Materials Management Newsletter

OREGON DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY

January 2017

Oregon’s 2050 Vision for Materials Management:
Oregonians in 2050 produce and use materials responsibly – conserving resources – protecting the environment – living well.

This newsletter provides updates on major projects in DEQ’s Materials Management Program, new projects on the near horizon and recent staff changes.

In this issue:

  • Upcoming Events
  • Environmental Quality Commission Adopts New Recycling, Waste Prevention Rules
  • 2016 Grant Awards
  • Oregon Recycling Market Study Completed
  • Household Hazardous Waste Update
  • Strategic Plan for Reuse, Repair and Product Life Span Extension Completed
  • New Sustainable Production and Consumption Projects Underway
  • Staff Changes at DEQ

Upcoming Events

DEQ’s Materials Management Program will host a public meeting on Jan. 26 from 1 – 3 p.m. to discuss recent progress in implementing the 2050 Vision and Framework for Action, and our plans for 2017 and beyond – including but not limited to implementation of changes to Opportunity to Recycle requirements. A series of short presentations followed by discussion will provide an opportunity to share information, ask questions and discuss priorities. The meeting will be held in Portland with a webinar option for those unable to attend in person. More details can be viewed under “Current Actions” here.

Separately, DEQ will provide a program update at the SWANA Oregon Beaver Chapter’s Winter Forum, scheduled for Feb. 9 in Salem. Additional details at this site.

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Environmental Quality Commission Adopts New Recycling, Waste Prevention Rules

On Jan. 18 the Environmental Quality Commission adopted new rules implementing most of the recovery and waste prevention provisions of Senate Bill 263 (2015). A copy of the new rules is available here.

The new rules:

  • Define the requirements of the new waste prevention and reuse program elements that are replacing the old “2 percent credit” programs. These new requirements affect cities of 50,000 or more population, and also cities of 10,000 or more population that are in counties of more than 100,000 population.
  • Define the requirements for four new recycling program elements, and update the number of recycling program elements that cities are required to implement.
  • Define the requirements of a new contamination assessment and reduction program.
  • Revise voluntary waste recovery goals for wastesheds.
  • Specify the methodology for measuring progress towards achieving new statewide recovery goals for food waste, plastics and carpet.
  • Revise requirements for alternative programs for providing the Opportunity to Recycle.

This year, DEQ Technical Assistance staff will be working closely with local governments to confirm that they are prepared to meet the new requirements by 2018. To provide further assistance:

  • DEQ will develop at least one residential and one non-residential waste prevention “campaign” that local governments can use to satisfy two of the waste prevention elements required of larger cities.
  • DEQ will develop at least two recycling contamination reduction plans that will satisfy the new contamination reduction requirements for those governments choosing the expanded recycling education and promotion program element. Governments can choose to implement one of these plans if they don’t want to develop their own plan.

DEQ will be assembling a stakeholder workgroup in February to explore cost-effective ways of assessing and lowering contamination in collected recyclables, what information and resources would be helpful in creating contamination reduction plans and what field research on the effectiveness of different contamination reduction interventions would be useful.

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2016 Grant Awards

In December, DEQ announced its intent to award over $1.2 million in grant funding to 34 local governments and non-profit organizations for projects to prevent, reuse, or recover solid wastes and support materials management plans. Funding was made possible through fee increases authorized by the Legislature in 2015 and approved by the Environmental Quality Commission in 2016.

Grants are funding a wide variety of projects and plans with local to state-wide benefits. For example, Douglas County will explore options to recycle organic debris and plastics, Meals on Wheels People will purchase reusable trays and lids for meals delivered in the Portland metro area and Oregon Green Schools will target its waste reduction and recycling programs at K-12 schools in lower income and rural areas. For more information about the grants program, including a complete listing of all 34 projects, go here.

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Oregon Recycling Market Study Completed

What is the economic rhyme or reason behind the cycles and trends in Oregon recycling market prices? Have the factors causing recycling price movements changed in recent years? These are the questions posed by DEQ in a recently completed study. Stakeholders have been concerned about market prices and statements by some in industry who believe that markets have fundamentally changed.  The study concluded that while the economic factors that influence prices for many materials have changed over the past three decades, when adjusted for inflation, overall market prices are not trending downward, but are at historical averages. The study can be downloaded here.

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Household Hazardous Waste Update

This spring, DEQ plans to hold household hazardous waste collection events in the communities of Yoncalla, Hermiston, Canby, Banks, Estacada and Ontario. School lab cleanouts are also planned in Multnomah, Clackamas and Washington counties.

This month, DEQ is beginning the process of updating the state’s Household Hazardous Waste Management Plan. The last plan was written in 2005. The purpose of the plan update is to set the directions and activities for DEQ’s HHW program over the next six years.

