introduction a guiding principle of community based … guiding principle of community based social...

CommercialRecyclingBarriers&BenefitsReportRFP17-116 October10,2017

This report was made possible by a grant from the Nebraska Department of Environmental Quality. It was published by the City of Lincoln and prepared by Carson+Co Global and Verdis Group.

Introduction A guiding principle of Community Based Social Marketing (CBSM) is its focus on a specific and unique behavior one wishes to elicit. A key, specific desired behavioral outcome of the Recycle Lincoln campaign is for businesses to recycle more through available recycling services. It is critical to understand the benefits associated with the desired behavior as well as the barriers that currently prevent businesses from engaging in it. The intention of the survey was to gather information on Lincoln companies’ cultural attitude towards and participation in recycling, awareness of the corrugated cardboard ban, barriers and benefits, return-on-investments and awareness of the $750 rebate program. Commercial Sector Survey Design and Dissemination The barrier/benefit research phase of this program was supported by an online survey. The survey was designed using Survey Monkey and was mindful of survey respondents time. It was comprised of eleven questions data collection (Appendix A). We developed a master list of survey respondents, focusing on target commercial sectors identified in the City of Lincoln’s original Request for Proposal (RFP). Respondents were pursued in five ways:

1. Direct email to businesses identified through target sector research 2. Email to Nebraska Recycling Council membership (Lancaster County-based companies only) 3. Ad in Chamber of Commerce weekly e-newsletter 4. Social media posts (Carson+Co Global Facebook, Turbine Flats Slack, Verdis Group Facebook, etc.) 5. Active survey link supplied to survey respondents and encouragement to share with colleagues

Examples of commercial survey ads on Twitter (left) and an e-newsletter (right).

Overarching benefits, barriers, recycling practices, etc. are provided below, followed by sector highlights on four business sectors: multi-family housing, food services (restaurants, bars, etc.), manufacturing, and residential & commercial construction. Compensation Survey respondents were compensated in two ways. They could voluntarily enter into a drawing for one of two $100 Visa Gift Cards (voluntary entry available at end of survey). Respondents were also provided the


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opportunity to receive information about various programs and/or request assistance in setting up a recycling program. Survey Respondent Demographics A total of 145 surveys were completed. All survey respondents represented businesses located in Lincoln or Lancaster County. The top five business sectors represented in the survey are Multi-family housing (13.8%), Residential and Commercial Construction (11.8%), Manufacturing (8.3%), Non-profit, Religious and Community Organizations (7.8%) and Food Services (7.8%). A total of twenty-five business sectors are represented in the sample. Three targeted sectors were not represented: Auto & Truck Repair, Health Services and Transportation.

Most of the survey respondents represented smaller businesses (1-10 full-time employees), however a variety of business sizes participated, with some companies having three hundred or more employees.

Residential&CommercialConstruction,11.72%

Manufacturing,8.28%

Nonprofit,Religious&Community,

7.59%

FoodServices,7.59%

Retail&WholesaleTrade,6.90%

FinancialActivities,6.21%

Legal,Insurance&Consulting,6.21%

EducationalInstitution,5.52%

Waste&RecyclingServices,4.83%

Marketing&Publishing,4.14%

Government,2.76%Distribution&Warehousing,2.07%

Multi-tenantCommercialBuilding,2.07%

Utilities,2.07%

InformationTechnology,1.38%

Coworkingfacility,1.38%

Hospitality,0.69%

SoleProprietor/Freelance,0.69%

AgriculturalProcessing,0.69%

PaintingCompany,0.69%

AircraftMaintenance,0.69%

Cemetery,0.69%Landlord:Singlefamilyhousing,

0.69%Warehousestorageunits,0.69%

Multi-familyhousing,13.79%

Other,8.28%

BusinessSector

45.52%

24.14%

6.90% 11.72% 11.72%

1-10 11-50 51-100 100-300 301+

Number of FTE Employees n = 145

n = 145


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Recycling as a Social Norm The majority of survey respondents (97.2%) agreed that recycling is important. Only 4 respondents disagreed with this statement.

