Materials Management Survey (States & Territories)

DRAFT: Final version in electronic system will include Control Number, Exp. Date, and PRA Burden Statement.

Instructions

This online survey will establish information collection from states and territories about their annual disposal, recycling, and recovery of materials such as recyclables, organics including food waste and yard trimmings, electronics, batteries and construction and demolition waste. Questions will focus on the materials collection programs and processing infrastructure within municipalities/communities such as source-separated organic food waste collection.

Please respond to every question in the survey that applies to your state or territory. Responses are voluntary and expected to take approximately 1 and a half hours.

The results from the survey will establish trends across the country and help determine gaps in infrastructure. Responses will be made publicly available.

This collection of information is approved by OMB under the Paperwork Reduction Act, 44 U.S.C. 3501 et seq. OMB Control Number: {xxxx-xxxx}.

Overview of Question Sections

BACKGROUND

PART A Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) Materials Data

PART B Access to Residential MSW and Recycling Collection

PART C MSW Management Activities

PART D Economic Information

PART E Litter Prevention and Other MSW Management

PART F Construction and Demolition Waste + Non-Hazardous Waste

PART G Workbook Upload

BACKGROUND

This section includes questions about the status of your state or territory’s solid waste reporting, including frequency, units, and formats for data collection.

1. Please indicate whether you are responding on behalf of your state or territory. Select one.

   1. State

   2. Territory

2. Please indicate the frequency of solid waste data collection or estimation in your state or territory. Select one.

   1. More than once a year

   2. Once a year

   3. Every other year

   4. Every five years

   5. Less frequently than every five years

   6. We do not collect MSW data or make any estimations

3. When was the last time your jurisdiction’s Solid Waste Management Plan or Waste Characterization Report was updated? If the plan/report hasn’t been updated since its creation, please input its creation date. Response a. formatted as date input.

   1. ___________

   2. My jurisdiction does not have a Solid Waste Management Plan or Waste Characterization Report.

PART A Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) Materials Data

This part of the survey is designed to collect data from your jurisdiction about the municipal solid waste (MSW) data you collect or estimate for your jurisdiction.

EPA defines MSW as post-consumer residential, commercial, institutional, and public wastes, and non-process industrial wastes (e.g., front office wastes). MSW materials include electronics, glass, metals, food and yard wastes, paper, plastics, textiles, tires, wood, and food-derived fats, oils, and grease.

This part of the survey includes construction and demolition debris which are collected alongside MSW waste. Although construction and demolition (C&D) waste is not often part of MSW, often small amounts of C&D waste, e.g. from home DIY projects, are collected at curbside or dropped off. Respondents should complete this part of the survey based on the fraction of C&D waste collected and tracked with MSW in their jurisdictions. Questions on C&D waste collected separately are addressed in PART F.

The following questions ask about the generation, disposal, and recycling or recovery of MSW materials by weight tracked by your state or territory.

4. Please indicate the categories of MSW materials for which your state or territory collects generation data. Select all that apply.

   1. Total MSW

   2. Plastics

   3. Glass

   4. Paper

   5. Metals

   6. Organics

   7. Tires

   8. Construction & Demolition Debris found with MSW materials

   9. Other materials (please specify) ___________________________

   10. My jurisdiction does not collect any generation data.

5. In the accompanying MS Excel Workbook named “Survey Data Inputs” on the ‘PART A Materials MSW Data’ tab, please list the annual weight (in short tons, or 2000 lbs/ton) for each MSW material that has been generated and disposed, recycled or recovered in your jurisdiction. The total weight disposed, recycled or recovered is requested as well as, if tracked, the split between residential and commercial waste. In addition, please list the annual weight for each MSW material that is imported or exported from your jurisdiction.

Recycling/recovery weights should be the weight of material processed by a facility/pathway type and therefore, should not estimate for contamination. (e.g. if 100 tons of material is processed and 20 tons is contamination, meaning 80 tons of recycled material is produced at the end of the process, please enter the initial 100 tons). If your jurisdiction does not track or gather disposal, recycling, or recovery data on any of the material types, please leave the relevant row(s) blank. Please round up or down to the nearest whole number.

Note, the workbook will be required in PART C and PART F of this survey too; an upload link for the completed workbook will be shared at the end of this survey.

