Chittenden Solid Waste District

Chittenden Solid Waste District's mission is to provide efficient, economical, and environmentally sound management of solid waste generated by residents and businesses within its seventeen member towns and cities. Each member municipality appoints a representative and alternate to serve on the Board of Commissioners. This Board sets policy and makes major decisions for CSWD. Chittenden Solid Waste District is divided in to five main departments: Administration, Finance, Facilities, Unregulated Hazardous Waste, and Waste Reduction. There are 33 CSWD employees in a wide variety of full time and part time positions. ^popular Click here to read more.

In 1987, the Vermont Legislature passed Act 78, which allowed towns to form districts to share the responsibility of planning for solid waste. Since then, 12 solid waste districts have formed across Vermont, providing regional solutions to solid waste disposal problems. In 1993, the Chittenden Solid Waste District, the state's largest, was the first to establish an ordinance making recycling mandatory for all residents and businesses. ... First-time fines for violating the Chittenden Solid Waste District recycling ordinance can be as much as $500, but McArdle says the solid waste district's intent is not to fine businesses but to educate them on recycling practices and help them to comply. ... When recycled paper started to be mass marketed a decade ago, the quality was poor and the price was unreasonable...a packet of recycled paper is going to be higher than virgin paper. (still is more expensive, just not so bad.) Click here to read more.

When Christmas trees stop spreading holiday spirit, they can be mulched or burned as fuel at the McNeil Generating Plant. Trees without tinsel may be dropped off at any Chittenden County Solid Waste District site. A special dropoff is offered at the Shelburne Fire Station on Jan. 5 from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. For information, call 872-8111. Burlington and Essex offer free pickup of trees left by residents between the sidewalk and curb by 7 a.m. Jan. 8. Boy Scout Troop 648 will pick up trees for a donation in Burlington, South Burlington, Winooski and Malletts Bay on Jan. 5 and Jan. 12. Call 864-3615 to schedule. The Winooski Firefighters Association will pick up trees for a donation 9 a.m. to noon Jan. 5. Call 777-4875 and leave name and address.

The Chittenden Solid Waste District computer recycling project is struggling, picking up less than half of what organizers had expected during its first year. The district intended to collect more than 100 tons of obsolete computers a year, but the program has received 37 tons of equipment since beginning in May 2001, said Wendy McArdle, district's marketing and communications coordinator. ... A survey conducted at the district's Williston Drop-Off Center this spring showed 74 percent of 802 drop-off center customers didn't know about the program, she said. About 30 visitors a month drop off computers at the center. ... At the drop-off center, people can leave their old computers for $10 regardless of the machine's condition or age. Large quantities are charged at 22 cents per pound. The program is open to individuals, local businesses and schools. Participants have included St. Michael's College, Boise Cascade Office Products and Fletcher Allen Health Care.

The city of Burlington once had a dropoff center for household garbage and waste, but that center closed about five years ago. Now a proposal to open a new one has generated opposition from neighbors -- and a defense of the project from supporters. Drop off centers are the modern alternative to the old dump. The Chittenden Solid Waste District operates seven around the county. A privately-owned dropoff in Burlington, Casella's facility off Lakeside Avenue, was closed to the public several years ago. Now the district plans to open a temporary Burlington dropoff on Pine street, near the current hazardous waste collection site at the former street department lot. The prospect raised a red flag with at least one opponent who distributed an anonymous flyer. ... The flyer contains what dropoff center supporters call erroneous information, but it caught city officials off guard. "First of all, the city did not do a good job in publicizing this temporary dropoff center," city councilor Bill Keogh (D-Ward Five), said. Click here to read more.

Burlington residents are poised to have their first full-service recycling center in years. The Chittenden Solid Waste District is awaiting final permits to open a drop-off center on Pine Street. The site would enable Burlington residents to dispose of household trash, used oil, scrap metal, old propane tanks, yard waste, furniture and other material that can be recycled. The Pine Street drop-off center would resemble sites in Milton, South Burlington, Richmond, Essex, Hinesburg and Williston -- with one major exception. The other centers charge a certain amount based on bag size; for example, $2.75 for a 33-gallon bag of household trash. That fee applies whether the material in the bag weighs three pounds or 50 pounds. The solid waste district is considering charging by weight at the proposed Burlington center.

