportunity for another hauler to win the contract if the disposal cost at the Victoria Landfill enabled them to make a competitive bid Fayette County There are no transfer stations or landfills located within Fayette County. BFI provides collection services for the City of La Grange. Waste collected by BFI in La Grange is hauled to BFI s landfill in Austin. R. W. Beck estimates that BFI hauls 3,500 to 5,500 tons annually for La Grange. The City of La Grange has had a contract with BFI since 1993 and there are two years remaining on the current contract. The disposal cost is embedded in the collection cost and is not explicitly known by the City. However, according to the 2004 TCEQ annual report, the gate disposal rate at BFI s Sunset Farms landfill in Austin is $18.99 per ton. TDS hauls waste from Flatonia to its landfill in Creedmoor. The City of Schulenburg takes its waste to a transfer station in Weimar, which is in Colorado County. TDS provides hauling services for this landfill and hauls the waste to its landfill in Creedmoor. 7 Based on an average of 14 trailer loads per week, and between 20 and 25 tons per load R. W. Beck 5/19/06

13 FINAL Wasteshed Analysis Country Waste, based out of Bellville in Austin County, provides some collection services within the rural areas of Fayette County. County Waste hauls the waste to its transfer station in Bellville, which processes approximately 5,000 tons annually. Landfills operated by Waste Management, BFI, and TDS in the Austin area are approximately 65 miles from La Grange, which is centrally located in Fayette County. La Grange is approximately 80 miles from Victoria. Additionally, disposal fees at the Austin area landfills are in the $19 to $24 range per ton versus the City of Victoria s current $40 per ton rate. County Waste is hauling the waste it collects to its transfer station in Bellville, which is approximately 65 miles from La Grange. Without a dramatic decrease in the City of Victoria s disposal rate, there is not much incentive for a hauler to transport its waste a greater distance to Victoria when less expensive options exist within the Austin area Gonzales County The City of Gonzales operates a citizens collection station that can be used by City and County residents. This waste is transported by BFI to its Tessman Road Landfill in San Antonio. This transfer station is serviced as a part of the residential and commercial contract that the City has with BFI. This contract will expire in 2006, but City staff was uncertain regarding whether the contract would be re-bid or extended. The gate rate at the Tessman Road Landfill is $20.50 per ton. Gonzales is approximately 75 miles from San Antonio and 60 miles from Victoria. BFI provides collection services for the City of Gonzales. Collection vehicles serving the City are based out of BFI s San Antonio facility. Since these trucks need to return to San Antonio and can typically make one daily load, they use BFI s Tessman Road Landfill. This contract will expire in 2006, but City staff was uncertain regarding whether the contract would be re-bid or extended. Country Disposal Systems (CDS) is based in Gonzales and provides collection services to unincorporated areas of Gonzales, Dewitt and Lavaca Counties using three 25 cubic yard compacting vehicles. Waste from all three counties is landfilled at the TDS Landfill in Creedmoor. The tipping rate for County Disposal Systems is approximately $16.14 per ton. 8 The TDS Landfill is located approximately 50 miles from the CDS office/yard (as compared to 60 miles to Victoria). Interest in the Victoria Landfill: Regarding the City of Gonzales, options to use the City of Victoria Landfill are unlikely as long as BFI is the service provider since the fleet is based in San Antonio. CDS has a very low tipping fee at TDS. While CDS could achieve some operational efficiencies by using the Victoria Landfill when 8 The per ton rate is based on a compacted cubic yard rate of $7.10 multiplied by 25 cubic yards (size of the dump body) and divided by 11 (average load weight in tons) to equal $16.14 per ton. 5/19/06 R. W. Beck 1-13

