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The purpose of the recycling program is to define goals and mechanisms for maximizing the percentage of Boston’s residential solid waste which is recycled. The program will further seek to facilitate greater recycling levels within the commercial sector, and identify ways in which the city’s purchasing policies can encourage recycling.
(CBC 1985 7-13.2; Ord. 1990 c. 9 § 2)
For the purpose of this Section, the following definitions shall apply unless the context clearly indicates or requires a different meaning.
ALUMINUM. Any can, container, foil wrapping or product composed solely of aluminum.
CITY. The City of Boston.
COMMISSIONER. The Commissioner of the Public Works Department of the city or that person’s designee.
DEPARTMENT. The Public Works Department of the city.
DISTRICT. Waste collection districts as defined by the Commissioner.
GLASS CONTAINER. Any bottle, jar or other container composed of glass, but not including containers composed of ceramic.
MATERIALS RECOVERY FACILITY. A processing plant that receives as input a stream of recyclable material separated from municipal solid waste.
METAL CAN. Any container composed of metal, including, but not limited to, any such container commonly used for beverages and food.
PAPER. Any non-soiled paper, including, but not limited to, newspaper, mixed paper and corrugated cardboard.
PLASTIC CONTAINER. Any bottle, carton, lid or tube composed of rigid plastic.
RECYCLABLES. Materials that have the potential to be recycled and which are not commingled with solid waste or contaminated by significant amounts of toxic substances, including, but not limited to, aluminum, glass containers, metal containers, paper, plastic containers and yard waste.
RECYCLING. To recover materials or by-products:
(1) Which are to be reused;
(2) Which are to be employed as an ingredient or a feedstock in an industrial or manufacturing process to make a product; or
(3) Which are to be employed in a particular function or application as an effective substitute for a commercial product or commodity (other than as a substitute for fuel).
RECYCLE does not mean to recover energy from the combustion of a material.
RESIDENTIAL OWNER. A person who owns or is in control of residential premises.
RESIDENTIAL PREMISES. Any house, building or other structure used for dwelling purposes which receives waste collection service from the city.
RESIDENTIAL WASTESTREAM. All solid waste which the city is responsible for collecting from residential premises.
SET OUT CONTAINER. Any container composed of weatherproof material such as plastic or metal as defined by the Commissioner.
SOLID WASTE. Garbage, refuse or other discarded material, including solid, liquid, semisolid or contained gaseous material, resulting from residential or commercial activities.
YARD WASTE. Grass, leaves, tree and brush cuttings and similar material.
(CBC 1985 7-13.3; Ord. 1990 c. 9 § 3)
(A) On a schedule to be determined by the Commissioner, residential premises designated by the Commissioner shall be separate specified recyclables from all other solid waste that they deposit at the curb or other pickup locations for collection and shall place said recyclables in set-out containers for collection. The Department shall arrange for the collection of all said recyclables either through requirements of the regular district waste collection contract or through such other arrangements as the Commissioner determines to be most advantageous to the city.
(B) The Commissioner shall develop and implement alternative recycling programs for residential premises where, in the judgment of the Commissioner, a curbside collection program is not feasible for either a specified geographic area or for specific classes of residences.
(C) The Commissioner shall develop public education programs to maximize the separation and collection of recyclables. The Department may implement these programs in conjunction with the Boston Public Schools, Neighborhood Councils, community groups, private schools, businesses, labor organizations and other interested or affected parties. The education programs may include flyers, print and electronic media, public events or any other promotional techniques which the Commissioner determines will assure the greatest level of compliance with the provisions of this Section. Such programs shall begin at least one month before the effective date of separation requirements for specified residential premises, or a month before the start of operation of any alternative programs.
(D) The Commissioner may adopt rules and regulations to further the effective implementation of recycling programs.
(E) The Commissioner shall determine the most cost effective and appropriate means to bring about the construction and operation of a materials recovery facility or other similar facility to ensure adequate capacity for processing recyclables collected by the Department and its contractors under this Section. The Commissioner shall report the initial findings of this evaluation to the Mayor not later than July 1, 1991; and shall at that time seek whatever authority may be necessary to authorize the procurement and/or construction of such facility. The Commissioner may, from time to time, conduct additional evaluations of this nature in light of changing market conditions and shall report in a timely manner to the Mayor the results of such evaluations.
(F) The Commissioner shall ensure that all separation and collection programs and all contracts for separation, collection and disposal are consistent with all commonwealth and federal solid waste laws and regulations, including, but not limited to, 310 CMR 19:017: “Waste Bans”.
(G) The city-wide targets as defined throughout this Section shall describe the total amount of recycling of the residential wastestream occurring within the city at the relevant point in time. This shall include the results obtained through recycling of returnable plastic, glass and metal containers which are returned for deposit. The Commissioner shall prepare by July 1, 1991 a standard methodology consistent with that of the commonwealth of Commonwealth Department of Environmental Protection for quantifying the recycling results for returnable containers, and shall utilize that methodology annually in the preparation of reports required by this Section on the results of the recycling program.
(CBC 1985 7-13.4; Ord. 1990 c. 9 § 4)
(A) Through the mechanisms described above, the Department shall ensure that at least 28% by weight of the residential wastestream is recycled city- wide during the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1992; at least 38% during the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1995; and at least 50% during the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1998; assuming that the Department is able to secure access to a commonwealth funded or private materials recovery facility or facility or facilities with equivalent capabilities by the applicable date. At a minimum, the Department shall institute various separation and collection programs geographically located in each of its districts to recycle aluminum, newspaper, plastic containers, metal cans, glass containers and yard waste in order to meet the first city-wide target. The Department shall implement such programs with the goal of maximizing participation and the percentage of the wastestream by weight that is recycled within each district. In areas where participation and diversion rates are lower than the city-wide rates, the Department shall focus extra resources to develop alternative educational and collection approaches in order to attempt to bring such rates up to the city-wide rates. In order to meet the later targets, the Department may add additional recyclables as the Commissioner determines their recycling to be feasible.