6. Does your jurisdiction have any Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) policies for MSW materials?

   1. Yes, my jurisdiction currently has one or more EPR policies.

   2. Yes, my jurisdiction currently has one or more EPR policies and is actively considering other, new EPR policies.

   3. No, my jurisdiction does not yet have an EPR policy but is actively considering an EPR policy.

   4. No, my jurisdiction previously considered an EPR policy, and ultimately determined not to adopt it.

   5. No, my jurisdiction has not considered and is not currently considering any new EPR policy.

7. [If 6a or 6b selected] Please list what MSW materials are covered under EPR policies in your jurisdiction. fill in the blank _________________________________________

8. [If 6b or 6c selected] Please provide more information on what new EPR policies you are considering: fill in the blank _________________________________________

PART B Access to Residential MSW and Recycling Collection

This section focuses on access to residential MSW management, recycling, and composting programs and infrastructure, including curbside and drop-off collection. EPA defines collection as private hauler or government entity-supported curbside collection, via transfer stations, on-site collection, drop-off centers, take-back locations, stewardship programs and/or scrap yards. There are two primary types of collection programs, automation and subscription-based. The questions in this section ask about proportion of households with access as a way to normalize across reporting from multiple jurisdictions with a wide variety of programs.

9. Does your state or territory collect data on residential access to the following types of collection programs? Check all that apply.

   1. MSW collection

   2. Recycling collection

   3. Food waste (including compostable packaging) collection

   4. Yard waste collection

   5. Electronics collection

   6. Batteries collection

   7. Textiles collection

   8. None of the above à Skip to Q22

10. Please fill in the proportion of households in your jurisdiction with access to residential curbside MSW collection programs. Please round up or down to the nearest whole number. Fill in the blank with data validation for whole number.

___________________ % households

11. Please fill in the proportion of households in your jurisdiction with access to residential curbside recycling collection programs. Please round up or down to the nearest whole number. Fill in the blank with data validation for whole number.

___________________ % households

12. Please fill in the proportion of households in your jurisdiction with access to residential curbside food waste (including compostable packaging) collection programs. Please round up or down to the nearest whole number. Fill in the blank with data validation for whole number.

___________________ % households

13. Please fill in the proportion of households in your jurisdiction with access to residential curbside yard waste collection programs. Please round up or down to the nearest whole number. Fill in the blank with data validation for whole number.

___________________ % households

14. Please fill in the proportion of households in your jurisdiction with access to residential drop-off MSW collection programs (i.e., individuals bring their MSW to a transfer station or other drop-off center). Please round up or down to the nearest whole number. Fill in the blank with data validation for whole number.

___________________ % households

15. Please fill in the proportion of households in your jurisdiction with access to residential drop-off recycling collection programs. Please round up or down to the nearest whole number. Fill in the blank with data validation for whole number.

___________________ % households

16. Please fill in the proportion of households in your jurisdiction with access to residential drop-off food waste (including compostable packaging) collection programs. Please round up or down to the nearest whole number. Fill in the blank with data validation for whole number.

___________________ % households

17. Please fill in the proportion of households in your jurisdiction with access to residential drop-off yard waste collection programs. Please round up or down to the nearest whole number. Fill in the blank with data validation for whole number.

___________________ % households

18. Please fill in the number of electronics collection sites in your jurisdiction. Drop-down menu with data validation for whole number. Top option to say “my jurisdiction does not collect data on the number of electronics collection sites.

___________________ sites à if “does not collect”, skip to Q23

19. Please fill in the total weight (in short tons) of electronics collected annually in your jurisdiction. Drop-down menu with data validation for whole number. ___________________ tons

20. Please fill in the number of batteries collection sites in your jurisdiction. Drop-down menu with data validation for whole number. Top option to say “my jurisdiction does not collect data on the number of batteries collection sites.

___________________ sites à if “does not collect”, skip to Q25

21. Please fill in the total weight (in short tons) of batteries collected annually in your jurisdiction.

Drop-down menu with data validation for whole number.