14 Section 1 FINAL operating routes in Dewitt and Lavaca Counties, they are not significant enough to offset the difference in tipping fees between TDS and the Victoria Landfill. Based on the current operations, R. W. Beck would not expect that any significant amounts of waste would go to the Victoria Landfill due to the current use of lower cost landfills (e.g. BFI - Tessman Road and TDS - Creedmoor) Karnes County There are no permitted transfer stations or landfills located within Karnes County. Within Karnes County, Waste Management provides collection services for Karnes City, Falls City, Kenedy and Runge. R. W. Beck estimates that between 6,500 and 11,000 tons is collected from these four cities. There is approximately one year remaining on the contract with Karnes City. Waste collected within these cities is hauled to Waste Management s Covel Gardens landfill in San Antonio. This landfill is located approximately 62 miles from Karnes City. The City of Victoria Landfill is a similar distance from Karnes City. The disposal gate rate at the Covel Gardens landfill is approximately $25, according to the 2004 TCEQ annual report. 9 Since the Victoria Landfill is a similar distance from areas within Karnes County to San Antonio, there is an opportunity for waste being generated in Karnes County to be taken to the Victoria Landfill. However, the opportunity depends on which contractor operates the Victoria Landfill. For Waste Management and BFI, who both operate landfills in San Antonio, there would have to be greater profit associated with hauling to Victoria rather than to their own landfills in San Antonio. Private contractors would have an interest in establishing hauling contracts in Karnes County, but the competitiveness of their bid for collection services would rely heavily on the disposal rate at the Victoria Landfill Matagorda County The Matagorda County Transfer Station is located in Van Vleck, which is five miles east of Bay City. This site handles 52,800 tons annually. The County contracted with Waste Management to operate the facility in 1999, and has a five-year evergreen contract. The transfer station receives most of the waste collected within the County based on information provided by County staff. In addition, Waste Management and 9 Since Waste Management is hauling to its own facility, its disposal cost is likely much lower than the stated gate rate R. W. Beck 5/19/06

15 FINAL Wasteshed Analysis BFI haul waste from the cities of Wharton and El Campo 10, respectively. Citizens collection stations in the towns of Matagorda and Elmaton also send their waste to the Matagorda County Transfer Station. Waste from the transfer station is transferred by Rustin Transportation to the Republic Brazoria County Landfill (Seabreeze) in Clute, which is approximately 38 miles (as compared to 75 miles to Victoria). The gate rate at the transfer station is $40 per ton. However, several haulers have negotiated more favorable rates based on greater tonnage volumes (e.g. BFI at $32.50 per ton and CCR at $35 per ton). Waste Management has a reciprocal agreement 11 with Republic for waste taken to the Seabreeze Landfill from the transfer station. Therefore, Waste Management s realized disposal cost is much lower than the $7.25 per uncompacted cubic yard gate rate. Interest in the Victoria Landfill: Waste Management indicated that it is unlikely the waste from the Matagorda County Transfer Station would be hauled to the Victoria Landfill. The haul distance is greater and the disposal fees are much higher since Waste Management has a swap agreement with Republic for disposal at the Seabreeze Landfill. The disposal fee at the Republic Brazoria County Landfill (Seabreeze) is significantly lower than the Victoria Landfill. The gate rate for loose waste is $7.25 per cubic yard. This amount is likely to be lower for higher volume customers, and Waste Management may have a reciprocal agreement with Republic that would further reduce the cost per ton/cubic yard. Collection operations within Matagorda County send their waste to the Matagorda County Transfer Station or directly to the Republic Brazoria County Landfill. Most of the waste does go to the transfer station, but collection operations in the Southeast part of the County may go directly to the landfill. Interest in the Victoria Landfill: R. W. Beck would not expect any of the hauling operations in Matagorda County to use the Victoria Landfill because the Matagorda County Transfer Station is closer to all the towns in the County than the Victoria Landfill. Hauling distances of 38 miles and a tipping fee that is lower than $7.25 per cubic yard makes it difficult to create a scenario in which waste from the Matagorda County Transfer Station would go to the Victoria Landfill. With an extra 74 round-trip miles to the Victoria Landfill, there would need to be a very