CITY COUNCIL AGENDA ITEM
ACTION REQUESTED:
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Approve the award of Option Year One to Contract 16-173, Leaf Disposal Services, to BioAg for an amount not to exceed $160,000 (Item 1 of 2)
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DEPARTMENT: Department of Public Works
SUBMITTED BY: Richard Dublinski, Director
BOARD/COMMISSION REVIEW:
N/A
BACKGROUND:
The other related item on the City Council agenda is:
* 18-352, Authorize the City Manager to Extend the Lease for Three Parcels of City Property for Leaf Disposal.
The Department of Public Works (DPW) is responsible for the City's bulk curbside leaf collection program. This program is structured so that leaves are collected from the street next to the curb in front of residences. City residents are provided three curbside leaf collection opportunities during the fall season, which equates to one pickup collection citywide every two weeks. The program has historically begun six weeks prior to Thanksgiving Day.
DPW annually collects between 40,000 and 50,000 cubic yards of leaves through the curbside program. The collected leaves must be disposed of in an environmentally appropriate way compliant with Illinois EPA regulations. The City has historically contracted with a third party to appropriately dispose of the collected leaves. The disposal process involves the City hauling the collected leaves to designated farm land where the contracted third-party spreads, treats and tills the leaves into the soil.
Properly disposing of the 40,000 to 50,000 cubic yards of leaves is a challenging task and the availability of local disposal sites is crucial to the efficiency of the bulk curbside leaf collection program. Available farm land is increasingly difficult to find locally and the cost of hauling the leaves out of the area greatly increases costs and negatively impacts DPW's ability to complete the program on time.
For the past two years, DPW has also been using an incinerator to burn a portion of the leaves collected through the curbsi...
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