By J. David Myers

By J. David Myers

The Monterey (CA) Regional Waste Management District has gained a reputation for having one of the best solid waste operations as well as one of the best regional governmental agencies. I have always been a strong advocate of regional solutions to public works problems and have been proud of how well the coastal cities and the County of Monterey have worked together to deal with solid waste issues. I never realized how difficult some of these problems were to resolve until I recently spent some time researching the district's history for the publication of a 50th anniversary edition of our annual report.

According to an article in the Monterey Herald (December 18, 1940), the county health officer reported that the beachside dump, which was being used by the county and the Cities of Carmel, Monterey, and Pacific Grove, "constitutes a health menace … and should be cleaned up by poisoning the rats and covering the refuse with at least 2 feet of soil. The only alternative is to close the dump and obtain a new site, which could be properly operated." So the search began to find an alternative to this open-burning dump perched on the edge, literally, of what would eventually become the Monterey Bay Marine Sanctuary.

After years of complaints about odors, smoke, rats, and so on, and even after the City of Monterey leased the site in an attempt to improve the operation, residents of Seaside threatened to picket the Roberts dump if the state did not take action to close it. Fortunately, the local city and county officials had already taken the first steps to provide a regional solution to the area's solid waste disposal problems. On January 16, 1951, California State Assemblyman James Silliman of Salinas introduced a bill that would allow the formation of garbage and refuse disposal districts. Shortly after the bill became law on June 11, 1951, the Monterey County Board of Supervisors adopted a resolution forming the Monterey Peninsula Garbage and Refuse Disposal District, effective October 1, 1951. We did not become a waste management district until 1987.

Initially, the district boundaries only covered 75 mi.² At that time, the only incorporated cities in the district were Carmel, Monterey, and Pacific Grove. Over time the unincorporated areas of Del Rey Oaks, Seaside, and Sand City became cities and by law were allowed seats on the district board. Solid waste disposal was a prominent issue when these cities incorporated since the district board considered disposal sites, incinerators, and compost facilities within or near their borders. Some of the citizens who were most vehemently opposed wound up on the board after their cities were formed.

Less than a year after its first meeting, the board authorized the lease of the first district landfill for $500 per month. The 15-ac. site is located in the unincorporated area near what is now the Laguna Seca Race Track. The owner wanted to fill up his "gully" with garbage so that it would become more "valuable in the future." (Today there are several very expensive homes fairly close to the site, but none directly on the landfill itself.) Unfortunately, the owner would only lease the property on a year-to-year basis, making it necessary for the district to continue its search for a new long-term facility. Finally, in 1961, the board found the current landfill site 2 mi. north of Marina near the Salinas River.

The board began purchasing the 570-ac.-site parcel by parcel using accumulated reserves and revenues from property taxes, which were levied for the first time in the district's 10-year history. The process took five years, and the total bargain price was $389,000. By 1970 the operation was self-supporting with tipping fees, so property taxes were discontinued.

During the mid-'70s the district began drop-off recycling operations on the peninsula and cardboard baling on-site (metal salvaging had been going on all along). The district installed its first groundwater monitoring wells and began to consider recovery of landfill gas (LFG). The old scale house was expanded, and the board began meeting there. In 1979 I was hired as district manager.

My first, and perhaps greatest, accomplishment was to look at the proposed revised site master plan being prepared by EMCON and at our solid waste permit and ask the question, "Do we have a landfill height limit?" The answer was no, and so the proposed final elevation was increased from 150 ft. to 270 ft., and the site life went from 40 to 96 years. I thought that the golf capital of the world probably did not need another course but likely could use a ski slope.

After 30 years of suggestions that the district might want to expand its boundaries, the County Board of Supervisors voted to force the expansion by reorganizing the district to include most of our service area, a total of 853 mi.² In 1983 our first LFG engine went on-line. (We are currently making preparations for our fourth engine and third Jenbacher, which will increase our output to about 4 MW.) In 1985 we leased 10 ac. to an onsite composter. (Currently we lease about 75 ac. to composters and landscape products businesses that purchase greenwaste that we sort and grind at our material recovery facility [MRF].) In 1986 we held our first Toxic Waste Disposal Day and opened our permanent household hazardous waste (HHW) facility in 1987. (It was more cost-effective than holding one-day events.) In 1988 we installed our first Subtitle D composite liner, a few years before required by law. In 1989 the state passed the California Integrated Waste Management Act (AB 939), requiring all cities and counties to divert 50% of their solid waste from landfills by 2000. Waste management practices in the state would change forever. We even changed the name of our site to Monterey Regional Environmental Park.

In 1991 we opened the Last Chance Mercantile onsite resale store, which turned out to be the most popular of all district operations. We currently sell more than $300,000 worth of reusable stuff per year. In 1993 the district's "alter ego," the Monterey Regional Waste Management Authority, was formed by the district's seven member cities, but not the county. (In 1995 the Pebble Beach Community Services District also joined.) The purpose of the Joint Powers Agency (JPA) was to finance new facilities to help member cities meet the recycling requirements of AB 939, provide flow control of waste materials to district facilities, and provide a means of controlling the size of the landfill service area. The JPA enabled us to issue a total of $18 million in revenue bonds without a vote of district residents. The funds were used to remodel the "green" administration building and build a new LFG facility (our first engines were in trailers), permanent structures for the HHW operation and Last Chance Mercantile, and–perhaps most importantly–the new 100,000-ft.² MRF, which has made 40% onsite diversion possible. The MRF was named Steel Building of the Year by the Systems Builders Association in 1996. In that year the district contributed $250,000 to help clean up the old Roberts—Sand City dumpsite, which had become the biggest "bottle dig" in the area. In 1997 the Small Planet Garden opened for use as part of the school education program.

In 1998 the district received the first-ever Gold Excellence Award for Best Integrated Solid Waste Management System in North America from SWANA. In 1998 we held our first recycled-art contest. Another one was held in 2001 in conjunction with our 50^th anniversary celebration. In 1999 the California Resource Recovery Association gave the district an award for "Innovation in Government," and the California Waste Management Board gave us a "Trash Cutter" award. Now we are busy getting ready for the next 50 years. For more information, refer to the July/August 1999 issue of MSW Management or visit our Web site at www.mrwmd.org.

J. David Myers is general manager of the Monterey Regional Waste Management District in Monterey, CA, and a member of MSW Management's Editorial Advisory Board.