Expressions of Interest for City to Soil Composting Services
June 2015
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The following information is provided to assist those interested in submitting an Expression of
Interest Form to provide, or assist in providing, composting services to Council.
1. Description of Opportunity - Council seeks Expressions of Interest from parties wanting to be
involved in providing suitable composting facilities that will be in keeping with state government
regulations, local government planning requirements and industry standards for the processing of
the contents of its City to Soil bins, containing greenwaste and food scraps.
The facility will treat this organic material through a composting process to produce a natural
fertiliser/soil enhancement product that would be suitable for sale.
Council will deliver the bin contents to the approved composting facility over two consecutive days
each fortnight.
Expressions of Interest are invited under three (3) different options:
Option A – For respondents who are able to immediately accept the City to Soil bin contents at their
own approved and operating facility. Under this option the facility will need to receive the material
for a minimum period of 2 years, extendable to 10 years.
Option B – For respondents who will be able to accept the bin contents at a facility that will be
approved and operating within a maximum 2 year timeframe. Under this option the facility will
need to receive the material for a minimum period of 5 years, extendable to 10 years.
Option C – For respondents who could provide a turnkey facility on Council’s site within a maximum
2 years period.
Respondents should complete one of the attached EOI Forms, appropriate to the option they are
offering.
2. Purpose – The overarching objective of this EOI is to divert this compostable resource from landfill
and to return the associated valuable nutrients back to the soil for beneficial re-use.
EOI Composting Services – Background Information
The successful diversion of this material will also assist Council in meeting State Government targets
for resource recovery from the waste stream.
3. Description of existing City to Soil bin collection service – A City to Soil (C2S) wheelie bin was
introduced on a trial basis to the domestic waste collection service in our towns in February 2014.
Following strong community support in a recent survey Council will continue the service into the
future.
The introduction of the service involved, with the financial assistance of NSW Environmental Trust,
the delivery of a kitchen bench top bin, compostable corn starch bin liners and a 240L green-lidded
C2S bin to some 2070 households in the towns of Bungendore, Captains Flat and Braidwood.
The supplementary 240L green bin, provided to collect greenwaste and food scraps, has been
collected on a fortnightly basis when typically about 1500 of the bins are presented for collection. To
date the contents have been delivered on a trial basis to a local farm for composting at an approved
facility, and subsequent return to the soil as an organic fertiliser. Council however wishes to put in
place a confirmed longer term suitable financial arrangement established under this EOI process.
4. Expected quantity of material
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The total amount of C2S food and garden waste to be treated in 2015/16 is expected to be
close to 500 tonnes.
The average fortnightly delivery is expected to be around 20 tonnes.
The smallest fortnightly delivery is likely to be about 10 tonnes in mid-Winter
The largest fortnightly delivery would be up to 30 tonnes in late Spring.
The above quantities can be expected to increase by about 3-4 % per annum due to greater
diversion of food scraps and increases in population served.
The material will be collected over 2 consecutive days in 3-6 loads of the kerbside collection truck,
depending on the time of the year. For more distant composting facilities these collections may need
to be bulked together for delivery in 1-2 larger truck loads.
5. Composition of bin contents – The results of a bin audit undertaken in Jan 2015 indicated that the
City to Soil bin generation rate was 19.04kg/fortnight average per bin audited.
Most of this material in the C2S bin is garden organics at 93.2% of the bin contents or
17.75kg/household/fortnight. Food was only 3.9% of the contents or 0.74kg/hh/fortnight.
An audit of waste bins undertaken at the same time has determined that there is still about
3kg/hh/week of food waste or another 150-175t of food waste that still remains in the residual
waste bins. 57.2% of the contents of the average waste bin in 2015 are compostable.
Council will be working with the community to divert more of this food waste in the residual waste
bin to the C2S bin over time. This will mean some increase to the quantities of food waste being
delivered to the composting facility along with increases in total bin contents due to population
growth at about 2% pa.
EOI Composting Services – Background Information
Average contamination rates in the C2S bins have been very low, in the order of 0.25% by weight made
up of mainly plastic bags, glass and plastic bottles, food packaging, treated timber and disposable
nappies.
