| Over
500 Responses to Rivanna Solid Waste Authority’s
Online Survey
(Rivanna Solid Waste Authority,
Virginia)
 During
the strategic planning process, GBB conducted a critical
review of the RSWA’s services and facilities;
personally interviewed more than 50 community stakeholders;
held discussions with the RSWA Citizens Advisory Committee;
and conducted data and document review, a detailed
technical evaluation, and benchmarking with five communities
that are similar in one or more ways to the Charlottesville
area. GBB also developed a public opinion survey asking
residents to provide their suggestions for improvements
to current facilities and services. |
Residents of Charlottesville
and Albemarle County, Virginia, have spoken: They want more
opportunities to recycle and they are eager to have a more
sustainable solid waste management system, even if it means
paying more each month.
 These
sentiments were one finding of a six-month strategic planning
process undertaken by GBB for the Rivanna Solid Waste Authority
(RSWA). The RSWA asked GBB to examine solid waste and recycling
services in the RSWA service area and explore improvements
to the Authority's facilities and services that the public
will support. Joining GBB for this project is Virginia-based
Draper Aden Associates.
The objective of the process
is to reach consensus among residents and elected officials
on a viable solid waste management system that better serves
the needs of residents of the City of Charlottesville, Albemarle
County, and the Town of Scottsville, as well as the students
and faculty of the University of Virginia and other institutions
and businesses within the community.
A key question was: What
kinds of changes would the community support?
To find out, GBB held more
than 50 individual meetings with public officials, community
leaders, business executives and solid waste officials. In
addition, the company organized two community meetings in
November and December 2007, and conducted two online surveys.
Based on GBB’s in-depth assessment of facilities and
services operated by RSWA and benchmarking with similar communities
around the country, GBB presented five possible scenarios
for consideration by the community. These ranged from simply
improving current facilities to a fully sustainable option
with expanded recycling, a materials recovery facility and
a facility that would burn non-recyclable solid waste materials
for fuel or electricity. The surveys asked residents for
their opinions of current facilities as well as their preferences
among the five scenarios for the future.
RSWA received over 570 survey
responses,which provided valuable input forthe draft strategic
plan, currently under review by officials of the RSWA service
area. “It’s quite simple to summarize the feedback
we received during the community meetings and via the online
survey,”
said Harvey Gershman, GBB president. “The
message was loud and clear: do more, spending as little as
possible. Residents want to develop a new transfer station,
provide curbside recyclables collection to residences and
businesses in urban areas, and build a new MRF for recyclables
and C&D material. As this is done, they want to start
exploring further the next step: a refuse derived fuel or
waste-to-energy facility for a sustainable system that could
yield up to 93% diversion.”
Videos of both public meetings,
a PDF of the presentation made during public meetings, and
a link to the RSWA website are available below:
Video
of December 4 Community Meeting »
Video
of November 15 Community Meeting »
Community
Meeting Presentation (PDF) »
RSWA
Press Release (PDF) »
RSWA
Strategic Plan Information Website » |
