Solid Waste Management Plan

The Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio (SWACO) is one of 52 solid waste districts created by the Ohio General Assembly in 1989. These districts were established with the mission of reducing reliance on landfills. Acting upon that mission, SWACO provides a wide variety of programs for waste reduction, recycling, and composting, focused on all sectors of Central Ohio, including residents, communities, schools, businesses, and other organizations.  

In accordance with Ohio law, SWACO is required to develop a solid waste management plan and update the plan every 5 years for submission to Ohio EPA for approval.  The plan must demonstrate meeting Ohio EPA recycling goals and contain a variety of information and projections required by the statute and Ohio EPA.  The plan outlines the types of programs and services SWACO will offer to meet these requirements.

Draft Plan Update

SWACO has prepared the 2024-2038 Draft Plan Update as required by Section 3734.54 of the Ohio Revised Code. It was available for formal public review and comment from October 16, 2023 until November 16, 2023.   A public hearing was held on November 16, 2023.   

This draft is an update to a previously approved solid waste plan. This Plan Update details the following: Recycling Infrastructure Inventory, Population Data, Disposal Data, Residential/Commercial/Industrial Recycling Data, Waste Generation Data, a Strategic Evaluation of Old and New Proposed SWACO Programs, Program Priorities, Achievement of State Recycling Goals, Education and Outreach Programs, Greenhouse Gas Emissions Calculations, Financial Data, Designation of Facilities, District Rules, and a Siting Strategy. 
 
 The Plan Update includes six chapters that are prepared specifically for the public’s review. They include: 

 1. Introduction 
 2. District Profile 
 3. Waste Generation 
 4. Waste Management 
 5. Waste Reduction and Recycling 
 6. Budget 
 
The draft Plan Update includes a demonstration of access to landfill capacity and determines there are more than 20 years of landfill capacity available at the Franklin County Landfill. The estimated lifespan of the Franklin County Sanitary landfill at the end the 2021, the reference year for the planning period, was 46 years. 
 
 Under this plan, the Board of Commissioners is authorized to designate facilities in accordance with Sections 343.014 and 343.015 of the Ohio Revised Code. The Designated Facilities in this Plan Update are the Franklin County Sanitary Landfill, the Morse Road Eco-Station (aka Morse Road Transfer Station), and the Jackson Pike Transfer Station. Additional facilities can be utilized by SWACO if the Board approves a waiver for the facility. 
 
The draft Plan Update includes the existing SWACO District Rules, contained in Appendix Q. SWACO reserves the right to adopt rules pursuant to Ohio Revised Code Section 343.01 (G) in the following areas: 

• prohibiting or limiting the receipt of waste generated outside the District; 
• governing the maintenance, protection, and use of solid waste collection, disposal, transfer, recycling, or resource recovery facilities; 
• governing a program to inspect out-of-state waste; and 
• exempting an owner or operator of a solid waste facility from compliance with local zoning requirements. 

The draft Plan Update demonstrates meeting both State Plan Goal #1 and State Plan Goal #2. State Plan Goal #1 requires a SWMD to demonstrate adequate infrastructure to give residents and commercial businesses opportunities to recycle.  SWACO’s Draft Plan Update demonstrates meeting that goal.  State Plan Goal #2 requires the SWMD to reduce and recycle at least 25 percent of the solid waste generated by the residential/commercial. The Draft Plan Update demonstrates achieving a 44% recycling rate in the reference year of the Plan.  

SWACO primarily funds plan programs and current operations through a Generation Fee of $5.00 per ton for all solid waste generated within Franklin County and disposed at all Ohio based transfer stations or landfills. SWACO projected the Generation Fee to remain at the current rate of $5 per ton for the entire planning period. The Draft Plan Update also indicates potential utilization of $1.00 per ton “allocated” from the existing landfill tipping fee. The Draft Plan Update does not include any fee increases.
 
The draft Plan Update, containing both the existing and proposed set of District Rules, is available for review here.  

Public Process

As required by Ohio Revised Code Section 3734.55, SWACO accepted public comments on the Draft Plan Update from October 16, 2023 through November 16, 2023 and held a public hearing on Thursday, November 16, 2023 at 6:00 p.m.  

Between December 2023 and March 2024 SWACO will seek community support and adoption of the draft Plan Update from the 41 communities in the Solid Waste District’s jurisdiction. 

Contact Information 

Please contact SWACO at 614-871-5100 with any questions about the draft Plan Update.