Memorandum

City of Lawrence

Public Works Department

TO:	Charles Soules, Public Works Director
FROM:	Tammy Bennett, Assistant Public Works Director
Date:	February 22, 2017
RE:	Updates for Solid Waste Services – City Manager Report

The Solid Waste Division is updating collection practices to maximize use of staff and fleet resources, and balance work flow through the work week.

There will be three basic changes for customers beginning in May 2017:

First, residential customers who set out yard waste will have that material collected on the same day of service as trash and recycling collection. Since 1993, all yard waste citywide has been collected on Mondays. That practice is unsustainable. The creation of trash, recycling, and yard waste routes over the entire Monday through Friday work week allows the division to better utilize all fleet vehicles and staff. Rear-load trucks will continue to be used for commercial dumpsters and yard waste collection. The automated side loaders will focus on trash and recycling collections, operating five days a week instead of four.

Second, the set out time for materials for collection will be 6 a.m. At present, crews collect yard waste in residential areas beginning at 6 a.m., but set out time for trash and recycling is 7 a.m. Standardization of set out time will allow all crews to report to work at the same time and complete work in a team fashion. It is critical for all commercial operations to begin early to minimize conflicts with traffic and pedestrians.

Third, approved yard waste collection containers will only be picked up in City-approved roll-out yard waste carts and compostable kraft paper bags designed for yard waste. Bundles of brush will continue to be allowed as long as they meet the length and weight guidelines. “Other refuse cans” will no longer be an acceptable container for yard waste. This is a worker safety measure. To the maximum extent feasible, the goal is to minimize manual lifting of containers. The compostable paper bags are designed such that the lift-load is manageable. Further, they provide a necessary option for customers during peak growing or leaf seasons.

Minor changes are required to the current City Code to reflect these improvements in operations. The ordinance modifying the code will be on next week’s agenda.