Section 096-428-17 - Calculating the Tons of Packaging Material Recycled, Reused, or CompostedFor each participating municipality, the SO must annually calculate the tons of each packaging material type recycled, reused or composted. A participating municipality must annually report the information necessary to determine the tons of each packaging material type recycled, reused, or composted.
A.Assigning Tons When a Packaging Stream is Managed Jointly by Participating Municipalities.(1) When assigning tons among participating municipalities that jointly manage material, and for which municipal-specific tonnages are unknown, the tons are assigned assuming that each municipality's residents contributed equally on a per capita basis, unless the municipalities agree to a different way of assigning the tons managed. Each participating municipality must annually report the tons managed jointly, along with a list of the municipalities with which it jointly managed material, and the method to be used for assigning the tons managed.(2) When assigning tons to a participating municipality that manages material with non-municipal entities, and for which municipal-specific tonnages are unknown, the participating municipality must estimate the tons it managed. The participating municipality must annually report the estimated tons managed and the method used to arrive at the estimate. During a complete cost study for a participating municipality that manages material with a non-municipal entity, the SO must review the estimation method and provide an updated method in cases where accuracy can be improved without the use of additional equipment or changes to operations.B.Determining the Tons of a Commodity Managed by a Participating Municipality.(1) In cases where a participating municipality manages a commodity or commodity stream, the tons managed by the participating municipality are equal to the tons sent.(2) In cases where a participating municipality contributes a mixed packaging stream to a receiving facility, the method for determining the tons of a commodity managed depends on whether all contributions to the commodity consist of the same set of accepted materials. (a) When all contributions consist of the same set of accepted materials, the tons sent to market by the receiving facility that are managed by a participating municipality are proportional to the percent of the stream of accepted materials received that are contributed by the participating municipality. The participating municipality must annually report the total tons of the set of accepted materials received by the receiving facility, the tons it contributed, and the tons of the commodity sent to a market by the receiving facility.(b) When not all contributions consist of the same set of accepted materials, the SO must first determine the contribution of each set of accepted materials to the tons of the commodity sent to a market by the receiving facility and must then assign the tons that result from the set of accepted materials to a participating municipality, as described in Section 17(B)(2)(a). The contribution of each set of accepted materials to the tons sent to a market by the receiving facility is figured as follows: (i) The contribution of a commodity stream is the total weight of that stream; and(ii) When a receiving facility receives multiple sets of accepted materials that are mixed packaging streams that contribute to a commodity, the percent of each set's contribution must be figured as follows:1. The SO must determine the percent by weight of the materials intended for a commodity in each set of accepted materials in accordance with Section 14(B)(1)(d). If there is not a complete audit result, the participating municipality must obtain and report an estimate from the receiving facility;2. A participating municipality must obtain and report the total weight of each set of accepted materials received by a receiving facility. The SO must multiply the total weight of each set of accepted materials received by the percent determined in accordance with Section 17(B)(2)(b)(ii)(1) to determine the expected contribution of the set;3. The SO must divide the expected contribution of a set of accepted materials by the total expected contributions from all sets to determine the percent of the tons of a commodity sent that were contributed by the set; and4. The participating municipality must obtain and report the total tons of the commodity sent by the receiving facility. The SO must multiply the percent determined in accordance with Section 17(B)(2)(b)(ii)(3) by the total tons of the commodity sent by the receiving facility to determine the tons that resulted from that set.(3) In cases where material that does not qualify as packaging material because it did not leave a point of sale with, and was not received by, the consumer of a product contributes to a commodity, a commodity stream, or a mixed packaging stream managed by a participating municipality, the participating municipality must develop a method of estimating the material that is not packaging material due to its origin and deduct its weight from the tons managed. (a) A participating municipality must assume material received from a retailer did not leave a point of sale with, and was not received by, the consumer of a product and does not qualify as packaging material.(b) A participating municipality must assume material received from other sources is packaging material. For material that does not qualify as packaging material, the participating municipality must annually report the source, the estimated tons received, and the method used to obtain this estimate. During a complete cost study with a participating municipality that receives material that does not qualify as packaging material due to its origin, the SO must review the estimation method and provide an updated method in cases where accuracy can be improved without the use of additional equipment or changes to operations.
C.Defining the Point at Which Packaging Material is Counted as Recycled, Reused, or Composted. In order for packaging material to be counted as recycled, reused, or composted, it must be tracked, as described in Section 17(B), until: (1) It is part of a commodity for which the set of accepted materials share a base material; or(2) It is received by a facility at which the packaging material type's base material is a target material.D.Determining the Tons of Each Packaging Material Type Recycled, Reused, or Composted. The SO must calculate the tons of each packaging material type recycled, reused, or composted by each participating municipality, as follows. (1) For each commodity with a set of accepted materials that share a base material, the SO must multiply the tons managed by the weight of the packaging material type in one ton of the commodity.(2) For each commodity with a set of accepted materials that do not share a base material, the SO must multiply the tons managed and sent to a receiving facility at which the packaging material type's base material is a target material by the weight of the packaging material type in one ton of the commodity. The tons of a commodity managed is determined in accordance with Sections 17(A) and 17(B), and the weight of the packaging material type in one ton of a commodity is determined in accordance with Section 14(B)(1)(a).
06-096 C.M.R. ch. 428, § 17