___________________ tons

22. Does your jurisdiction have Pay as You Throw programs?

    1. Yes

    2. No

PART C MSW Management Activities

This section is about public (e.g. municipal) and private (including NGOs and waste collection companies) waste management activities in your jurisdiction, including the following:

Anaerobic digestion/co-digestion: The process by which microorganisms break down organic materials, such as food scraps, grease, and wastewater solids in the absence of oxygen. This process produces biogas, a renewable energy source, as well as digestate or biosolids, residual materials that can be treated and used in beneficial applications. Co-digestion is the simultaneous anaerobic digestion of multiple organic materials in one digester, such as food with manure. (Recycling Measurement Guide 2024)

Animal feed: The diversion of food from the food supply chain (directly or after processing) to animals. (Recycling Measurement Guide 2024)

Bio-based materials/Biochemical processing: The conversion of organic material into new products. Examples include creating fibers for packaging material, creating bioplastics (e.g., polylactic acid) and rendering fats, oils and grease into a raw material to make products such as soaps, biodiesel or cosmetics. “Biochemical processing” does not refer to anaerobic digestion or production of bioethanol through fermentation. (Recycling Measurement Guide 2024)

Composting: The managed, aerobic (oxygen-required) biological decomposition of organic (carbon-based) materials by microorganisms. (Recycling Measurement Guide 2024)

Landfill: Well-engineered and managed facilities for the disposal of solid waste. Municipal Solid Waste Landfills are specifically designed to receive household waste, as well as other types of nonhazardous wastes. (Recycling Measurement Guide 2024)

Waste-to-energy: The conversion of waste materials into usable heat, electricity, or fuel through a variety of processes, such as combustion, gasification, pyrolization, and landfill gas recovery. It could also involve confined and controlled burning, known as combustion, that recovers energy from the waste burning process. (Recycling Measurement Guide 2024)

Pyrolysis: is an endothermic process that uses heat to thermally decompose carbon-based material in the absence of oxygen to produce oils, chemical precursors, and char products (i.e., carbon black). (EPA, 2012)

Chemical and Thermal Processing: Chemical and Thermal Processing refers to several different chemical, thermal, and/or catalytic technologies including dissolution, purification, enzymatic depolymerization, glycolysis, pyrolysis, and gasification that purify or break down plastic. The thermal processes range from thermal decomposition in an environment absence of oxygen (commonly referred to as pyrolysis) to a gasification process in an oxygen-starved environment. (U.S. EPA, 2012)

Beneficial Use: Beneficial use (BU) involves the substitution of an industrial non-hazardous secondary material, either as is or following additional processing, for some or all of the virgin materials in a natural or commercial product in a way that: provides a functional benefit, meets product specifications, and does not pose concerns to human health or the environment. Examples include coal fly ash used as a replacement for Portland cement in concrete, flue gas desulfurization gypsum as a substitute for mined gypsum in wallboard, and spent foundry sands used in soil-related applications, such as manufactured soil and road subbase. (U.S. EPA, 2023)

23. Please indicate the types of public and/or private waste management facilities/pathway types for on which you track solid waste processing data in your jurisdiction. Select one for each category. Program with radio buttons – allow one response only per row.

Facility/Pathway Type	Private only	Public only	Both
Mechanical Recycling
Composting
Anaerobic digestion/co-digestion of food waste
Animal feed processing
Bio-based materials/biochemical processing (rendering used fats, cooking oils, and greases)
MSW landfills (not C&D waste landfills)
Landfill cover (e.g., crushed glass for alternative daily cover)
Land application
Waste-to-energy (Incineration or Combustion with energy recovery)
Incineration or Combustion without energy recovery
Chemical and Thermal Processing of plastic waste
Beneficial use of MSW (e.g., landfill gas, crushed glass in asphalt pavement)
Sewer/wastewater treatment
My jurisdiction does not track solid waste processing.

24. In the accompanying MS Excel Workbook named “Survey Data Inputs” on the ‘PART C Waste Management’ tab, please list the annual weight of materials processed (in short tons, or 2,000 lbs/ton) via each pathway/facility type. In the ‘Total MSW’ column enter the sum of all MSW processed via the pathway/facility type. Fill in numeric value in spreadsheet – allow decimal number validation programming.

Recycling/recovery weights should be the weight of material processed by a facility/pathway type and therefore, should not estimate for contamination (e.g. if 100 tons of material is processed and 20 tons is contamination meaning 80 tons of recycled material is produced at the end of the process, please enter the initial 100 tons). If your jurisdiction does not track or gather processing data for any of the pathways/facility types or materials, please leave the relevant row(s) blank. Please round up or down to the nearest whole number.

Note, the workbook will be required in PART F of this survey too; an upload link for the completed workbook will be shared at the end of this survey.

