BILL ANALYSIS Ó
AB 341
Page 1
Date of Hearing: April 25, 2011
ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES
Wesley Chesbro, Chair
AB 341 (Chesbro) - As Amended: April 6, 2011
SUBJECT : Solid waste: diversion
SUMMARY : Requires the state to divert 75% of its solid waste
annually on or by 2020; requires a commercial waste generator to
arrange for recycling services; and requires a local government
to implement a commercial solid waste recycling program designed
to divert solid waste from businesses.
EXISTING LAW :
1)Requires local governments to divert 50 percent of solid waste
disposed by their jurisdictions through source reduction,
recycling, and composting.
2)Requires a local government to have a source reduction and
recycling plan that places primary emphasis on implementation
of all feasible source reduction, recycling, and composting
programs while identifying the amount of landfill and
transformation capacity that will be needed for solid waste
that cannot be reduced at the source, recycled, or composted.
3)Requires a local government to have a nondisposal facility
plan that includes all solid waste facilities and solid waste
facility expansions that will help the local government reach
its waste diversion mandate. Nondisposal facilities are
primarily materials recovery facilities (i.e., facilities
where recyclables are separated from waste or other
recyclables), compost facilities, and transfer stations, but
may also include recycling centers, drop-off centers, and
household hazardous waste facilities.
4)Requires, as of 1994, a local government to have ordinances
relating to adequate areas for collection and loading of
recyclable materials at commercial, industrial, and
multifamily development projects. Prohibits, as of 2005, a
local government from issuing a building permit to a
development project unless the development project provides
adequate space for collecting and loading recyclable
materials.
AB 341
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THE BILL :
1)Requires, on or before January 1, 2020, and annually
thereafter, the Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery
(Department) to ensure that 75% of solid waste generated is
source reduced, recycled, or composted.
2)Requires a commercial waste generator to arrange for recycling
services to the extent that the services are offered and
reasonably available from a local service provider. Defines
"commercial waste recycler" as the owner or operator of a
business that contracts for solid waste services and generates
more than four cubic yards of solid waste per week or is a
multifamily residential dwelling of five units or more.
3)Requires a local government to implement a commercial solid
waste recycling program designed to divert solid waste from
businesses.
FISCAL EFFECT : Unknown
COMMENTS :
1)Background. California is a national leader in diverting
waste from landfills by currently diverting 58% of all waste,
which is well above the state's 50% mandate. The state has
achieved this goal in part by increasing recycling
opportunities through the Integrated Waste Management Act
(Division 30 (commencing with Section 40000) of the Public
Resources Code). Despite the state's high diversion rate,
Californians still dispose more waste than the national
average. There are measures that can be taken, such as
mandatory commercial and multifamily residential recycling,
that will decrease the state's solid waste disposal and
increase its diversion rate. Additionally, a new waste
diversion goal of 75% will help facilitate more source
reduction, recycling, and composting in the state.
2)Commercial Recycling. According to the Department, the
commercial sector generates over 60% of waste disposed. The
AB 32 Scoping Plan, adopted by the California Air Resources
Board in December 2008 in response to the California Global
Warming Solutions Act, calls for substantial increases in
recycling for the commercial sector and states that "this
AB 341
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could be implemented, for example, through voluntary or
mandatory programs, including protocols, enhanced partnerships
with local governments, and provision of appropriate financial
incentives."
3)Multifamily Dwelling Recycling. As for multifamily dwellings,
they generate more than 8% of the disposed waste stream in
California. According to the sponsor, there are approximately
7.1 million Californians living in approximately 2.4 million
multifamily dwellings. Most of these residents are renters,
but fewer that 40 percent of them have access to recycling
services where they live. While a homeowner can choose to
recycle at home, a renter who wants to recycle at his/her
residence is not able to when the landlord does not provide
the opportunity to do so. Additionally, a 2001 report
prepared by the California Integrated Waste Management Board,
"Recycling in Multifamily Dwellings," concluded that much of
the cost associated with providing recycling services at
multifamily dwellings is offset by reduced disposal fees.
4)Economy and Climate Change. Overall, recycling provides
tremendous benefits to the state. Not only does it conserve
natural resources, energy, and water, it also creates jobs and
builds California's economy and reduces greenhouse gas
emissions.
According to Californians Against Waste, the recycling
industry accounts for more than 85,000 jobs and generates
nearly $4 billion annually in wages and produces $10 billion
worth of goods and services annually. A June 2010 cost study
on commercial recycling published by the Department concluded
that a mandatory commercial recycling program in the state
could generate between 938 and 1,396 new full-time equivalent
jobs in recycling collection, support, supervisory, and
management.
According to the Department, additional recovery of recyclable
materials will directly reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
Recycled materials can reduce the greenhouse gas emissions
from multiple phases of product production including
extraction of raw materials, preprocessing, and manufacturing.
Increased recycling also reduces methane emissions at
landfills resulting from the decomposition of organic
materials.
AB 341
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REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION :
Support
Californians Against Waste
Opposition
California Refuse Recycling Council
Blue Line Transfer, Inc.
Burrtec Waste Industries, Inc.
CR&R Incorporated
Orange County Board of Supervisors
Rainbow Disposal Co., Inc.
Solid Waste Association of North America
South San Francisco Scavenger Company
Varner Bros., Inc.
Analysis Prepared by : Mario DeBernardo / NAT. RES. / (916)
319-2092