6. Additional Information for Option C Respondents - Under this option Council would provide a
suitable and level site to accommodate the turnkey composting facility to be provided by the party
engaged.
The attached Option C Expression of Interest Form indicates the information that Council will require
to:
a. ensure that a site of suitable size, grade and aspect can be procured/made available for the
composting facility including accommodating any ancillary access roads, buildings,
drainage/leachate control arrangements and necessary storage areas for the untreated and
processed organic materials.
b. understand what utility services need to be available at the site including water supply and
power supply.
c. understand what additional plant, equipment, materials and labour resources will be
needed at the site.
d. understand the impacts of the proposal on surrounding properties, particularly in relation to
noise, odour and dust emissions.
e. enable assessment of the total capital costs and ongoing operational costs of the completed
facility.
It is expected that the engaged party would work with Council to develop a Development
Application for the facility and assist with arrangements for layout plans/drawings, description of
processes, assessments of possible environmental impacts and inclusion of any other necessary
details in order to obtain consent for the facility. Council will provide a site on which the
establishment of a composting facility is permissible with consent.
7. Composting Standards and Regulatory Requirements
Confirmation is required as part of the EOI submission that compost produced at the facility utilised
by Council will consistently meet the requirements of NSW EPA’s ‘The Compost Order 2014’
Confirmation is also required that the compost will meet the requirements of NSW EPA’s ‘The
Compost Exemption 2014’ if the compost is to be applied to land at the property where the
composting facility is sited.
Respondents are also requested to provide details of current or proposed sampling and testing plans
to meet the requirements of the compost order and in particular Table 1.
8. Procedures Following Expression of Interest
Council will, after the Closing Date, consider all EOIs. Submissions with proposals that best fit with
Council’s objectives to implement a timely and cost effective arrangement and one that addresses
the requirements of this document will be preferred.
Council may seek some clarification/further information from parties submitting EOIs following the
closing date.
EOI Composting Services – Background Information
Council will decide whether tenders are called from a short list of the submissions or whether direct
negotiation with an interested party takes place in order to agree terms for its preferred long-term
option.
Council expects to be able to advise the outcomes of its EOI process within 40 days of closing date of
the EOI.
At the conclusion of the processes, the appointed contractor for composting services will be
required to enter into a contract with Council to provide the stated services.
9. Conditions which Govern the Submission of Expression of Interest
All information provided in this invitation and any other information given to an interested party by
Council is given for guidance only and does not represent an inducement to enter into any contract
with the Council.
An interested party who submits an Expression of Interest acknowledges that it has relied solely on
the results of its own investigations and enquiries regarding what is involved in gaining and
maintaining development approval as necessary, establishing a suitable composting facility and
satisfactorily operating that facility during the term of the contract with Council.
An Expression of Interest submitted by an interested party or any communications between the
Council and an interested party will not be considered to be an offer capable of acceptance or the
acceptance of an offer so as to constitute a binding contract because Council does not intend to be
bound until a formal contract is executed by the parties.
Any costs or expenses incurred by an interested party in preparing and lodging an Expression of
Interest whether successful or not must be met by an interested party and Council will not be liable
to reimburse any of the costs to an interested party.
10. Confidentiality - All submissions by an interested party will be treated as confidential and will
not be disclosed except to Council officers responsible for the project, to Council’s legal advisors and
to the elected Council which will approve any arrangements arising out the EOI process.
Council reserves the right to inform its community about the EOI process and the approved
arrangements resulting from the process.
11. Expression of Interest Submissions – Interested parties submitting EOIs must do so by
completing the appropriate Expression of Interest Form relevant to the Option they are offering. The
EOI forms for the three different options are attached and each requires differing information.
Completed Expression of Interest forms will be received through Council’s secure E-tender portal
https://www.tenderlink.com/palerang/ up to 4.00pm on Friday 3 July 2015.
If further information is required, please contact Bill Ellison at Council on 1300 735 025 during office
hours or email bill.ellison@palerang.nsw.gov.au.
EOI Composting Services – Background Information