Recycling to get simpler; setting it up is complicated By Matt Sutkoski Free Press Staff Writer Thursday, September 19, 2002 The Chittenden Solid Waste District wants to simplify recycling in the county, but the cost and logistics of the new programs remain complicated. Instead of separating different types of material into separate bins, residents and business owners would dump a mix of plastic, paper, cans, glass and cardboard into one bin or cart. Machinery would separate the material later. The concept is called single-stream recycling. Making it easier to recycle could prompt more people to comply with Chittenden County's mandatory recycling law, said CSWD spokeswoman Wendy McArdle. Residents would be less confused over how to recycle. Businesses would have more space to store recycled material for pickup, no longer needing separate bins. All this means that less trash will end up in costly landfills and more would be recycled into new consumer products, a primary district goal. Manufacturing goods from recycled products usually costs less and create less pollution than making products from virgin material. For all these reasons, district officials want to recycle as much material as possible. Ned Flinn, general manager of City Market, said single-stream recycling might help his business somewhat, but the downtown Burlington grocery store already has recycling down pat. "We have a pretty good system worked out already. We did sort of plan for it when we built the new store. In the old store it was an issue with some of the bins and with storage space," he said. Single-stream recycling in Chittenden County could also cost more than $2 million to set up. Who pays for what is yet to be settled. The district has $1.1 million set aside to buy the machinery that would separate all the recycling material for resale. After researching systems through the summer, district officials have settled on a company called Machinex for the system. The district has to come up with another $750,000 to modify a Williston building called a materials recovery facility to house the machinery. "We're trying to find funds for the MRF expansion," McCardle said. The most expensive piece of the move is an estimated $1.7 million for about 44,000 large wheeled carts to be distributed to homes and businesses throughout the county. "The question right now is who is going to buy the carts? The district?" McArdle said. "Some board members are wondering if that's appropriate because the real savings are going to come to the haulers." Under the new system, trash haulers won't have to separate recycling material into separate sections of trucks. Efficiency would improve, costs could go down. Casella Waste Management Inc. spokesman Joseph Fusco said he doesn't think haulers should bear the cost of the carts. "While it will make the system more efficient, really for us it would be marginally so, not enough to justify bearing the cost," Fusco said. Burlington and Westford provide municipal curbside recycling. Other county residents must either contract with a private hauler or bring their trash and recyclables to drop-off centers. Most of the residents who use private haulers would need the special carts for single-stream recycling. The biggest expenses to trash hauling and recycling is paying the truck drivers and maintaining the trucks. Those costs won't drop significantly under the new recycling system, he said. Public policy organizations, like the districts, should be the ones who raise money for decisions they believe are for the good of the public, Fusco said. The district board will discuss Wednesday the matter of who pays for the carts. If all pieces of the financing, planning and building the single-stream recycling fall into place just right, McArdle said the program could begin next spring or summer. Contact Matt Sutkoski at 660-1846 or msutkosk@bfp.burlingtonfreepress.com Depot planned -- WHAT: An environmental depot that would accept and transfer household hazardous waste is planned for Airport Parkway in South Burlington. -- HEARING: A public information meeting on the proposal is scheduled for 7 p.m. Oct. 2 at the South Burlington Municipal Offices. -- APPLICATION: Copies of the application to the state are available at the state solid waste program office in Waterbury and at the South Burlington municipal offices. Public comment on the proposal ends Oct. 17.

The Chittenden Solid Waste District wants to simplify recycling in the county, but the cost and logistics of the new programs remain complicated. Instead of separating different types of material into separate bins, residents and business owners would dump a mix of plastic, paper, cans, glass and cardboard into one bin or cart. Machinery would separate the material later. The concept is called single-stream recycling. Making it easier to recycle could prompt more people to comply with Chittenden County's mandatory recycling law, said CSWD spokeswoman Wendy McArdle. Residents would be less confused over how to recycle. Businesses would have more space to store recycled material for pickup, no longer needing separate bins. All this means that less trash will end up in costly landfills and more would be recycled into new consumer products, a primary district goal. Click here to read more.