“Recycling is important.” Yes No 97.2% (n = 141) 2.8% (n = 4) 2018 cardboard ban Aware Unaware 85.5% (n = 124) 14.5% (n = 21) Business compliance Prepared Unprepared 82.1% (n = 119) 17.9% (n = 26) Recycling Program In Place Not in place 83.5% (n = 121) 16.5% (n = 24)

Top Waste Stream Materials Survey respondents were asked, “What would you say are the top three materials (by volume) that end up in your company’s waste stream? (Choose 3).” The five waste materials reported by most companies include cardboard (corrugated cardboard and paperboard), paper, packaging and shipping materials, food waste and plastics.

60.0% 57.2%

35.2% 31.0% 31.0% 26.9% 16.6%

10.3% 10.3% 6.2% 6.9%

Top 3 Waste Stream Materials by Volume

n = 145

n = 145


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Survey respondents reported a number of perceived barriers. Thirteen businesses reported no barriers to recycling. The most frequent barriers to recycling included lack of space for bins, effectiveness and time required to train employees and get their buy-in, cost of recycling services, staff time lost dedicated for recycling and the cost/availability of recycling containers.

A unique barrier reported was by two respondents outside the city limits but within Lancaster Co.: “Outside the three-mile city limit in Lancaster County there are no stations available to accept cardboard,” and “…We are on our own.” An apartment owner reported a proactive step for educating tenants: “I have updated my leases with a section regarding the tenants’ responsibility to properly recycle materials found on the city's website. I also added a calendar reminder to write my tenants a letter regarding recyclable materials and the addition of cardboard as a recyclable (just as tires and other materials are) a week from April 1, 2018.” The Unaware, Unprepared and ‘Unrecycling’ Business Sectors A variety of business sectors reported that they were unaware of the 2018 corrugated cardboard ban, felt unprepared to comply with the ban and reporting having no recycling program in place. Twenty-six respondents (17.9%) reported that they do not feel their business is ready to comply with the corrugated cardboard ban. These businesses fell within the sectors listed below. Four business sectors appeared in all three categories: Food services (restaurant, bar, etc.), Manufacturing, Multi-family housing, and Residential & Commercial

65

54 53

35 3225

134 3 3 2 1

Key barriers to recycling

n = 131


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Construction. The majority of survey respondents reported that they are ready to comply. Businesses reporting that they are prepared to comply belonged to the following sectors: Ag Processing (1), Business Services (1), Religious Organizations (3), Co-working (2), Community action (2), Agency (2), Consulting (4), Distribution/Warehousing (3), Educational Institution (7), Financial Activities (9), Food, Restaurant, Bar, etc. (5), Government (4), Hospitality/ Hotel (1), Information Technology (2), Insurance (1), Legal Services (4), Manufacturing (10), Marketing/Advertising (3), Multi-family housing (12), Multi-tenant Commercial Building (2), Multiple single-family houses (1), News Publishing (1), Non-Profit (5), Painting Company (1), Real Estate (n1), Residential and Commercial Construction (13), Retail & Wholesale Trade (9), Sole Proprietor / Freelance (1), Utilities (3), Warehouse Storage Units (1), Waste and Recycling (7).

Unaware of Corrugated Cardboard Ban (22)

Unprepared to Comply with Ban (26) No Recycling Program in Place (24)

Multi-family housing (4) Food, Restaurant, Bar (3)

Retail & Wholesale Trade (3) Educational Institution (2)

Consulting Services (1) Distribution & Warehousing (1)

Legal Services (1) Manufacturing (1)

Marketing/Advertising (1) News & Publishing (1)

Religious Organization (1) Res. & Com. Construction (1)

Sole Proprietor / Freelance (1) Utilities (1)


Res. & Com. Construction (4) Manufacturing (2)

Aircraft Maintenance (1) Cemetery (1)

Multi-tenant Com. Building (1) Non-profit Organization (1) Retail & Wholesale Trade (1)


Manufacturing (2) Cemetery (1)

Consulting (1) Multi-tenant Com. Building (1)

Non-profit Organization (1) Res. & Com. Construction (1)

Utilities (1)

Materials Recycled and Considered for Recycling by Lincoln Businesses Survey respondents reported recycling a variety of materials for which corrugated cardboard and paperboard were the top two most recycled items. Recalling that 121 companies reported that they have a recycling program in place, survey respondents were asked “If your company currently has a recycling program, what materials are recycled?”