25. Please fill in the average tipping/processing fee $/short ton charge for each facility/ pathway type. If your jurisdiction does not track or gather tipping fee data for any of the facility types, please leave the relevant row(s) blank. Please round up or down to the nearest whole number. Note the last facility type listed, ‘Construction and demolition landfills’, relates to construction and demolition waste as opposed to MSW. Fill in numeric value – allow decimal number validation programming.

Facility/Pathway Type	Average tipping/processing fee $/short ton
Mechanical Recycling
Composting
Anaerobic digestion/co-digestion of food waste
Bio-based materials/biochemical processing (rendering used fats, cooking oils, and greases)
MSW Landfills (not C&D waste landfills)
Other industrial or non-hazardous landfills
Waste-to-energy (Incineration or Combustion with energy recovery)
Incineration or Combustion without energy recovery
Chemical and Thermal Processing of plastic waste
Construction and demolition landfills
My jurisdiction does not collect tipping fee information.

26. Does your jurisdiction track data on materials collected for recycling (including organic materials) which are diverted to landfills due to contamination?

    1. Yes

    2. No

27. [If yes to Q26] What proportion of inbound materials are diverted from recycling/recovery facilities to landfills or incinerators due to contamination? Please round up or down to the nearest whole number. Fill in response _______________________%

28. [If yes to Q26] By weight, what are the top five materials that contaminate your inbound MSW recycling stream? Fill in response – text.

1._______________________

2._______________________

3._______________________

4._______________________

5._______________________

PART D Economic Information

This section is about economic information, such as funding, fees, revenues, and budget allocation to different solid waste management activities in your jurisdiction. For all questions, please provide responses for the last calendar year.

29. What was the annual budget to implement your jurisdiction’s solid waste management program? Fill in numeric value – allow decimal number validation programming.

_________________($)

30. What was the annual budget to implement your jurisdiction’s recycling, sustainable materials management, circular economy and waste minimization activities? Fill in numeric value – allow decimal number validation programming.

_________________($)

31. What percentage of the total solid waste management program budget goes toward public education and outreach? Do not include any funding received through EPA’s Solid Waste Infrastructure for Recycling Program or Recycling Education and Outreach Program in the percentage. Please round up or down to the nearest whole number. Fill in numeric value.

_________________%

32. What was the total number of employees in full-time equivalent (FTE) working on solid waste management in your jurisdiction? This value should include all solid waste management workers including those working on recycling, sustainable materials management, circular economy, and waste minimization activities. Please round up or down to the nearest whole number. Fill in numeric value.

________________ FTE

33. What was the total MSW program revenue ($) collected in your jurisdiction? Fill in numeric value – allow decimal number validation programming.

    1. _________________($)

    2. No revenue collected

    3. No data collected

PART E Litter Prevention and Other MSW Management

This section is about litter prevention and collection, as well as other miscellaneous MSW management activities, including textiles collection, food donation, natural disaster debris, household hazardous waste, and organics collections.

Litter Collection (including litter from public places)

34. Does your jurisdiction have litter prevention education programs?

    1. Yes

    2. No

35. Does your jurisdiction have a litter collection program?

    1. Yes

    2. No

36. Does your jurisdiction track data on litter collection (e.g., location, amount)?

    1. Yes

    2. No

37. [If yes to Q36] Please describe the type of data tracked and the frequency. Fill in response _______________________

38. Who is responsible for litter collection in your jurisdiction? Select all that apply.

    1. Municipal solid waste program

    2. Private haulers

    3. Department of Transportation (or similar entity)

    4. Department of Corrections

    5. Watershed management program

    6. Other (please describe)________________________________

39. Do you know the contents of the litter (e.g., have you done a waste audit)?

    1. Yes

    2. No

40. Does your jurisdiction recycle any of the material collected as litter?

    1. Yes

    2. No

Food Donation

41. Does your jurisdiction track data on food donation?

    1. Yes

    2. No

42. [If yes to Q41] Please describe the type of data tracked and the frequency. Fill in response _______________________

Textile Collection

43. Does your jurisdiction track data on textile collection for recycling?

    1. Yes

    2. No

44. [If yes to Q43] Please describe the type of data tracked and the frequency. Fill in response _______________________

Ad Hoc Collections

45. Please fill in the proportion of households in your jurisdiction with access to residential ad hoc collection of materials (e.g. electronics, batteries, or bulky items such as furniture and mattresses). Please round up or down to the nearest whole number. Fill in the blank with data validation for whole number.

