Solid Waste & Resource Recovery

The Public Infrastructure Solid Waste & Resource Recovery Department’s mission is to provide Pasco County’s citizens, business, and future generations with efficient, cost effective, and sustainable materials management. The Department’s vision is to view waste as a resource for recycling, beneficial reuse, and power generation. By using this vision as our guiding principle, the Department will achieve its goal of reducing landfilling, ensuring that the maximum amount of land is available for future generations in Pasco County. The Department uses the State of Florida recycling rate as a key performance indicator of its’ progress towards its vision. The Solid Waste and Resource Recovery Department’s goal is to highlight the shared County values of respect, integrity, service excellence and innovation in its everyday work efforts.

The Department is responsible for managing the processes by which solid waste is collected, transported, stored, separated, and processed. This includes having a planned program for long term management and maintenance of the approved operating facilities regulated by the applicable governing agencies. The Department actively seeks out alternative methods to reduce the total volume of waste generated in addition to its ongoing mission to educate the public on the importance of recycling countywide.

Each of the facilities listed below are regulated by various divisions within the Florida Department of Environmental Protection (FDEP), including the Division of Air Resources Management, the Office of Power Plant Siting Coordination, the Bureau of Solid Waste Management, and the Southwest District Office. To remain in compliance with the permits and licenses issued by these agencies, Pasco County Solid Waste implements and maintains a planned program for the long-term management and maintenance of each facility. Facilities include:

• A 1,050 ton per day, mass burn, waste to energy facility
• A 50 acre ash disposal monofill, a 20 acre solid waste disposal landfill, a construction and demolition debris landfill, a recycled materials transfer station, a citizen's drop off facility, a tire recycling facility, a household hazardous waste collection center, and a biosolids treatment facility
• Long term care of the closed East Pasco Sanitary Landfill
• Long term care of the closed Ridge Rd Landfill
• The East Pasco Transfer Station

Core Services

The Pasco County Solid Waste Department is made up of five divisions:

Disposal - Landfill Program

Oversees all aspects of collection/transfer operations including residential and commercial collection services provided by licensed haulers and transfer of Municipal Solid Waste (MSW) across County and out of County. The program manages disposal operations to provide environmentally compliant options for waste disposal, combustion ash management, household hazardous waste disposal, and closed landfill oversight.

Disposal - Waste to Energy

Waste to Energy (WTE) is the program that oversees the West Pasco Resource Recovery Facility, a 1,050 ton per day mass burn waste to energy facility. This facility processes the municipal solid waste that is brought to its tipping floor as well as the East Pasco Transfer Station. The program's mission is to manage the County's waste safely and in compliance with all applicable rules and regulations. Regulating agencies include the Florida Department of Environmental Protection's Division of Air Resources Management and the Office of Power Plant Siting Coordination.

The WTE facility processes approximately 340,000 tons of trash on an average annual basis and generates approximately 180,000 megawatt hours of electricity from that trash. The plant operates at 93% availability with the turbine generator availability at 99%, and recovers ferrous and nonferrous materials on the back end of the process to offset operating costs and to enhance recycling efforts.

Recycling and Education

The Recycling and Education Division tracks recycling internally within the solid waste system and from all other sources countywide, both public and private. Educational efforts seek to encourage waste reduction, reuse, and recycling. All programs assist in reducing the tons of MSW that flow to the WTE plant thereby extending the life of the facility and helping Pasco County meet state mandated recycling goals.

Environmental Compliance

The Environmental Compliance Division is responsible for providing regulatory guidance and hazardous materials disposal options to citizens and small businesses in Pasco County. Our mission supports the protection and helps sustain the natural, economic, and human resources of Pasco County through a combination of educational outreach and regulatory enforcement. There are three core programs provided through Environmental Compliance:

• Household Hazardous Waste Program - Two permanent collection centers that provide residents a location to properly dispose of materials including, but not limited to household chemicals, fertilizer, motor oil, and paint.
• Small Quantity Generator Program - Assists businesses with disposing of their hazardous materials and provides education and training. Small quantity generators are businesses that generate small amounts of potentially dangerous materials such as oil, gas, tires, and chemicals. Pasco County has approximately 3,700 businesses that are identified as such by FDEP.
• Fats, Oils, and Grease (FOG) Program - Ensures that the applicable food services establishments are adhering to County ordinances so the wastewater collection system, pumps, and infrastructures are protected.

Solid Waste Assessments

The Solid Waste Assessments Division was formed to ensure the appropriate billing and timely collection of revenues associated with the Department’s non-Ad Valorem solid waste assessment. In addition to these responsibilities the Division provides customer service to citizens and businesses with questions related to waste disposal.