Financing Alternatives for Municipal Solid Waste Management Facilities

The ultimate responsibility for the collection and disposal of municipal solid waste rests with local government. As regional planning developed, more counties and states assumed some or all of this re­ sponsibility. The Federal Government has not, to date, provided the broad financial support for solid waste systems now available for municipal waste water systems. Their participation has been limited to grants for planning and for demonstrating new disposal technology. As new technology has evolved, the private sector has begun to play a more important role in solid waste disposal. The interactions between the government and private sector add interesting new dimensions to solid waste planning. This article discusses various methods and mechanisms for financing municipal solid waste management facilities. Particular attention is given to the developing roles of various governmental en­ tities and private sector participants. PRIMARY OBJECTIVES OF SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT PLANS AND FACILITIES A solid waste management plan, at any level of responsibility, should meet these primary objec­ tives. It should: 1) Provide a collection and disposal service at the lowest possible net cost to the participating com­ munities. 2) Provide a reliable and continuing service. 3) Optimize the recovery and recycling of valuable resources. 4) And be accomplished in a manner that is environmentally sound and acceptable to the par­ ticipating communities. ROLES OF PARTICIPATING ENTITIES IN SOLID WASTE MANAGEMENT To assist in developing solid waste management and financing plans, there must be a clear understand­ ing of the existing and potential roles of the partici­ pating public and private entities. THE FEDERAL GOVERNMENT The primary responsibility for solid waste management at the Federal level rests with the En­ vironmental Protection Agency, The Office of Solid Waste Management. The EPA's primary responsibilities have been in the areas of development of regulations and guide­ lines, R&D, planning assistance and in providing grant assistance for demonstration projects. The basic Federal legislation supporting Federal activity is the Solid Waste Disposal Act, as amended by the Resource Recovery Act of 1970. Originally presented at the ASME Winter Annual Meeting, Detroit, Michigan, November 17, 1973 (Revised April, 1975) The demonstration grant program, under Section 208 of this act, has been limited to funding of several major solid waste projects throughout the United States: e.g., Wilmington, Delaware; San Diego, California; Lowell, Massachusetts; and Baltimore, Maryland. Further funding of demonstration pro­ jects would appear unlikely at this time. Of more immediate promise in terms of fi­ nancing assistance, are the funds being set aside by EPA under Section 204 for assistance to governmental agencies in preparing plans for Energy Recovery Im­ plementation Programs. Total funds available in this program are currently $300,000 to be spread over six different projects. This fund will probably be increased to encourage state-wide and local planning for energy recovery. There have been proposed several legislative packages for Federal support of state-wide and local solid waste facilities. Generally, this has been in the form of a Federal guarantee on local debt required to purchase capital facilities, or a program by the Fed­ eral Government to purchase local debt instruments for the construction of facilities. Grant programs, similar to that provided under the Clean Water Act, are considered unlikely at this time. It would appear that the Federal Government will not be providing direct financial support for the construction of solid waste facilities, but will be providing technical planning support to communities who are preparing plans and implementation pro­ grams.