Montgomery County and Prince George’s County in Competition

By Carole A. Barth

This past April 22 we celebrated the 45th anniversary of Earth Day. So here’s an Earth Day trivia question: Which NFCCA resident was involved with the very first Earth Day in 1970? (See the end of the article for the answer.) In 1970, with the emergence of Earth Day, 3,000 drop-off centers were started. By the late 1970s, these grew into curbside recycling programs demanded by citizens that now serve every city in the country. More people recycle than vote in the U.S.

That’s all well and good, but, as you put out your blue bins of recyclables every week, do you ever wonder how much we’re recycling as a county? Recently, the Maryland Department of the Environment released the official numbers for waste diversion and recycling in calendar year 2013. Prince George’s County (PGCo) ranks number one in the state for waste diversion with a rate of 64.53%. Montgomery County is number two, with a waste diversion rate of 60.18%.

The waste diversion rate is a measure of how much waste is kept out of the landfill (or incinerator) through recycling and source reduction activities combined. Source reduction means stopping waste before it happens. Source reduction activities include practices such as:

bringing your own travel mug instead of using a disposable cup;
using containers to store leftovers and pack lunches instead of disposable wrap;
using rags or towels to clean spills instead of paper towels; and
bringing your own reusable shopping bags instead of getting disposable paper or plastic bags.

Each County receives a source reduction credit based on how much waste they have avoided. Both MoCo and PGCo received the maximum source reduction credit of 5%. The source reduction credit added to the recycling rate equals the waste diversion rate. Thus, PGCo’s waste diversion rate is 64.53% (59.53% recycling rate plus 5% source reduction credit).

Looking at only recycling, neither County has the number one recycling rate in the State. That honor goes to Washington County, with a recycling rate of 61.89%. PGC is number two at 59.53%, and MoCo is number three at 55.18%. You can see all the counties’ numbers at www.mde.state.md.us/programs/Land/ RecyclingandOperationsprogram/StateAgencyRecycling/Documents/recyclables%20 by%20commodity%202013.pdf

So what’s next? MoCo has adopted a goal of recycling 70% of waste generated by the end of calendar year 2020. Key to achieving that rate will be increasing recycling by the commercial sector. Historically, residential recycling rates in MoCo have far outstripped commercial recycling rates, even though businesses in MoCo are required to have recycling programs.

Meanwhile, PGCo is pursuing the goal of zero waste. PGCo is quickly scaling up its pilot food waste composting program with the target of providing food-scrap composting countywide by 2016. PGCo is also reviewing proposals for a new resource recovery park that would replace the landfill and consolidate recycling, waste-stream mining, composting, and energy generation activities into a single location.

Technologies successfully producing energy outputs from waste including pyrolysis, gasification, anaerobic digestion, plasma torch, or other conversion methods producing a fuel or energy product, such as electricity, syngas, synfuel, steam, and/or usable heat at a municipal scale will be considered by PGCo. This technology may be used in concert with other high- or low-tech resource recovery systems.

Finally, in order to be sure that PGCo employees “talk their talk and walk their walk,” our offices have been stripped of the usual desk-side trashcans. The large cans have been replaced by miniature trash cans (a little smaller than a one-pound coffee can) emblazoned with the slogan, “This is all the trash I make.”

On the state level, the Department of the Environment has announced a statewide zero waste goal. The state plan aims to divert 85% of what’s now being buried in landfills or burned in incinerators, and to recycle 80% of it by 2040. Planned actions include: enhanced waste management reporting; new source reduction requirements; augmented composting, recycling, and reuse guidance and mandates; clean energy recovery incentives; expanded materials and process bans; numerous government lead-by-example initiatives; and market and job creation inducements. You can download the plan at www.mde.state.md.us/programs/Marylander/Documents/ Zero_Waste_Plan_Draft_12.15.14.pdf.

(Answer: Jim Zepp on Lockridge Drive was involved in the very first Earth Day.) ■