Waste Hauler Reporting Process

The City of Sioux Falls tracks the tonnages of garbage and recycling collected and delivered to facilities by each licensed waste hauler operating in the five-county region of Lake, Lincoln, McCook, Minnehaha & Turner Counties.

From this information and claims reports submitted by individual haulers, the City of Sioux Falls Environmental Services produces monthly recycling reports.

Recycling Rates & Mandatory Standards

The recycling rate for each waste hauler is calculated by dividing the total amount of material recycled by the total amount of material generated (recycled plus garbage), then multiplying by 100 to express it as a percentage.

[City of Sioux Falls Code of Ordinances 57.081]

If, after the first year, a specified waste hauler fails to meet the minimum established mandatory recycling standards, the waste hauler will receive a notice of violation. Within 30 days of receipt, the City must receive a corrective action plan, along with a surcharge payment of $1.00 per ton of municipal solid waste hauled to the Sioux Falls Regional Sanitary Landfill (SFRSL) for the previous calendar year.

If, after the second consecutive year, the same waste hauler again fails to meet the minimum established mandatory recycling standards, the waste hauler will receive a notice of violation. Within 60 days of receipt, the City must receive a corrective action plan developed by a qualified environmental engineering consultant that attests there is a reasonable expectation that this plan will bring the waste hauler into compliance. A surcharge payment of $2.00 per ton of municipal solid waste hauled to the SFRSL for the previous calendar year.

If, after the third consecutive year, the same waste hauler fails to meet the minimum established mandatory recycling standards, the waste hauler’s license to provide services will be revoked for a period of five years.

 [City of Sioux Falls Code of Ordinances 57.105.h.1-4]

Waste Hauler Requirements

For residential customers, waste haulers must provide garbage collection at least once a week and single-stream recycling collection at least twice per month.

All licensed waste haulers must use a rate system that:

1. Financially rewards customers who reduce their level of solid waste collection service based on volume or weight;
2. Provides customer incentives to reduce weekly solid waste collection; and
3. Includes the cost of solid waste and recycling collection services.

[City of Sioux Falls Code of Ordinances 57.078] 

Waste Hauler Recycling Claims & Credits

Required recyclable materials include paper, cardboard, chipboard (paperboard), plastics, metal containers, newspaper, and electronics. A waste hauler is not to collect solid waste for disposal that contains visible amounts of the required recyclable materials. The waste hauler is to notify the resident or business explaining why the material was not collected.

[City of Sioux Falls Code of Ordinances 57.001 & 57.032]

The City of Sioux Falls determines recyclable material claims from waste haulers using the guidelines established by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US EPA) for measuring recycling.

• Measuring Recycling: A Guide for State and Local Governments-Table A
• Measuring Recycling: A Guide for State and Local Governments-Table B

Waste haulers providing both garbage and recycling services to a business may claim recyclable materials that the business self-hauled (self-shipped) to a recycling processing facility. The waste hauler must provide a verifiable weight ticket when submitting a claim form. {link to pdf of claim form, upload first} The material and process must be on the approved list of recyclables as provided in the EPA’s Measuring Recycling: A Guide for State and Local Governments-Table B.

[City of Sioux Falls Code of Ordinances 57.031]

Municipal Solid Waste (MSW)

Most material (garbage and trash) brought by waste haulers to a landfill is classified as Municipal Solid Waste (MSW). Exemptions can be granted for material that is not considered to be MSW as specified in the EPA’s Measuring Recycling: A Guide for State and Local Governments-Table A. It is the responsibility of the individual waste hauler to request an exemption for this material by submitting a claim form.