The Chittenden Solid Waste District's environmental depot, which is near the site of the proposed temporary Pine Street Drop-off center, is moving. The depot, which accepts household hazardous wastes, would relocate to Airport Parkway in South Burlington. The space there is bigger, more convenient and on district-owned property, McArdle said. The district is seeking permits for the South Burlington facility, she said.

Chittenden Solid Waste District has drop-off locations and low-cost pickup services for Christmas trees. The trees will be chipped for mulch or burned as fuel at the McNeil Generating Plant in Burlington. Wreaths, swags and trees with tinsel are not accepted. Drop-Off Centers: ... -- South Burlington, 87 Landfill Road: Monday, Tuesday, Thursday, 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m.; Friday, 9:30 a.m.-5 p.m.; Jan. 4, 8 a.m.-3:30 p.m. -- Williston, 1492 Redmond Road: Monday, Wednesday, Friday, 8:30 a.m.-4 p.m.; Jan. 4, 8 a.m.-3:30 p.m. -- Wood and Yard Waste Depot, 111 Intervale Road: Tuesday, Friday and Jan. 4, 8 a.m.-4 p.m. ... Pickup Services -- City of Burlington: No charge. Place between sidewalk and curb by 7 a.m. Jan. 6. Trees collected as soon as possible. -- Boy Scout Troop 648: Donations requested. Burlington, South Burlington, Winooski, Malletts Bay. Jan. 4 and 11 only. Call 862-5109 to schedule pick-up. -- Winooski Firefighters' Association: Donations welcome, Jan. 4 from 9 a.m.-noon. For pickup call 777-4875

The Chittenden Solid Waste District is in the paint-selling business, courtesy of an ever-expanding effort to encourage recycling. The paint, called Local Color, comes from a blend of unwanted paint retrieved from garages, basements and toolsheds. The latex paint with an eggshell finish is available in several colors, said Wendy McArdle, a spokeswoman for the district. People bring their unwanted paint to the district's environmental depot. Workers inspect the paint for impurities. If the paint passes muster, it's filtered and poured into larger vats, depending on the color. Once blended, it's put in 2- or 5-gallon buckets and marketed with the brand name Local Color. The label design was donated by Vermont artist Sabra Field. The paint comes in exterior and interior qualities. Local Color is inexpensive compared to store-bought paint. An off-white shade of Local Color sells for about $12 for two gallons. The waste district's paint is probably not appropriate for those looking for exact matches with home furnishings

Chittenden County residents will no longer have to toss their used jars in one bin, cans in another and papers in another. All-In-One Recycling has arrived in Vermont. The Chittenden Solid Waste District's new recycling process allows residents and businesses to put all their recyclables into one bin. Since Chittenden County started residential recycling in 1988, the waste district has required that customers separate bottles and cans from paper products. With the new equipment at the CSWD facility in Williston, no separation is required. According to CSWD marketing coordinator Wendy McArdle, the $1.1 million machine is new technology in use in only a few cities in the United States. It can mechanically separate cardboard materials and glass and plastic containers at a rate of 20 tons per hour.

Vermont solid waste panel Friday upheld a district trash management organization's recycling depot on Burlington's Pine Street. The Chittenden Solid Waste District operates the drop-off center, where people can bring trash for disposal or recycling. It is one of eight sites the district operates in Chittenden County. Trash collected at the site is eventually moved to processing centers for disposal or recycling. The district has had local and state permits for the center since it opened in late 2002. However, Kilburn & Gates Inc., the owners of a nearby office building, raised concerns about noise, trash storage, traffic and aesthetics. The building owners appealed state permits to the Waste Facility Panel, an arm of the Vermont Envirnomental Board. The panel issued its ruling Friday: The solid waste district was told it could continue operating the drop-off but must maintain a well-organized driveway and parking area and shield the site with opaque fences.

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