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Comprehensive Review of S olid W aste Collection and Disposal Options v2.1 129 10/22/12 9.1.1.4 Disadvantages Based on our experience, the following disadvantages are associated with developing a new stand-alone MRF within the Town’s planning jurisdictional limits: 1. Requires the Town to implement new policies and programs in order to direct recyclable materials collected by the current program to the new MRF. Operating a MRF without participation from neighboring municipalities, including Orange County, would potentially be counterproductive towards regional collaboration. 2. Economies of scale for a viable operation are dependent upon regional partners to commit delivery of recyclables to the new MRF in order to deliver a marginal return on investment at best. The Town and other regional partners would need to address the challenge of attempting to secure flow control of recyclables through passing multiple ordinances. The efforts associated with such collaboration would likely involve demonstrating to regional partners that the Town has established contract terms, purchase prices, and durations for sale of reclaimed materials within the secondary markets. 3. The recyclable materials market is a commodity market subject to potentially volatile fluctuations. Again, the risks associated with market volatility must be managed through strategic contract negotiations and attentive materials management. 4. Community opposition and potential perceived impacts to communities surrounding the MRF (e.g., noise and traffic), although modern MRFs employ mitigation measures that can reduce or eliminate these impacts. Siting a new stand-alone MRF within the Town limits, or the surrounding area, would be challenging, but is believed to be generally less contentious than a landfill. 5. Significant capital investment is required (see discussion below). 6. The Town will incur professional salary expenses and/or temporary labor expenses to hire and supervise personnel to operate the MRF. 7. Developing a new stand-alone MRF could require 2 to 3 years to complete. As such, it is not available as a short-term alternative to the Town in the near future. 9.1.2 Co-Locating MRF or Composting Facility W ith a New Transfer Station SCS recommends that the Town consider the concept of co-locating a MRF in conjunction with a new transfer station as an alternative to a stand-alone MRF. Essentially, this concept is to plan and design a new transfer station to include capabilities for sorting incoming wastes and handling recyclable materials in designated areas of the facility. The Town is continuing to develop programs and services that embrace solid waste as a resource and enabling a new transfer station to be configured and equipped to sort incoming wastes for the purpose of diverting materials that have a recycling or reclamation value would appear to be more attractive than a stand-alone MRF or traditional MSW transfer station. Furthermore, another primary objective of a co- located facility would be to segregate materials from incoming wastes that are not currently