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Recalling that 24 companies reported that they have no recycling program in place, survey respondents were asked “If your company does not have a recycling program, which materials would you consider recycling?” This question captured responses from respondents with recycling programs in place.

99 98 95

80 80

60

41

27 26 2618 15 13 10

3 2 2 1 1 1 1 10

20

40

60

80

100

Materials Currently Recycled

n = 111

90 89 8781 80

71 68

5649 49

40 4034

25

134 3 2

Recyclables materials considered

n = 128


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Overcoming Barriers Survey respondents were asked, “What do you think would help your company start (or increase) recycling?” Additional suggestions were proposed beyond the 6 response choices.

Factors that might initiate or increase recycling (no. of votes) Employee education and engagement (58) Placement of additional recycling bins on site (45) Financial assistance to set up program (35) None of the above (20) On-site advising on how to set up a recycling program (19) Increased staffing to service recycling containers (13) More space for recycling bins (2) Increased number and cleanliness of recycling drop off sites (2) Free recycling pickup/recycling rebate (2) Increased availability of services (2) Prevent dumping (1) Educational materials (1) Improved signage (1) Recycling bins for construction debris (1)

Benefits of Recycling for Lincoln businesses Survey respondents were asked, “What benefits does (might) your company get from recycling?” Additional suggestions were proposed beyond the 7 response choices.

Benefits of recycling (no. of votes) It’s the right thing to do. (117) We help protect the environment. (108) Our employees appreciate it. (73) It enhances our company’s reputation. (70) Our customers asked for it. (23) Our competitors have recycling programs. (10) Save on disposal costs and earn additional revenue. (3) Income from recycling commodities (2) Educating future citizens about the importance of recycling. (1) None. (8)


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Sector Highlight: Multi-family housing A total of twenty multi-family housing businesses participated in the survey, with varied response rates per question. In general, most multi-family housing survey respondents agree that recycling is important but only 60% of respondents feel they are ready to comply with the ban and even fewer (40%) have a recycling program in place.

17

3

16

4

12

8 8

12

RecyclingImportance,Banawareness,PreparednessandProgramsinPlace

Those businesses that reported they are prepared to comply with the ban are already recycling and reported the following comments:

“I have updated my leases with a section regarding the tenants’ responsibility to properly recycle materials found on the city's website. I also added a calendar reminder to write my tenants a letter regarding recyclable materials and the addition of cardboard as a recyclable (just as tires and other materials are) a week from April 1, 2018.”

“We recycle cardboard now.” Even businesses that have a recycling program in place reported that they feel unprepared for the ban. The following comments were shared:

“It will be nearly impossible to monitor.” “Even with recycle bins right next to garbage dumpster some tenants continue to throw recyclables into

dumpster rather than in recycling bins. When asked why, the response is ..."I just didn't think about it" “No way to monitor who uses our trash services at 20 different locations either during or outside of business

hours. “ “We haven't figured out yet 1) locations for waste containers, 2) number of waste containers at each of our

duplex properties 3) how to manage the cost incurred.”

Recyclingimportant? Awareofban? Prepared? RecyclinginPlace?

YES YES YES YESNO NO NO NO

n = 20


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Sector Highlight: Multi-family Housing (n = 17) Key barriers to recycling Factors to start (increase) recycling Key benefits of recycling

• Lack of space for recycling containers (12)

• Cost of subscribing to recycling pickup service (7)

• Cost of purchasing recycling containers (5)

• Concern about odors/cleanliness (5) • Tenant compliance (4) • Training employees how and what to

recycle (4) • Concern about staff time needed to

service recycling containers (2)

• Placement of additional recycling bins on site (8)

• On-site advising on how to set up a recycling program (6)

• Employee education and engagement (5)

• Financial assistance to set up program (4)

• None of the above (3) • Increased staffing to service recycling

containers (1)

• It’s the right thing to do (13) • We help protect the environment.

(10) • It enhances our company’s reputation.

(8) • Our customers asked for it. (3) • Our employees appreciate it. (3) • None. (3)

Additional suggestions and comments • “Unlikely to train 150 tenants to

properly recycle.” • “How to gain tenant support and

compliance.” • “Tenants will not care enough to do it.” • “Unfortunately, it's the neighborhood

people using the ground for trash …or illegal dumping.”

