Masters Theses

Date of Award

5-1991

Degree Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Science

Major

Agricultural Economics

Major Professor

William M. Park

Committee Members

Frank O. Leuthold, Jack Barkenbus

Abstract

Rural county and municipal governments in Tennessee have been faced with the increasingly important and difficult task of solid waste management. As the costs of solid waste disposal have increased over the past decade, the search for waste disposal alternatives has increased as well. One viable alternative, recycling, has emerged as a popular and sometimes cost effective option. Recycling can be defined as a process of diverting reusable materials from the solid waste stream, processing these materials, and using them in production. While several researchers have suggested that regional approaches to recycling may offer many significant benefits for rural areas over smaller community specific programs, little research has been conducted in this area. This study was designed to analyze the tradeoffs and feasibility of an integrated multi-county recycling approach, using the eight county First Tennessee Development District as a case study area.

Current characteristics of solid waste management were documented for the First Tennessee Development District primarily using mail surveys, and included information on collection, transportation, processing, disposal, and the extent of recycling in the region. This information was used to develop a methodology for projecting the potential for residential sector collection of recyclable materials in each county. It was estimated that between 6,200 and 11,300 tons of recyclable materials could be collected annually from the region, depending on the participation rate of the citizens.

The costs of operating a recycling system were estimated for each individual county in the region, and for the region as a whole. These costs included those associated with processing, and the transportation of recyclable materials to a regional processing facility, but not initial collection costs or various avoided costs (landfill fees, etc.). The economies of size that could be achieved from a regional processing facility were substantial. Under each of eight scenarios involving low and high levels for participation rates, processing costs, and transportation costs, a regional processing system provided significant cost savings compared to processing in each of the eight counties. These cost savings for the region were estimated at between $130,000 and $317,000 annually. Viewed from an individual county perspective, some counties could transport materials over relatively long distances (as far as 100 miles) and still achieve lower costs than processing on their own.

While the potential economic benefits of regional recycling systems appear substantial, the difficulties associated with initiating and sustaining successful inter- or multi-jurisdictional agreements are numerous. Incentives may be necessary to motivate local jurisdictions to look beyond their boundaries for cost effective solutions to their solid waste management challenges.

Download
Files over 3MB may be slow to open. For best results, right-click and select "save as..."

Share

COinS