(B) If, after diligent effort to secure access to a materials recovery facility or similar facility or facilities providing the required recycling capacity, said capacity remains unavailable as of the first of the above target dates, the Commissioner shall notify the Mayor of the lack of capacity. Upon such notification, the Department shall nevertheless ensure that at least 20% by weight of the residential wastestream is recycled city-wide during the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1992. The Department shall continue its efforts to secure access to the required recycling capacity as described above; if it remains unavailable, upon notification to the Mayor, the Department shall nevertheless ensure that at least 25% by weight of the residential wastestream is recycled during the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1995; and 36% during the fiscal year beginning July 1, 1998. If, at any time between these dates, access is secured to the required recycling capacity, the higher target specified in division (A) above shall apply.
(C) The Commissioner is hereby authorized, in conformity with all applicable laws, to seek requests for proposals, and to advertise for, award and supervise contracts in such a way as to further the effectiveness of the recycling program. In carrying out said powers and duties, the Commissioner shall consider taking and is authorized to take the following actions:
(1) Preparing a model request for proposals and issue contracts pursuant to this Section which shall mandate that any company contracted to collect the city’s solid waste shall recycle a specified percentage of waste which the Commissioner determines is necessary to meet the targets defined in division (A) or (B) above, if applicable. The Commissioner may set lower targets for a contractor in cases where the Department has instituted other recycling programs in that contractor’s district;
(2) Including in the model request for proposals monetary or other incentives for exceeding the percentage of solid waste that a contract guarantees shall be recycled and monetary or other penalties for failing to meet the percentage of solid waste that a contract guarantees shall be recycled;
(3) Electing, for a district where the Department has instituted special arrangements to recycle one or more materials which effectively remove those materials from the waste being handled by the district waste collection contractor, to reduce the recycling percentage requirement for that contract by an amount not to exceed a reasonable projection of the diversion percentage to be attained by the special arrangements. Such percentage shall be based either on actual results obtained in a previous year or on a specifically documented calculation of projected results which shall specify the assumed percentage of the overall wastestream, the participation rate and the actual materials capture rate. The Department shall maintain a database of total waste quantities and amounts diverted by recycling programs in order to support the above calculations when they are necessary;
(4) Not extending a contract or making a new contract for solid waste collection beyond July 1, 1992 unless the extension includes the applicable provisions of divisions (C)(1) through (C)(3) above;
(5) Including in such contracts and extensions as described herein provisions which allow the Commissioner to terminate the contract with, withhold payment to or reduce the payment to a company if said company fails to satisfy the provisions of that contract regarding recycling requirements. The Commissioner may establish a rate of monetary or other incentive or penalty based on the amount above or below the recycling percentage guaranteed by a contract; and
(6) Prohibiting any company found by a court or Agency with jurisdiction to be in violation of the environmental protection provisions of any commonwealth law from contracting with the city for collection or removal of solid waste or recyclables for a period of up to three years following the finding.
(CBC 1985 7-13.5; Ord. 1990 c. 9 § 5)
(A) No residential owner who participates in the city’s recycling program shall place non-recyclable materials in set out containers. The city may discontinue its pick up of any such owner’s recyclables following two written warnings. When a residential owner demonstrates compliance with this Section to the Commissioner by placing recyclable materials in set out containers, the city shall resume collection of said owner’s recyclables.
(B) The Commissioner may develop alternative enforcement actions where, in the judgment of the Commissioner, such action is appropriate.
(C) The Commissioner may create an incentive program for participation in the recycling program, including, but not limited to, a “recycling lottery”, in which individuals or neighborhoods as defined by the Commissioner are awarded cash prizes or other awards for correctly separating solid waste in accordance with the recycling program’s needs as defined by the Commissioner.
(CBC 1985 7-13.6; Ord. 1990 c. 9 § 6)
(A) The Commissioner shall prepare an analysis of the recycling program including, but not limited to, rates of participation and volume and weight of the components of the waste stream successfully recycled, and the net cost of the city’s solid waste management system. The Commissioner shall prepare by July 1, 1991 a methodology for calculating and presenting the city’s net cost of its solid waste management. Such analysis shall be reported to the Mayor within two months after the end of each fiscal year, once the city-wide recycling program has begun. Such reports shall list the actual percentage of recycling attained for each district for the past year, including contractor performance as measured against the targets established pursuant to Subsection 7-13.5(C)(1), the results of any alternative programs, and the city’s net cost for its solid waste management system, as well as projections of each of these items for the coming year.
(B) The Commissioner shall prepare proposals for increasing participation in the recycling program and shall include an analysis of the merits of user fees, mandatory participation and sanctions.
(CBC 1985 7-13.7; Ord. 1990 c. 9 § 7)
The Director of the Environment Department shall, within six months of the effective date of this Section, adopt and implement regulations to ensure a substantial increase in the quantity of office waste paper recycled in Boston. The Director shall also research the feasibility of expanding this program to other recyclable materials and make recommendations as necessary to the Mayor.
(CBC 1985 7-13.8; Ord. 1990 c. 9 § 8)
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