significant decrease (e.g., 20 to 30 percent) in Waste Management s current tipping fee to offset the higher hauling 10 Only a portion of the El Campo waste is going to the Matagorda County Transfer Station, with the balance going to Clean Harbors and other BFI landfills in the Houston area. 11 Under reciprocal agreements, waste collected by two distinct companies/cities will go to a landfill owned by the other company/city. The reason for these agreements is to decrease hauling times. These types of agreements are relatively common in the solid waste industry, especially in metropolitan areas like Houston where multiple companies may have hauling operations covering a wide geographic area that are served by a relatively small number of disposal facilities. 5/19/06 R. W. Beck 1-15

16 Section 1 FINAL costs. As part of a procurement process, the City of Victoria could request proposals that include incentives for attracting larger volumes in an effort to further examine options to send this waste to the Victoria Landfill Nueces County There are two active landfills in Nueces County. The J.C. Elliott Landfill is owned by the City of Corpus Christi and operated by BFI. BFI owns and operates the El Centro Landfill. The J.C. Elliott Landfill is nearing its capacity, at which time the City will open the Cefe Valenzuela Landfill, which will also be operated by BFI. Once the Cefe Valenzuela landfill is operational, major haulers and the City will utilize it for solid waste disposal. A transfer station will be opened at the J.C. Elliott Landfill for use by residents and smaller haulers. The City of Corpus Christi provides solid waste hauling and disposal services within the City limits. Waste collected within the City is disposed at the City s J.C. Elliot Landfill. Residential accounts are currently charged $14.35 per month for solid waste collection and disposal. If residents show their current (within two months) utility bill statement and a matching driver s license, they can dispose of household garbage free of charge. Absolute Industries provides hauling services for unincorporated areas of Nueces County. Absolute has a contract with the El Centro Landfill for waste disposal at a gate rate of approximately $20 per ton, which includes a fuel surcharge and environmental fee. Interest in the Victoria Landfill: Since the City is constructing an additional landfill, they do not have interest in utilizing the Victoria landfill. Absolute Industries is highly likely to pursue renewing their contract for hauling solid waste for Nueces County, and is not interested in hauling to the Victoria landfill. Since Corpus Christi owns its landfill, it is unlikely waste would ever be disposed at the Victoria Landfill. When Corpus Christi closes its J. C. Elliott Landfill and opens the Cefe Valenzuela Landfill, it is generally expected that rates will increase, which may change the market dynamic in Nueces County. Absolute Industries indicated they would be willing to use the Victoria Landfill if the disposal fee was competitive San Patricio County The City of Portland utilizes the J.C. Elliott Landfill in Corpus Christi. San Patricio County provides some citizen s collection stations in various precincts for disposing of tires, brush, and lumber, but does not have any landfills or transfer stations R. W. Beck 5/19/06

17 FINAL Wasteshed Analysis BFI provides pick-up and disposal services within the Portland City limits. The City provides roll-off dumpsters for residents to dispose of brush and other household waste. Waste collected through residential pick-up as well as waste delivered by residents to the roll-off dumpsters is disposed of by BFI at the J.C. Elliott Landfill. Solid waste pick-up and disposal in the County is provided by BFI, Waste Management and Absolute Industries, who contract directly with individual residents. These providers haul residential waste to the landfills in Nueces County. San Patricio County collects and hauls roadside debris as well as residential brush which is either hauled to BFI s El Centro Landfill, or chipped within the County. The solid waste collected at the citizen s collection stations is hauled by Dawson Recycling and Disposal to J.C. Elliott landfill. Individual residents contract privately with either Allied or Waste Management for waste collection services. Dawson Recycling and Disposal is currently in the process of signing a new contract with the J.C. Elliott landfill on a determined tonnage basis. They are not