The Overview

City of Charlottesville Landfill Diversion Program

July 2019 RFP

Problem Statement

The City’s solid waste program is in need of review and analysis to consider opportunities for efficiency, budgetary improvements and an increase in services. What are the challenges we face? What are the opportunities for improvement?

The program is currently operating with a budget deficit and provides limited services to the community.
The curbside pickup of MSW and recycling is only offered to residential customers and some business customers primarily located in the downtown/uptown areas with little opportunity to support commercial or multi-family customers.

Curbside recycling opportunities are limited to what is picked up bi-weekly and currently consists of Paper, Glass, Plastics #1-#7, Cardboard, Aluminum and Tin.
Residents and businesses are not required to use the City-funded curbside pickup service.
The sticker/decal system does not generate sufficient revenue to cover the program costs and is cumbersome to manage.
The Solid Waste Ordinance lacks the enforcement capability to manage the program effectively.
The large item pickup is limited in contents to household items and brush (no construction debris or contractor spoils) and has a scaled payment system that is based on the number of pickups over the course of a rolling calendar year.
Leaf collection/disposal is demanding on internal resources and is 100% subsidized by the City’s general fund so there is no revenue stream to fund this service.
Composting is a growing area of interest, but growth is a challenge as the current program only applies to residential household compostables (no yard waste) and is limited to a couple of drop-off locations.
Services are provided within the jurisdictional boundary of the City of Charlottesville and do not extend to the urban ring in Albemarle County.
Physical space constraints for storage of waste containers and curbside placement of containers for pickup vary across the City from spacious neighborhoods to dense historic districts.
The City has several sustainability related goals and commitments which the current program does not sufficiently meet.
Residents have expressed desire for programs and services that are not currently available – either at all or within the City limits (e.g., yard waste, used motor oil, fats oil grease (FOG), batteries, electronics, medical items, household hazardous waste, etc.).