Recycling Program Cost Estimation Tool

GOALS & OBJECTIVES

Economic Feasibility of Recycling

Funded by the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (NYSDEC) through the Environmental Protection Fund, this project aims to provide municipalities with a modular, user-friendly tool for use in calculating costs associated with waste collection systems.”

The resulting tool, the User-Friendly Recycling Model (UFRM), is designed for both single and dual-stream collection programs. By inputting current data, UFRM generates overall costs and cost-per-ton values, enabling decision-makers to visualize the financial implications of their waste collection systems. Users can compare scenarios in real time, seeing exactly how adding or subtracting materials changes the bottom line, to ensure system optimization and smarter expansion strategies.

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RESEARCH TASKS

User-Friendly Recycling Model (UFRM)

1

Single-Stream

Compare the economic viability of single-stream recycling versus standard waste disposal.

Note: Microsoft Excel Macros must be enabled to run this tool.

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Dual-Stream

Compare the economic viability of dual-stream recycling versus standard waste disposal.

Note: Microsoft Excel Macros must be enabled to run this tool.

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2 DISCLAIMER

The UFRM is only intended to be used as a tool for municipalities and planning units to analyze system-wide costs associated with their waste stream. It does not justify the presence of economic markets and cannot be used to exclude recyclable or reusable materials from collection and processing.