• “Rebate from collection on a quarterly basis.”

• “Income from recycling.” • “Tenants who use it appreciate the

convenience of onsite recycling.”

Additional comments from the Multi-family housing sector included:

• “I look forward to this new recycling effort, and hope it will evolve into, plastic, glass and other areas of recycling. Thank you.”

• “Develop points of advantages from recycling. Focus on individual and small living alliances as the contributors receiving the benefits.”

• “Recycling is generally very inefficient and resource intense. It would make more sense to simply tax everyone a small fee and try to recycle a proportion of the garbage after or at the point of pickup. This would save net resources and result in more tonnage recycled.”

• “Am not aware of where to recycle unusable construction debris. Currently take to landfill. Are there other options? Recycling unused paint is cumbersome.”

• “The best efforts for recycling should have included options for disposal of tires or creating mandatory fees at tire change to cover the cost of disposal and recycling. We are constantly picking up tires which are abandoned near our dumpsters. We can collect 2 per week which accumulates quickly. We expect to see the same result with cardboard abandoned in alleys and near dumpsters.”

• “Thank you!” • “Get the trash haulers on board. Price is a key if you want companies and individuals to by in.”


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Sector Highlight: Food services (Restaurants, Bars, etc.) A total of eleven food service businesses participated in the survey, with varied response rates per question. All survey respondents agree that recycling is important but less than half (45%) of respondents feel they are ready to comply with the ban and 64% have a recycling program in place.

11

0

9

2

56

7

4

RecyclingImportance,BanAwareness,Preparedness andProgramsinPlace

Those businesses that reported they are prepared to comply with the ban already have recycling programs and sustainability initiatives in place:

“Because we already collect boxes in our restaurants.” “Our sustainability program supports this new compliance.” “We already recycle cardboard and single stream recycling for all of the other materials. The only change will

be to increase the number of pickup days in order to be 100% in compliance.” Even businesses that have a recycling program in place reported that they feel unprepared for the ban. Two respondents reported that they are outside the City limit and thus have no recycling services available. The following comments were shared:

“Business owners do not want to pay for recycling costs compared to regular trash pick-up fees.” “Landlord operates waste management at my location.” “Don't have room in all locations for 2 dumpsters.” “We are outside the city limits and recycling service is not available so we're on our own.” “Outside the three-mile city limit in Lancaster County there are no stations available to accept cardboard.”

YES YES YES YESNO NO NO


n = 11


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Sector Highlight: Food Services - Restaurant, Bar, etc. (n = 11) Key barriers to recycling Factors to start (increase) recycling Key benefits of recycling



• Training employees how and what to recycle (3)

• Concern about odors/cleanliness (2) • Cost of purchasing recycling containers

(2) • Concern about staff time needed to

service recycling containers (1)




• Increased staffing to service recycling containers (2)

• None of the above (2) • On-site advising on how to set up a

recycling program (1)

• We help protect the environment. (10)

• It’s the right thing to do (9) • Our employees appreciate it (7) • It enhances our company’s reputation

(6) • Our customers asked for it (3) • Our competitors have recycling

programs (1)

Additional suggestions and comments • “Landlord operated waste services.” • “Service not available outside of

Lincoln’s three-mile limit.” (2) • “Getting others in a shared alley to

cooperate.”

• “Reasonably priced service outside of Lincoln's three-mile limit.” (2)

• “Quick and prompt pick up of the stuff we do recycle. We have recycled more in the past, but had issues with pick up, cleanliness and storage containers.”

None provided.

The only additional comments from the Food Services sector suggested a misunderstanding that the landfill is closing: “Closing the city landfill without arranging for recycling service for rural Lancaster County businesses is not good governance. No savings can be expected from recycling so budget accordingly.”


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Sector Highlight: Manufacturing A total of eleven food service businesses participated in the survey, with varied response rates per question. All respondents agree that recycling is important and many (83%) of respondents feel their business is ready to comply with the ban and have a recycling program in place.

12

0

11

1

10

2

10

2

RecyclingImportance,BanAwareness,PreparednessandProgramsinPlace

Those businesses that reported they are prepared to comply with the ban already have recycling programs and sustainability initiatives in place: “Because we already recycle 95% of our production waste.” The two respondents that reported that their business is unprepared for the ban shared comments related to where and how to handle recycling. “What to do with it, where to put it.”

