NS Grant - Acceptance of State Grants for Baler and Roll-off Containers to Haul Shingles

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2 The estimated cost to purchase and install a new baler is $50,000. The NCDEAO grant is for $18,000 and the County's cost will be $32,000 including the 20% match. Funds are included in the FY 2011/12 recommended budget to replace the leased baler. The grant will reduce the County's costs by $18,000 and eliminate annual lease payments of $3,000 to SONOCO for the baler the County has used for the past twelve years. The estimated cost to purchase three roll-off containers and improve the site is estimated at $17,010. The NCDEAO grant is for $11,968 and the County's cost will be $5,042 including the 20% match. Funds included in the FY 2011/12 recommended budget to replace the leased baler will be available to pay the County match on the three roll-off containers. The grant will reduce the County's costs by $11,968 and enable Orange County to begin recycling tear-off shingles instead of land-filling them. Due to the uncertainty of when or if the shingle end user (a paving contractor) would obtain the required state permits, staff did not include the matching funds in the Department's FY 2011/12 budget request. Staff now understands that within the next two months the paving contractor is poised to obtain the permits and that the shingle recycling project might actually be able to proceed. If the permits are obtained, the Department would work with the County Manager and Financial Services Director to identify the necessary $5,042 in County funds including the required $2,632 in matching funds plus the $2,410 needed internally to make the associated site improvements. Staff estimates that the County now buries approximately 500 tons of shingles annually in the construction waste landfill. Asphalt paving plants can now use roofing shingles effectively in the hot mix asphalt to replace expensive asphalt cement, so there is now a very strong market for tear-off shingles. Staff projects potential diversion of at least half of the 500 tons the County now receives, plus perhaps up to another 1,400 tons of asphalt shingles per year. That estimate of additional tonnage is based on capturing half of the State-estimate of Orange County's pro- rata share of all tear-off shingles in the State. Actual tonnage would depend upon the current roof replacement rates and roofers' response to a proposed fifty percent reduction in the Construction and Demolition (C&D) landfill tipping fee for loads of `clean' shingles ($22/ton versus $44/ton). This diversion should increase the waste reduction rate, add to the region's economy and reduce oil consumed to make asphalt paving. Staff anticipates some loss in C&D revenue due to the recommendation to implement an incentive of a reduced (preferential) tipping fee for clean loads of shingles. Staff anticipates capturing increased shingle volume from roofers who now go elsewhere with their waste. Doubling the current volume could offset the expected lost revenue due to the lower incentive fee. Recent informal phone surveys of roofers have indicated a potential positive response to the prospect of lower fees. The shingles would be delivered to the contractor's paving plant in Chatham County using the new roll-off containers. The State grant provides $11,968 for roll-off containers and signage and the County overall funding for this project would be $5,042. An education and outreach campaign would be established to reach all roofing contractors doing business in Orange County to encourage participation. FINANCIAL IMPACT: Funding for the County's 20% match is included in the recommended FY 2011/12 Annual Budget. The total for the County share of both projects is less than the amount budgeted for only replacing the baler, allowing for the unbudgeted shingle recycling grant match