John Trotti

September 11, 2001, was a wakeup call for all of us to the realization of just how vulnerable we are to a vast array of threats we'd managed to ignore for decades. Smug in the seeming security of our isolation from the ills befalling the rest of the world - a vision made all the stronger by the collapse of the Soviet Union and the rapidity with which the coalition forces restored the independence of Kuwait in the wake of Iraq's takeover - we were rocked not merely by the violence of the terrorist attacks but by the seeming ease with which they were carried out.

Much has changed in America in the two intervening years, the consequences wending their way throughout the entire fabric of our society so that no part of it, no matter how tenuous the connection might seem, has remained untouched. Certainly this is true in the waste industry where many of the frontline impacts of the catastrophe were fielded, absorbed, and translated into operating plans and processes. Throughout the country, waste managers have had to face up to the unthinkable. "It can't happen here" has been replaced with the uncomfortable realization "It really can, and we have to be prepared."

Already we are seeing the effects of this new vision, not only in landfill operations but in how we accept, sort, and transfer waste. I think it fair to say we know more about the materials that pass through our hands today than ever before, and where we are in this now is a small step in what will no doubt prove to be a very long journey. Not only is the transition difficult and costly, but progress along these lines demands increased reliance on technologies heretofore considered too expensive for use in waste management systems. As we should expect, however, nothing is long that is not also broad.

One area in which we see a rapid advance of technology is in two-way data and voice communications coupled with GPS location systems. Long opposed by labor groups as a "big brother" scheme to play watchdog on truck crews, not only are these systems coming on-line in collection and transfer activities throughout the nation, they're also doing so with the support of drivers - particularly the most proficient - who receive validation of their expertise. The point here is that while motivation - and in certain cases the mandate - for these systems is rooted in security concerns, we might well find the result beneficial both operationally and economically, allowing us to improve system efficiencies through better and, what in some cases approaches, real-time scheduling.

The Rumbles of 2003

Even as the effects of the terrorist attacks continue to percolate, we received another vulnerability message in the guise of the great Northeast blackout of August 14, 2003. While experts continue to sift through data to determine "the cause," most of us sense that the issue is far broader in the emerging recognition that the North American power grid is sadly deficient and further that there is no quick fix in sight.

Here I'm jumping up on my soapbox to suggest that the energy policy of America - and in this I include even the most ambitious environmental groups and those who would have us go back to the good old days before there was pollution - is summed up in the all-but-universal assumption that when you flick the switch, the lights, the TV, or the boom box darned well better go on. "Forget the slogans. Forget the rhetoric. Forget high-flying principles. Just get the things I've come to rely on to work."

So what does this mean for us? As citizens it means that we're going to have to find ways to shave our energy needs and look for offsets for the remaining demand. As waste managers controlling materials that one way or another can significantly affect the energy balance equation, should we be less responsive? I think not.

Within every decision there are several dimensions that should be considered, chief among them (to me at least) are economics, societal values, environmental concerns, and sustainability. Determining the highest and best use of the different materials that come into our possession via various wastestreams is no simple matter, particularly when we have little to guide us other than our own best judgment. Because most of the regulations that govern our activities come via the United States Environmental Protection Agency and its offspring, over the past few years we've tended to establish our goals and objectives on environmentally rooted principles, leaving other concerns to fall into line as best they can. But now we face - and I believe it is an opportunity rather than a flat challenge - the need to focus increased attention on societal goals and sustainability, particularly in the area of energy.

The administration's National Energy Policy (NEP), promulgated in May 2001, set goals in a number of areas, among them an increase in distributed energy resources (DER) and development of renewable-energy programs and resources. At the moment several states offer incentives for renewable-energy projects and resource development, and as the NEP gains momentum, it seems reasonable to expect other states to come onboard as well. Because of the shared bond between renewable energy and DER, waste managers have an opportunity to share in the success of the NEP by dedicating a portion of their wastestreams into fuel for these off-grid systems. For most of us, this will require new ways of thinking and a realignment of priorities. Perhaps the way we've been doing things will still be best, but a little reality check can never hurt.

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MSW - November/December 2003