Sector Highlight: Manufacturing (n = 11) Key barriers to recycling Factors to start (increase) recycling Key benefits of recycling



• No barriers (3) • Concern about staff time needed to

service recycling containers (3) • Cost of subscribing to recycling pickup

service (1) • Cost of purchasing recycling containers

(1) • Concern about odors/cleanliness (0)




• None of the above (2) • Financial assistance to set up program

(1) • On-site advising on how to set up a

recycling program (1)

• We help protect the environment. (11)

• It’s the right thing to do (11) • Our employees appreciate it (9) • It enhances our company’s reputation

(7) • Our customers asked for it (2) • Our competitors have recycling

programs (1)

Additional suggestions and comments • “Materials (glass) that no one recycles.” • “Better glass recycling options.” • “Finding recycling vendors.”

• “Acceptance of brown glass in our recycling stream.”

• “Glass recycling pickup.”

None provided.

Survey respondents provided several comments referring to services for glass pick up.

YES YES YES YESNO NO NO


n = 12


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Sector Highlight: Residential and Commercial Construction A total of seventeen Residential and Commercial Construction businesses participated in the survey, with varied response rates per question. All survey respondents agree that recycling is important and many (83%) of respondents feel their business is ready to comply with the ban and have a recycling program in place.

16

1

16

1

13

4

16

1

RecyclingImportance,Banawareness,PreparednessandProgramsinPlace

Those businesses that reported they are prepared to comply with the ban already recycle cardboard “We do at times run into cardboard that we throw away, but it shouldn't be that big of deal to recycle this. I would think it would be major issue if we dealt with it on a daily basis, which I imagine a lot of companies do. I would be worried about what the alternative would be if we were in that boat.” “We don't see much of it, what we do, we already recycle.” “We already recycle cardboard.” (2) Respondents that reported that their business is unprepared for the ban shared comments related to where and how to handle recycling, and how to deal with dumping: “Need to find a way to handle the cardboard.” “Who is going to pay for the extra staff to break the product down, what space do we use to place a receptacle when our facility is built around what we do and not around a city ordinance?” “It is impossible for a construction company to separate our debris!” “The residential construction industry is not set up for cardboard recycling. Our lots are small and not equipped for two dumpsters (one for trash and one for cardboard). Also, very difficult to police what goes into the dumpster and impossible to keep the cardboard "clean and dry". Our open dumpsters always become dumping spots for the general public. We also anticipate nearby residential non-recyclers will now use our dumpsters to dump their cardboard once the ban is in place. I, along with many other builders, already recycle cardboard by taking it to the city free sites. Unfortunately, the cardboard bins at those sites are often filled to the max leaving us no room for our truck load and we're either forced to throw it away or drive to a recycler and pay for its removal. I would assume the city would want this cardboard for its recyclable value. How much money is going towards the expansion of the existing city recycling sites and towards new sites - especially around the residential growth in south Lincoln? (70th or 84th and Yankee Hill Rd. would be nice). I assume the fine at the

YES YES YES YESNO

NONONO


n = 17


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dump has to go to the hauler of our dumpsters so he will inevitably raise his rates to cover a potential fine. Forcing all our subs to recycle their cardboard will also increase their costs and push the price of housing up.”

Sector Highlight: Residential and Commercial Construction (n = 11) Key barriers to recycling Factors to start (increase) recycling Key benefits of recycling



• Cost of purchasing recycling containers (7)

• Concern about staff time needed to service recycling containers (7)


• Concern about odors/cleanliness (2) • No barriers (1)



• On-site advising on how to set up a recycling program (3)



• None of the above (2)

• It’s the right thing to do (14) • We help protect the environment.

(12) • It enhances our company’s reputation

(7) • Our employees appreciate it (4) • Our competitors have recycling

programs (1) • Our customers asked for it (1) • No benefits (1)

Additional suggestions and comments • “Availability of recycling containers;

others dumping in our site.” • “No place will take commercial glass.

The only regional recycler is in KC and there are significant transportation and logistics costs.”

• “Room for separate container on our sites, others using our outside containers without permission. Keeping the cardboard clean and dry.”

• “I'm not sure what the magic combination might be, but it will be a combination of things.”