bound from contracting with another landfill, and do have interest in the Victoria landfill. The determining factors for Dawson Recycling would be price, discounts and incentives to use the Victoria landfill. When Corpus Christi closes its J. C. Elliott Landfill and opens the Cefe Valenzuela Landfill, it is generally expected that rates will increase, which may change the market dynamic in San Patricio County. Absolute Industries indicated they would be willing to haul to the Victoria Landfill, rather than one of the landfills in Nueces County, if the disposal fee was competitive Wharton County The City of Wharton has a citizens collection station that is for the exclusive use of Wharton residents. This site handles approximately 7,200 tons of waste annually. Waste from this site is hauled by Waste Management to the Matagorda County Transfer Station which is approximately 32 miles (as compared to 67 miles to Victoria). Waste Management pays the County a $1 per ton royalty fee for waste it collects and sends to the transfer station. Wharton County (Precinct 2: East Bernard) operates a citizens collection station that handles approximately 1,200 tons annually. This waste is hauled approximately 30 miles to the Fort Bend Regional Landfill in Rosenberg; (as compared to 83 miles to Victoria). The County is in the third year of a three year agreement that has pricing of $6.50 per compact cubic yard and $5.50 per loose cubic yard. Interest in the Victoria Landfill: Wharton County would not be expected to go the Victoria Landfill due to longer travel distances and higher disposal fees. Refer to Section concerning the City of Wharton facility, since it goes to the Matagorda County Transfer Station. 5/19/06 R. W. Beck 1-17

18 Section 1 FINAL The City of Wharton contracts with Waste Management for collection services. Again, this waste is hauled to the Matagorda County Transfer Station. The City of El Campo contracts with BFI for collection services. Waste from El Campo goes to the Matagorda County Transfer Station, Clean Harbors Landfill in Altair and other BFI landfills in the Houston area. Interest in the Victoria Landfill: Under the current operations, it is unlikely that the waste from these cities would go the Victoria Landfill due to longer travel distances and higher disposal fees. Shorter hauling distances and lower disposal fees in the Houston area make it unlikely that waste from Wharton County could be disposed of in the Victoria Landfill. For example, haulers may need to realize tipping fees that would be approximately 30 percent lower than the current costs to offset the longer hauling distances Wilson County There are no transfer stations or landfills located within Wilson County. Waste Management provides collection services for the City of Floresville, the county seat of Wilson County and its largest city. Waste Management hauls the waste 40 miles to its Covel Gardens landfill in San Antonio. Bexar County, which has two Type I landfills and a transfer station, borders Wilson County to the east. Haul distances from Wilson County to Bexar County are relatively short. For example, the City of Floresville is 40 miles from the Covel Gardens Landfill compared to 92 miles from the Victoria Landfill. With the competitive rates offered at the landfills and Bexar County and the shorter travel haul distance, it is unlikely that waste generated in Wilson County would be disposed at the Victoria Landfill Counties within a Radius of 70 to 100 Miles R. W. Beck also completed a review of solid waste facility and hauling operations for counties that are within a radius of 70 to 100 miles from the City of Victoria. Given the likely availability of much closer solid waste facilities in these counties, R. W. Beck focused our review of these counties on the available transfer stations and landfills, as well as their pricing, and not their hauling operations R. W. Beck 5/19/06

