1. 1
Recycling More &
Recycling Right
Philadelphia’s Experience
Phil Bresee
Director of Recycling, City of Philadelphia
IN COLLABORATION WITH
September 11, 2015

2. 2
Speaker Name
Phil Bresee has been the recycling director for Philadelphia, the nation’s 5th largest city, since mid
2012. In his role he manages and supports programs and policy planning for one of the largest
residential recycling and solid waste programs in the U.S. He also serves as staff liaison to the
city’s solid waste and recycling advisory committee.
From 2004 until 2012, Phil was the recycling program manager for Broward County Florida, the
second-largest county in the southeast and 18th largest in the U.S. Here, Bresee directed
programs and initiatives on behalf of the county, 26 partner cities, and the Broward public schools
system. He was the architect of a $20 million grants project which used solid waste system
reserves to help cities improve their residential recycling programs, and managed the county’s
innovative project that examined the feasibility of using pulverized recycled glass for beach
erosion control.
Phil has served in elected leadership positions in statewide recycling associations, including as
Chair of Recycle Florida Today, and as President of the Maryland Recyclers Coalition. A Maryland
native, Bresee got his start in the recycling field working for Frederick and then Howard County,
Maryland prior to moving to Florida in 2004. He holds a B.S. in Political Science and pursued his
MBA. Bresee lives in the Chestnut Hill neighborhood of Philadelphia.
2
Title and Organization

3. 3
Philadelphia’s Story
• Fifth-largest City in U.S.
with 1.56 million
residents
• Founded 1682
• Rich in U.S. history,
higher education, arts,
museums, culture
• City on the rise – hosting
Pope Francis, Sept.
2015; Democratic
National Convention in
2016

4. 4
Philadelphia Streets Department
• Weekly trash & recycling
collections to 530,000
households (manual
collections)
• $85 million operating
budget
• 200+ vehicles
• 1,200 employees
• Drop-off center network
• City-operated transfer
station

5. 5
Municipal Solid Waste in Philadelphia
Opportunities:
Total MSW
Stream = (~2.6
million tons)
Influence:
Commercial
MSW and
C&D = ~75%
of total
Control:
Residential
MSW = ~25%
of total

6. 6
Overall MSW Trends…
Total Philadelphia MSW Generation
2009-2013
-
500,000
1,000,000
1,500,000
2,000,000
2,500,000
3,000,000
3,500,000
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
TonsPerYear
Philadelphia MSW by Generator Type
2009-2013
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
Residential
Disposed
C&D Disposed
Commercial
Disposed
Residential
Recycling
C&D Recycling
Commercial
Recycling
Total recycling & diversion rate has ranged between 44% and 51% (PA
DEP Goal = 35%)

7. 7
Philadelphia Curbside Recycling 1990s-2000s
• Program much-
maligned…fear
of tickets biggest
driver of
participation
• City fiscal crises
• PA DEP Consent
Decree
• Recycling chief
revolving door
• Lack of political
support

8. 8
2006: Single-stream phases-in…
• City’s MRF vendor
retrofitted in 2006
• Initial Recyclebank
pilots were single-
stream
• Created
opportunity to
streamline
operations, as well
as promote “new”
program

9. 9
2008: Recycling Re-brand
 Reflect innovation
 Convey action

10. 10
2008: Easier still…weekly recycling

11. 11
2008: City-wide Single-Stream

12. 12
2008: By bus, trolley and train…

13. 13
2012: Cartons Added

14. 14
Recycling Rewards Program
14
• Philadelphia original
Recyclebank pilot (2006).
• Program became City-
wide 2010.
• ~200,000 households
have signed up for the
program.
• Outreach, events, and
overall program visibility
are key elements:
– Neighborhood canvassing
– Recycling bin distribution
events
– America Recycles Day
– Green Schools Project
– U.S. Conference of Mayors
Award

