The York County Solid Waste Authority has approved its budget for fiscal 2008.  The tip fee (cost for disposal) at the York County Resource Recovery Center for 2008 will remain at $56 per ton.  Tip fee stability has been achieved through a process of effective operation and budget management. 

The tipping fee is the cost per ton charged to a waste hauler to dispose of waste at the York County Resource Recovery Center .   The $56 per ton represents the cost to provide York County with a total integrated solid waste management system.  This includes providing the most environmentally responsible waste management system, as well as providing special programs and community outreach efforts to address solid waste issues.  Some of these programs include phone book recycling, electronics recycling, household hazardous waste collection programs, and educational programs presented at the Authority’s Education Center and throughout the community.

The Resource Recovery Center is designed to provide long-term waste capacity for York County .  To optimize operations, stabilize the cost of disposal and ensure the Authority remains self-supporting through our own revenue streams, the Center accepts some waste from the “spot market”.  This waste comes from outside of York County .  As York County grows and waste generation rates increase, York County waste displaces the spot market waste.

The tip fee for spot market waste is based on what the market will bear (typically, a lower fee than the York County total system fee of $56 a ton).  Unlike York County waste generators, spot market waste generators have no guarantee that their waste will be accepted since our first priority is always to provide capacity for York County waste. 

This means that spot market waste is turned away from the Resource Recovery Center from time to time without any notice when capacity is needed for York County waste.  In addition, spot market generators are not entitled to any total system benefits such as phone book recycling, household hazardous waste collection or other special programs.         

In addition to the tip fee, revenue from the sale of electricity also helps to stabilize the cost of waste disposal in York County .  The Resource Recovery Center is successfully on schedule in generating revenue from sales of electricity needed to meet operating costs.

The Authority facilitates responsible solid waste management through an integrated strategy that emphasizes waste reduction, reuse, recycling and resource recovery.  The Authority is the owner of the York County Resource Recovery Center in Manchester Township ; and owns and operates a Yard Waste Transfer Facility, a Recyclable Materials Drop-off Center and an Education Center .

The Authority also owns the York County Sanitary Landfill in Hopewell Township .  Although the landfill is no longer in operation, the Authority continues to provide long-term monitoring and maintenance at the facility.  The Authority has constructed a community recreation facility on approximately 200 acres of the 306-acre landfill.   The new facility, called the Hopewell Area Recreation Complex, will be open to all York County residents.  The Authority invested more than $1 million to build the complex and has an agreement in place designating Hopewell Township as the operator.