Rolling Hills Estates committee presses Republic Services for recycling proof as MRF rebuild continues

Republic Services told the Rolling Hills Estates Solid Waste Recycling Committee on July 13 that a fire has kept the company's mixed-waste processing facility (MRF) offline and the company offered three interim options while the MRF is rebuilt: a monthly roll-off drop-off pilot for residents, counting green waste toward the city's diversion requirement, and temporarily aligning the city's recycling target with CalRecycle's per-capita standard.

The committee pressed Republic Services for details on timing, permitting and operational steps as residents and council members reported increased complaints after a recent rate adjustment. Dawn Benton, a Republic Services representative, said the company "is currently in compliance with the 30% diversion requirement as well as the state's recycling requirement, but they don't wanna be out of compliance." Devin Kinkade, Republic's general manager for the Gardena area, said the company wanted to "show good faith" and partner with the city while the MRF is rebuilt.

Why it matters: Rolling Hills Estates' franchise agreement requires the contractor to achieve a 30% diversion through mixed-waste processing. With the MRF offline, council members worried residents will see reduced services despite a recent rate increase the council approved. The committee sought firm evidence of Republic's timeline for rebuilding the recycling facility and asked the company to return with permitting and insurance details that show progress on reconstruction.

What Republic proposed - Roll-off pilot: Republic proposed staging a large roll-off container one day per month (or a series of controlled, time-limited front-load bins) so residents could bring recyclables directly. Company staff said the container would be staffed or collected within the same day to avoid overnight accumulation. Council members raised concerns about nuisance animals, illegal dumping and whether the city has suitable public locations for a container. - Green-waste credit: Republic asked the city to allow green waste collected in Rolling Hills Estates to count toward the franchise agreement's diversion requirement while the MRF is unavailable. Republic staff said the city is already meeting CalRecycle per-capita measures largely because green waste is included in state reporting; the company asked that green waste also count toward the contract's 30% mixed-waste diversion requirement in the interim. - Match CalRecycle per-capita requirements: Republic offered temporarily to align the city's recycling standard with CalRecycle's per-person tonnage metric (the company cited a per-person figure discussed in the meeting) until the MRF resumes mixed-waste processing.

Council reaction and operational concerns Committee members repeatedly emphasized that the public perceives a loss of recycling service despite the city meeting state per-capita targets. One councilor said residents would be upset that rates rose while the contracted service was not being delivered: "How, why would your problem now become our problem?" The city also flagged a letter from Republic declaring force majeure after the fire; the city attorney and council members said they disagreed with that assessment and asked Republic to produce documentation showing the force majeure status, insurance proceeds and permitting milestones.

Committee members pressed Republic on the MRF timeline. Republic officials said the rebuilt facility is expected to be opened in roughly fall 2024 to early 2025, but councilors characterized that as optimistic and asked for specific permit and construction evidence. Republic acknowledged some capacity could be found at other facilities but said using a competitor's facility raises reliability and capacity concerns.

Additional operational items Committee members also raised service details unrelated to the MRF outage: requests that drivers place the "mother truck" off the travel lane during upcoming street work, questions about the age and emissions of collection vehicles (Republic said trucks are generally replaced within a roughly 10-year cycle and that the fleet includes CNG trucks), and the challenges of a two-cycle collection system that would require additional trucks and crews.

Next steps and follow-up Republic staff agreed to return with: documentation on repair/permitting and insurance for the MRF rebuild; more detail on the roll-off/bin pilot (hours, site options and controls to limit illegal dumping); clarification on whether green-waste tonnage can be formally credited under the franchise agreement; and information about vehicle age and emissions and near-term operational changes during local road work. The committee recommended the City Council consider the matter in a closed session to review legal/contract issues and directed staff to seek additional guidance from Republic leadership.

Votes at a glance At the start of the meeting the committee approved the consent calendar items 4A and 4B (minutes) by voice vote; the motion was seconded and carried by unanimous voice vote (aye). No formal roll-call totals were recorded on the transcript for that consent action.

Ending The committee did not adopt an immediate change to the contract. Members said they would bring the issue back to the full City Council and requested documentary proof of the MRF's reconstruction plan before deciding whether to accept interim measures such as green-waste crediting or a resident drop-off pilot.