___________________ % households

46. Please also list what materials are collected by ad hoc collections at curbside: Fill in the blank – text.

1. ___________________

2. ___________________

3. ___________________

Disaster Debris Collections

47. Does your jurisdiction have commercial or residential natural disaster debris removal for recovery and recycling?

1. Commercial

2. Residential

3. Both commercial and residential

4. Neither

48. [If yes to Q45] Please describe the type of data tracked and the frequency. Fill in response _______________________

Household Hazardous Waste

49. Please list the annual weight in short tons (2,000 lbs) of household hazardous waste materials generated and recycled or recovered in your jurisdiction. If your jurisdiction does not track or gather generation or recycling data on any of these material types, please leave the relevant row(s) blank. Please round up or down to the nearest whole number. Fill-in-the-blank autofill/dropdown, data validation = nearest whole number.

Household Hazardous Waste Material Type	Total Generation (short tons)	Total recycling/recovery (short tons)
Paint
Used Oil
Oil Filters
Pharmaceuticals
Solvents
Corrosives
Flammables
Fluorescent tubes
Pesticides
One-Pound Propane Gas Cylinders
Remainder/Composite Household Hazardous

Organic Waste Collection Uptake

50. Please fill in the proportion of households in your jurisdiction with access to residential drop-off food waste (including compostable packaging) collection that uptake/use the programs. Please round up or down to the nearest whole number. Fill in the blank with data validation for whole number.

___________________ % households

51. Please fill in the proportion of households in your jurisdiction with access to residential curbside recycling collection that uptake/use the programs. Please round up or down to the nearest whole number. Fill in the blank with data validation for whole number.

___________________ % households

PART F Construction and Demolition Waste + Non-Hazardous Waste

This section is about the generation and management of construction and demolition (C&D) waste, as well as non-hazardous waste, in your jurisdiction. Materials included in C&D waste include steel, wood products, drywall and plaster, brick and clay tile, asphalt shingles, concrete, and asphalt concrete. These materials are used in buildings, roads and bridges, and other sectors. This type of waste is collected separately from MSW.

52. Please indicate the categories of Construction and Demolition Waste materials for which your state or territory collects separate generation, disposal, recycling, or recovery data. Select all that apply.

    1. Concrete

    2. Asphalt Paving

    3. Rock & Soil

    4. Asphalt Roofing

    5. Gypsum Board

    6. Carpet

    7. C&D Wood

    8. C&D Metals

    9. Remainder Inerts

53. In the accompanying MS Excel Workbook named “Survey Data Inputs” on the ‘PART F C&D + Non-Haz Waste’ tab, please list the annual weight for Construction and Demolition (C&D) Waste and Other Industrial or Non-Hazardous Waste (in short tons, or 2000 lbs/ton) that has been generated and disposed, recycled or recovered in your jurisdiction. In addition, please list the annual weight that is imported or exported from your jurisdiction.

Recycling/recovery weights should be the weight of material processed by a facility/pathway type and therefore, should not estimate for contamination. (e.g. if 100 tons of material is processed and 20 tons is contamination, meaning 80 tons of recycled material is produced at the end of the process, please enter the initial 100 tons). If your jurisdiction does not track or gather disposal, recycling, or recovery data on any of the material types, please leave the relevant row(s) blank. Please round up or down to the nearest whole number.

Note, an upload link for the completed workbook will be shared at the end of this survey.

Non-hazardous Waste

54. Please list the annual weight in short tons (2,000 lbs) of non-hazardous waste materials generated and recycled or recovered in your jurisdiction. If your jurisdiction does not track or gather generation or recycling data on any of these material types, please leave the relevant row(s) blank. Please round up or down to the nearest whole number. Fill-in-the-blank autofill/dropdown, data validation = nearest whole number.

Non-hazardous Waste Material Type	Total Generation (short tons)	Total recycling/recovery (short tons)
CCRs (including fly ash)
Foundry Sand

PART G Workbook Upload

Please upload the completed MS Excel Workbook named “Survey Data Inputs” used in PART A, PART C and PART F of this survey.

In addition, if there is any more information related to MSW management in your jurisdiction you would like to upload as part of this survey exercise, please do so here.

Thank you for taking the time to complete this survey.