19 FINAL Wasteshed Analysis Atascosa County Atascosa County is located directly south of Bexar County, in which two Type I landfills and one transfer are located. The City of Pleasanton, the largest city in Atascosa County, is approximately 125 miles from Victoria versus 36 from San Antonio. It is unlikely that waste from Atascosa County would be disposed at the Victoria Landfill due to the availability of low cost disposal facilities in Bexar County Austin County There are two transfer stations in Austin County, one operated by Country Waste, Inc., and the other by the City of Sealy. The City of Sealy hauls their waste to multiple landfills, including the McCarty Rd Landfill in Houston, which is approximately 60 miles from the transfer station. According to the 2004 TCEQ Annual Report, the disposal gate fee at McCarty Rd was $16.26 per ton. The Victoria Landfill is 110 miles from the Sealy transfer station. Austin County is located within 60 miles of numerous Type I landfills in Harris and Fort Bend counties. It is unlikely that waste from Austin County would be disposed at the Victoria Landfill Bastrop County Bastrop borders Travis County to the east. There are three Type I landfills in Travis County, one of which is owned and operated by BFI. According to the most recent Regional Solid Waste Management Plan from the Capital Area Council of Governments (CAPCOG), BFI is the primary hauler in the cities of Bastrop, Elgin and Smithville. The City of Bastrop is approximately 110 miles from the City of Victoria. It is unlikely that waste from Bastrop County would be disposed at the Victoria Landfill Bexar County There are multiple disposal options in Bexar County, including two landfills and one transfer station. Per ton disposal rates for these facilities are very competitive: BFI Tessman Road ($20.50), Waste Management Covel Gardens ($25.00), Starcrest Transfer Station ($23.50). 12 Due to the distance of 115 miles from San Antonio to Victoria, it is unlikely that any waste from San Antonio would ever be disposed of at the Victoria Landfill Brazoria County Republic Waste Services owns and operates the Seabreeze landfill in Clute, which is approximately 115 miles from Victoria. The Seabreeze landfill is a relatively large landfill, accepting approximately one million tons of waste at a gate rate of $22.75 in Republic serves 14 cities in Brazoria County, as well as some of the 12 The Starcrest Transfer Station is owned by the City of San Antonio, and operated by Texas Disposal Systems, which has a long-term operations contract with the City. Waste from the transfer station is hauled to the TDS Creedmoor Landfill. 5/19/06 R. W. Beck 1-19

20 Section 1 FINAL unincorporated areas of the County. 13 It is unlikely that waste from Brazoria County would be disposed at the Victoria Landfill Caldwell County Waste from Caldwell County is going to the various landfills located in Travis County. The City of Lockhart has a contract with Central Texas Refuse for both its residential and commercial collection services. The City of Luling has a contract with IESI for its collection services. Both companies haul the waste to landfills in Travis County. The cities of Luling and Lockhart are 44 and 30 miles from Austin, respectively, and 78 and 93 miles from Victoria, respectively. Due to the longer haul distance to the Victoria Landfill and the competitive disposal rates at the landfills in Travis County, it is unlikely that any waste from Caldwell County would be disposed at the Victoria Landfill Comal County Waste Management owns and operates the Comal County Landfill, a Type I landfill. Additionally, Comal County is situated between Travis County and Bexar County, both of which have multiple landfills that offer competitive disposal fees ranging from $13.50 to $ It is unlikely that waste from Comal County would be disposed at the Victoria Landfill Duval County The landfills in Nueces County are less than half the distance from Duval County than the Victoria Landfill and offer very competitive disposal rates. It is unlikely that waste from Duval County would be disposed at the Victoria Landfill Fort Bend County There are three landfills in Fort Bend County. Per ton disposal rates for these facilities are very competitive since they are a part of the Houston region: BFI Blue Ridge ($19.01), Sprint Fort Bend County ($19.50), 14 and Fort Bend Regional ($18.00). Due to the distance of 106 miles from Fort Bend County 15 to Victoria, it is very unlikely that any waste from Fort Bend County would ever be disposed of at the Victoria Landfill Guadalupe County There is one Type IV landfill in Guadalupe County. There is one Type I landfill in Comal County and two Type I landfills in Bexar County, which both border Guadalupe County. Nearby Travis County has three Type I landfills. Seguin, the county seat and largest city in Guadalupe County, is 100 miles from Victoria. It is 13 According to the Seabreeze Landfill website ( 14 Converted from a compacted cubic yard rate of $ Based on the distance from Sugarland to Victoria R. W. Beck 5/19/06