A county resolution for a new four-year green waste diversion contract with a ceiling of $2.4 million annually has fermented into a 10-year plan for a composter that would handle 60,000 tons of waste and cost around $5 million a year to operate.
Under the plan, proposals would be sought for a composter that could handle the addition of food and contaminated paper to the waste stream, increasing the amount of waste diverted from landfills by about a third. The current green waste diversion program merely grinds the waste and untreated wood pallets into mulch, which is free to public.
Waste would be composted and sold, and also turned into mulch that would be treated in windrows to kill fire ants, Environmental Management Director Bobby Jean Leithead Todd said.
The increased cost and duration of the contract would be due to the need to build or bring in the enclosed composting vessel — and because the process is more complicated and would accommodate 20,000 tons more waste that the current program. The Organics Facilities at the West Hawaii and Hilo sanitary landfills cost around $1.8 million a year to operate, said Leithead Todd. The contract for that operation is set to expire at the end of December.
The new plan would extend the life of the landfills while creating a product that can be sold to farmers and gardeners to offset the increased cost, Leithead Todd said.
The location for the composter and other details are not yet clear. The Puuanahulu Landfill is problematic because it lacks the fresh water needed for composting, Leithead Todd told the council.
“We’re looking at East Hawaii because that’s where we have the water and the space,” she said.
Council members on Wednesday appeared to support the plan, but put off a vote on a resolution that authorizes the mayor to begin the process of requesting proposals.
“This is a substantial amendment and I think it’s appropriate to hold it over until the next meeting,” Council Chairman Dru Kanuha said.
Puna Councilman Daniel Paleka said he was pleased by an amendment that any improvements made as part of the composting program had to remain on the site once the contract expires.
“Let’s move forward,” he said.
North Kona Councilwoman Karen Eoff, who authored the original resolution, said the proposal puts the island closer to producing a viable compost product and further along the path to zero waste.