Engagement: Solid Waste System Cost Analysis
Description of Services: Assisted the San Diego County Solid Waste Authority in analyzing the cost to provide solid waste disposal services and develop a viable pricing structure to provide these services. The basis of the analysis was the segregation of costs and capital expenditures into fixed and variable components, including those of current usage, prior usage, and commitment-related costs. Based on this analysis, and data and assumptions provided by the County, our staff developed a solid waste disposal pricing framework that incorporated optional delivery commitment periods, and rates designed to recover jurisdictional responsibility for the NCRRA facility debt obligations and costs associated with historical usage of the system (e.g., inactive landfill maintenance costs and closure/post-closure costs) as specified by the County. According to the proposed rate structure, each jurisdiction's portion of these costs was allocated over the term of their volume commitment, creating a rate schedule which was to provide County non-members an economic, cost based alternative to enter into longer-term commitments or join the County as a member.