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Strategic Plan for Reuse, Repair and Product Life Span Extension Completed

In December, DEQ published its Strategic Plan for Reuse, Repair and Extending the Lifespan of Products. This document is the culmination of extensive background research and stakeholder engagement, and outlines the specific reuse and repair strategies that will be a focus over the next six years, as well as some key materials. Current progress includes the awarding of a number of reuse- and repair-related grants (see story above), the funding of workforce development training for the Portland-area’s deconstruction industry, and new research into collaborative statewide workforce development opportunities to support the reuse and repair industries.

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New Sustainable Production and Consumption Projects Underway

Materials Management in Oregon: 2050 Vision and Framework for Action includes a shift to new work addressing sustainable production and consumption. DEQ has a number of new projects that address these “upstream” portions of the materials life cycle.

  • DEQ has been working in partnership with the Oregon Concrete and Aggregate Producer’s Association to provide free access to a web-based tool that helps producers measure and disclose the environmental impacts of concrete mixes through environmental product declarations. EPDs are 3rd party verified ecolabels that can help to inform both production and purchasing decisions.
  • DEQ is producing a series of documents summarizing published scientific papers evaluating the life cycle environmental impacts of a variety of foods, as well as two issues that cut across multiple food types: the relative impact of transportation compared to other life cycle stages, and possible environmental trade-offs between packaging and food waste. Additional details are available at the project webpage.
  • In partnership with the Washington State Department of Ecology, DEQ is supporting the production of several case studies of businesses that have undertaken product-level environmental footprinting (life cycle assessment).
  • For the last nine months DEQ has been developing a strategic plan for preventing the wasting of food. The plan will be finalized in the next few weeks. Details will be provided in the next newsletter. Two initial implementation projects are already underway:
  1. DEQ is partnering with Portland State University to conduct a baseline study of Oregon’s edible and inedible wasted food and fill existing research gaps that have inhibited public agencies and food businesses from taking measurable action to prevent wasted food.
  2. DEQ has commissioned research to develop a messaging hierarchy that will form the foundation for wasted food prevention outreach campaigns.

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Staff Changes at DEQ

Since the previous program newsletter, we’ve had a number of staff changes in the Materials Management Program.

New Staff

Jeremy Fleming is a new asbestos and solid waste compliance specialist in DEQ’s Northwest Region. Jeremy joined DEQ in December 2016 and has experience with landfill management and design, wind energy, and wood products environmental compliance. He grew up on the back of a garbage truck, helping his Dad haul garbage.

Brian Stafki joined DEQ in December, and is located in our Headquarters office. His primary responsibility is to develop programs related to multi-tenant recycling, but Brian will also be participating in several other projects addressing recycling contamination and food waste recovery. Brian was most recently at Washington County, and prior to that worked at Thurston County, Washington.

Peter Canepa joined DEQ in January, as the program’s life cycle analyst. He comes to DEQ from thinkstep, a global life cycle assessment and sustainability consultancy. Peter has nine years of experience conducting LCAs for a wide variety of clients, including Apple, HP, Keurig, Nike and Alcoa (to name a few). Peter will advise on many projects across the Materials Management Program, with a longer-term aim of building statewide capacity for using, commissioning, and conducting environmental life cycle assessment. He’s located in our Headquarters office in Portland.

Also joining DEQ this month, in a limited duration capacity, is Babe O’Sullivan. Babe will be working on several new sustainable consumption initiatives, and is located in our Headquarters office in Portland. Most recently, Babe has been working with the Urban Sustainability Directors Network on a variety of sustainable consumption projects; she also served as the Sustainability Liaison for the City of Eugene and in the City of Portland’s Bureau of Planning and Sustainability.

Staff Changes and Departures

Jamie Jones is located in our office in The Dalles. She was recently hired into a permit and policy coordinator position to provide policy support on landfill and disposal issues, provide program oversight of financial assurance reviews, organize and update the solid waste permit templates and other tools for permitting, permitting of complex sites, and support other projects. DEQ will be recruiting to hire her previous permit writer and compliance specialist position in The Dalles as well as a similar position in Pendleton.

John Straughan, an Eastern Region solid waste engineer in the Pendleton office, retired in December 2016. DEQ will be recruiting to fill his position.

Gene Wong, a Western Region solid waste engineer in the Eugene office, retired in December 2016. DEQ will be recruiting to fill his position.

Leslie Kochan, a solid waste technical assistance staff in Northwest Region’s Portland office, also retired in Dec. Her position has been filled by Daniel Hough, who previously carried out facility oversight, permitting, inspection and complaint response. DEQ will be filling his former position.