62-716.480. Methods and Criteria for Calculating County Recycling Rates

(1) Section 403.7032, F.S., establishes a statewide goal to recycle at least 75 percent of municipal solid waste by the year 2020. Section 403.706, F.S., establishes interim recycling goals for counties, and requires the Department to adopt rules establishing the method and criteria to be used by counties in calculating their recycling rates. This rule section is intended to implement this statutory requirement.

(2) Methods.

(a) In order to calculate its annual recycling rate, a county shall use the following formula: total amount of municipal solid waste generated within its boundaries that is recycled, divided by the total amount of municipal solid waste generated within its boundaries that is recycled, land disposed, or combusted.

(b) Per section 403.706(4)(a), F.S., each megawatt-hour produced by a renewable energy facility using solid waste as a fuel shall count as 1 ton of recycled material. If a county creating renewable energy from solid waste implements and maintains a program to recycle at least 50 percent of municipal solid waste by means other than creating renewable energy, that county shall count 1.25 tons of recycled materials for each megawatt-hour produced. If waste originates from a county other than the county in which the renewable energy facility resides, the originating county shall receive such recycling credit. The above calculations apply equally to facilities producing renewable energy from either waste-to-energy or landfill gas.

(c) Any byproduct resulting from the creation of renewable energy that is recycled shall count towards the county recycling goals in accordance with the methods and criteria developed in this section.

(d) For Class I landfills that collect and beneficially use landfill gas and accept yard trash, if the landfill gas is used to generate electricity, the recycled materials credit for the yard trash component is included in the recycled materials credit calculation for all solid waste in paragraph (b), above. For other beneficial uses of landfill gas in Class I landfills, the recycled materials credit attributable for yard trash is determined by the following process:

1. Determine the fraction of the municipal solid waste that was disposed in the landfill which was attributable to yard trash, after subtracting any amounts of yard trash that were used for landfill cover or other uses that have already received recycling credit.

2. Determine the megawatt-hours equivalent of the landfill gas beneficial use which was attributable to yard trash. Unless the owner or operator demonstrates that a different conversion rate is more accurate for site-specific conditions, for the purposes of this section, 1,000,000 cubic feet of landfill gas will be considered equivalent to 150 megawatt-hours of electricity.

3. Multiply subparagraph 1., above, by subparagraph 2., above, to determine the equivalent electricity generation that would have been attributable to landfill gas derived from yard-trash. Each megawatt-hour equivalent derived from yard trash will count as one ton of recycled material.

4. For example, assume that a landfill receives 1,000 tons of municipal solid waste in a year, of which 200 tons is yard trash. 50 tons of this yard trash was used as cover material and separately receives recycling credit for this use, so 150 tons of yard trash counts toward the production of landfill gas. This landfill produces 1,000,000 cubic feet of natural gas in a year. Thus, the landfill produces the equivalent of 150 megawatt-hours, for which 15% of the waste stream is yard trash, so the landfill would get credit for recycling the equivalent of 22.5 megawatt-hours or 22.5 tons of yard trash associated municipal solid waste.

(e) Each ton of municipal solid waste used as daily, intermediate, or final cover in solid waste disposal facilities in accordance with the permit conditions for such facilities shall count as one ton of recycled material. This recycled materials credit shall be limited to the amount required for the particular category of cover on a given facility. Material used in excess of this amount shall be counted as waste disposed. If recycling credit is being claimed for the use of municipal solid waste in landfill cover, any landfill gas renewable energy recycling credit shall be reduced by the ratio of municipal solid waste used as landfill cover (in tons) divided by total municipal solid waste disposed in that landfill.

(3) Criteria.

(a) Municipal solid waste includes only that waste that is, or if not otherwise recycled, may normally be collected through a public or private solid waste management service. Such services can include garbage collection services, recycling collection services, and remediation services. All construction and demolition debris shall be considered municipal solid waste for the purposes of this section. Automobiles, including scrap metal or shredder residue, are not considered municipal solid waste.

(b) Municipal solid waste does not include solid waste from industrial, mining, or agricultural operations, even if that waste is collected by a public or private solid waste management service. However, office and cafeteria waste from these facilities is considered municipal solid waste.

(c) Recycling includes any process by which municipal solid waste is reused or returned to use in the form of raw materials or products. Raw materials or products may include fuels or fuel substitutes. For example, the use of waste tires as fuel, or the production of biofuels made from municipal solid waste, or the conversion of post-use polymers to crude oils and fuels, would be considered recycling for the purpose of calculating county recycling rates. However, the amount of recycled materials credit that may be claimed for the production of certain fuel products made solely from wood or paper wastes is limited in accordance with section 403.706(4)(b), F.S. Incineration for purposes of disposal shall not be considered recycling except as may otherwise be provided in this chapter.

(d) Recycling does not include any process that is a use that constitutes disposal, even if that process does have some beneficial use. For example, the use of municipal solid waste as fill material in a manner that constitutes disposal, such as filling a borrow pit with unprocessed construction and demolition debris, would not be considered recycling for the purpose of calculating county recycling rates. The use of processed clean debris as fill material, or the use of other processed municipal solid waste authorized by the department pursuant to a permit or other order issued under part IV of chapter 373; chapter 378, or 403, F.S., for use as fill material, is not considered a use that constitutes disposal, as long as such use is integral to a land improvement project (including environmental land reclamation or restoration) or is necessary for the construction of appurtenant structures or facilities as part of a real property improvement.

Rulemaking Authority 403.704, 403.706, 403.708 FS. Law Implemented 403.7032, 403.706, 403.708 FS. History‒New 12-17-13, Amended 7-31-18.