All Day
July 1, 2015
The County of Hawai‘i Department of Environmental Management will begin charging a new tipping fee on July 1, 2015 to businesses that drop off greenwaste at recycling facilities in West Hawai‘i and East Hawai‘i. Revenue from the new fee will help to finance an expansion of greenwaste recycling services across the island.
The new fee will not affect residential customers with self-hauled greenwaste from their private residential property. Residential customers will continue to be allowed to drop off greenwaste free of charge at seven locations around the island.
The county currently pays more than $1.8 million a year to recycle greenwaste into mulch that is then distributed free to the community. The new tipping fee is expected to raise more than $500,000 a year to help finance an expansion of organics recycling services islandwide, including establishing new greenwaste drop-off locations at additional transfer stations.
The new source-separated greenwaste fee for commercial businesses will be $21.25 per ton, which is 25 percent of the normal solid waste landfill tipping fee of $85 per ton. The greenwaste tipping fee was established by the Hawai‘i County Council in 2005, but the County administration delayed imposing the fee during the recession.
Starting July 1, 2015, businesses recycling greenwaste will be required to drop off their greenwaste at either the West Hawai‘i or East Hawai‘i Organics Facilities. Businesses will be required to obtain a Solid Waste Facility Disposal Permit prior to recycling greenwaste at the County Organics Facilities. Applications are available online at HawaiiZeroWaste.org, at the County scale houses or by calling the Solid Waste Office at 961-8270.
Residential customers with self-hauled green waste from their private residential property will be able to continue to drop off greenwaste at no cost at the West Hawai‘i and East Hawai‘i Organics Facilities as well as the County Recycling & Transfer Stations currently located in Kealakehe, Ke‘ei, Puakō, Pāhoa and Kea‘au.
Free mulch and free assisted mechanical loading will remain available to both residents and businesses at the West Hawai‘i Organics Facility and at the East Hawai‘i Organics Facility. Free mulch and free assisted mechanical loading of small loads is available at the Kealakehe Recycling and Transfer Station, with a small fee for assistance with larger loads.
For more information about greenwaste recycling and free mulch, please visit www.HawaiiZeroWaste.org/recycle/greenwaste.
Greenwaste Program Changes - Disposal Fee Implementation Media Release