15. 15
Philadelphia Curbside Recycling FY ‘05 – FY ‘15

16. 16
Philly’s Success Phantastic!
• Curbside recycling tonnages
up 113% since FY 2008
o Per HH yield of ~450-470
lbs./yr.
o Diversion rate through
single-stream = ~20%
• Residential disposal
tonnages down ~18% (down
30% from peak year in FY
2004)
• Total residential MSW
generation down 8% from FY
2008 (19% from FY 2004
peak)
• Annual fiscal benefits to city
have ranged between $5.5
and $15 million

17. 17
Curbside Recycling Comps (blue-bin
recyclables only)
• Philly’s
annual lbs.
yields per
household
and diversion
rank high
among
largest U.S.
cities

18. 18
Philly Residential MSW Trends FY 2008 –
FY 2015 (in tons)
Curbside Recyclables Curbside Trash

19. 19
FY 2015 Curbside Recycling – Blip or
Beginning of Trend?
Garbage up
1.5%
Curbside
Recycling down
8%
• Overall MSW
generation level
• First decrease in
recycling tonnages
in 10 years

20. 20
Changing Philadelphia MSW
Stream…
15%
10%
2%
4%
27%
24%
19%
Philadelphia Residential Disposed
2010
Paper & cardboard Plastics
Glass Metals
Organics C&D
Other
29%
13%
4%
7%
29%
13% 5%
Philadelphia Residential Disposed
2000
Paper & cardboard Plastics
Glass Metals
Organics C&D
Other
MSW stream getting more difficult to recycle…

21. 21
Philly’s Evolving Recycling Ton…
19%
15%
23%
0% 1%
2%1%
3%
2%
1% 4%
17%
12%
Inbound MRF Tons 2010
Newspaper Mixed Paper
OCC Aseptic Containers
Aluminum Cans Steel Cans
Other Metal PET
HDPE Mix Plastics #3 thru #7 (mix)
Mixed Plastics/Rigid Mixed Glass
Rejects/Residue
10%
17%
12%
1%
1%3%1%
4%
2%2%
2%
32%
13%
Inbound MRF Tons 2013
Newspaper Mixed Paper
OCC Aseptic Containers
Aluminum Cans Steel Cans
Other Metal PET
HDPE Mix Plastics #3 thru #7 (mix)
Mixed Plastics/Rigid Mixed Glass
Rejects/Residue

22. 22
Changing Outreach
Focus
• Earlier campaigns &
branding focused on
encouraging recycling
participation
• Emphasis on recyclables
quality now key message
across all platforms &
partnerships
– Recyclebank
– Keep Philadelphia
Beautiful
– Recyclebycity.com
– Civic associations

23. 23
Materials Quality Emphasis Across all-
Platforms & Partnerships

24. 24
Improved Operational Focus
• Renewed emphasis on
collection crew
performance
• Maintain crew
productivity and
improve materials
quality
• Random route
inspections key tool in
reducing on-route
contamination
Photo courtesy of Peter Tobias

25. 25
Curbside Recyclables Load Inspections
Trucks randomly targeted in all
sanitation districts
Loads tipped and examined at
sanitation yards

26. 26
Participants’ Challenges…
Plastic bags… Food waste & polystyrene foam…

27. 27
Operational Challenges
Misc. garbage collected mid-route
Collection vehicle not pre-tripped
City of Philadelphia Recycling Office

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Drilling Down into Contamination
• Contaminated
loads cross-
referenced by
sanitation district,
day, truck #, and
route
• Will allow for
targeted outreach
and canvassing

29. 29
How to Move the Philly Needle?
• City updating its Solid Waste
Management Plan, key
program areas:
– Increase public space &
institutional recycling
opportunities
– Examine organics recycling
opportunities
– Expand commercial & multi-
family recycling support
– More focus on recyclables quality
• Legislative & regulatory:
– Re-codify recycling ordinance
– Reduce MSW denominator (e.g.,
review collection & set-out
practices; materials bans)
– Commercial hauler reporting

30. 30
Thank You!
Phil Bresee
Recycling Director
City of Philadelphia
phil.bresee@phila.gov