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Comprehensive Plan Solid Waste Sub -Element Until late 2008, the County recycled seven items. These were plastic #1 and #2, steel cans, aluminum cans, clear glass, brown glass, green glass, and newspapers. At that time, waste haulers had to collect these items, separate them at the curb, and place them in one of the recycling truck's seven separate compartments. If one of the seven compartments was full, then the driver had to travel to the landfill to empty the recycled materials before he could collect more. Since the recycling trucks had only seven compartments, there was no room to add additional materials to be recycled. Presently, the County collects all non -newspaper recyclables together and sends them to regional facilities for separation. This procedure was instituted after the SWDD decided that it would be beneficial to collect newspapers separately and collect other recyclables combined. By collecting all non -newspaper recyclables together, many other items, such as plastic #3 through #7, corrugated cardboard, phone books, and magazines, can be recycled. This, in turn, further reduces the quantities of material that are sent for landfill disposal. Waste to Energy Conversion Facility Another new method for reducing the amount of solid waste requiring landfill disposal is waste -to - energy (WTE) conversion. With this method, solid waste is converted to energy. This is a new technology that requires an in depth analysis to determine if it could work for the County. Among other factors, a WTE feasibility study (FS) considers whether there is a sufficient waste stream to support such a facility, a facility's effect on air quality, and the probability of obtaining a permit for a facility. If feasible, the County then must choose a private firm to obtain all necessary permits as well as build and operate the facility. Even though a WTE FS has not formally been conducted by the County, the SWDD Board, on March 24, 2009, authorized SWDD staff to start negotiations with INEOUS New Planet BioEnergy LLC (INPB) to implement the first phase of a WTE conversion facility that would, by 2011, utilize yard and other vegetative waste to produce approximately 8 million gallons per year of ethanol. Subsequent phases of the project will utilize other wastes disposed at the County landfill as feedstock for the WTE conversion facility. If this project is successful, future phases of the project will definitely reduce the quantity of solid waste requiring landfill disposal. With this technology, only residues will likely require landfill disposal. Illegal Dumping Indian River County requires that County residents properly dispose of all solid waste materials within the County. The majority of these materials are then transported to the County's landfill for disposal. Not all such materials, however, arrive at the County's landfill facility. Occasionally, there are incidents of solid waste materials being discarded along County roadways, on private property, and in other areas of the County. The improper disposal of solid waste materials constitutes illegal dumping. Illegal dumping remains a problem in the County. While improper disposal of solid waste continues to occur along roadways and on private property, the improper use of the five CCCs has significantly Community Development Department Indian River County 12