• “The time & effort it takes to haul materials to a site to recycle.”

• “Recycling bins for all construction debris at job site.”

• “I would not want the citizens of Lincoln to have to foot the bill for any of this.”

• “More and better maintained drop off sites.”

• “More city recycling sites and more cardboard bins at those sites.”

• “In the stream of world peace and suffering-- I just don't think about recycling cardboard as having any influence one way or the other.”

• “Fewer trips to the dump with our waste dumpsters if the cardboard is separated out.”

Additional comments provided included:

“Expanded hours at recycling centers and more money per pound for copper steel and aluminum” “This new ordinance is ridiculous. When they banned tires at the landfill- they showed up in all the ditches in

the county!”


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Appendix A: The Commercial Survey Recycling in the Lincoln Commercial Sector Thank you for completing this survey. Your responses will help inform the development of a new community-wide recycling education initiative in Lincoln. The information you provide will be kept anonymous. We are particularly interested in understanding the attitudes, barriers, benefits and behaviors of commercial entities in regard to recycling. At the end of this survey, you will have the option to enter into a drawing to win one of two $100 Visa gift cards. If you have any questions, please contact [email protected].

1. Which of the following best describes your business sector? • Auto and Truck Repair • Distribution and Warehousing • Educational Institution • Financial Activities • Food Services: Restaurant(s), Bar(s), etc. • Government • Health Services • Hospitality: Hotel(s) • Manufacturing • Multi-family housing • Multi-tenant Commercial Building(s) • Retail & Wholesale Trade • Residential and Commercial Construction • Transportation • Utilities • Other. Please specify: ___________________________________________

2. How many employees (FTE) are employed at your business? 3. What would you say are the top three materials that end up in your company’s waste stream?

• Paper • Cardboard • Food waste • Food packaging • Plastics • Metals • Glass • Construction & demolition waste • Styrofoam • Other ___________

4. Are you aware that on April 1, 2018, the City of Lincoln will enact an ordinance that bans corrugated cardboard from being dumped in City landfills? Y/N 5. Do you feel that your business is ready to comply with this ban? Y/N


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• Why or why not? What questions do you have about this ban? 6. Does your company currently have a recycling program? Yes/No

• If YES, what materials are recycled by your company? Check all those that apply. • If NO, which materials would you consider recycling? Check all those that apply.

• Paper • Cardboard (corrugated cardboard and paperboard) • Newspaper • Aluminum cans • Tin (steel) cans • Plastic containers • Glass • Yard waste • Appliances • Electronics • Tires • Batteries • Textiles • Wood waste • Food waste • Light bulbs • Construction & Demolition Waste • None • Other. Please specify: ________________________________________

7. What challenges does your company face when it comes to recycling? (Select all that apply.) • Cost of purchasing recycling containers • Cost of subscribing to recycling pickup service • Lack of space for recycling containers • Staff time to empty recycling containers • Concern about odors/cleanliness • Other. Please specify:_____________________________________

8. What do you think would help your company start (or increase) recycling? (Select all that apply.) • Placement of additional recycling bins on site • On-site advising on how to set up a recycling program • Financial assistance to set up program • Increased staffing to service recycling containers • Employee education and engagement • Other: __________________________

9. What benefits does (might) your company get from recycling? (Select all that apply.) • It enhances our company’s reputation. • It’s the right thing to do. • Our competitors have recycling programs. • Our customers asked for it.


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• We help protect the environment. • Our employees appreciate it. • Other: ___________________________

10. The City of Lincoln offers a grant program of up to $750 to businesses to help them start or expand a recycling program. Would you like more information about this program?

• Yes. • No

11. Would you like information and/or assistance in how to set up or expand a recycling program at your business? • Yes. • No

12. If you answered Yes to either of the above questions, please leave your contact information. Name: _______________________________________ Email: _______________________________________ Phone: _______________________________________

Thank you statement Thank you for taking the time to complete this survey. This feedback will greatly assist us in expanding recycling services for Lincoln businesses. Your responses will be kept anonymous. You can find the latest updates on the project at recycle.lincoln.ne.gov and you can also follow us on twitter @CityOfLincoln and @LincolnRecycles. If you have any questions or additional comments on the survey or project, please contact Kim Morrow ([email protected]).

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