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The Fire & EMS Department plans to turn 100 of the blankets over to White Bird this month, and to <br />continue and possibly expand the program in coming years. For more information, please contact Joe <br />Zaludek, deputy chief for Special Operations, at 682-7103. <br />Public Works Engineering Conditionally Certified for Project Development <br />After almost six months <br />of review and <br />negotiations with the <br />Oregon Department of <br />Transportation, Public <br />Works Engineering is conditionally certified for federally funded transportation project development. This <br />certification allows for more project approvals and control at the City level in developing projects funded <br />by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). There are aspects of project development where ODOT, <br />acting for FHWA, will still have approval authority, but now Eugene will be able to develop projects using <br />City processes and procedures rather than making everything fit “the ODOT way.” Both ODOT and the <br />City expect to see savings in time and money with the City having the authority to use its own processes <br />to develop, advertise, award and manage its projects. <br />Upon signing of all the necessary agreements, the City of Eugene will be the second local agency in the <br />state to be conditionally certified in project development. The areas that Engineering is conditionally <br />certified in are consultant selection, design, advertising, bid and award, and construction contract <br />administration. After staff has performed adequately on two to four projects in these areas, the City will <br />receive full certification. Engineering staff plans to convert three federally funded projects, scheduled for <br />construction this coming summer, to the certified process – Chad Drive Extension, North Game Farm <br />Road and Roosevelt Boulevard. West Bank Trail is a future project anticipated to be developed through <br />the certified process. <br />Getting to this point of conditional certification so quickly is a credit to the Engineering Division’s <br />preparation and documentation from going through the APWA Accreditation process. After the <br />agreements are signed, staff will continue to work closely with ODOT’s Local Government Section. For <br />more information about Engineering’s federal-aid project delivery certification, contact Jenifer Willer, <br />project manager, at 682-5364. <br />Plastic Bag Recycling <br />Eugene, Springfield, and Lane County are collaborating with local garbage haulers, grocery stores, and <br />the American Chemistry Council to find a way to recycle plastic bags. <br />Eugene garbage haulers added plastic bags to their commingled recycling programs in November 2006. <br />In October 2007, haulers were informed by their Portland-based processor that plastic bags were no <br />longer acceptable as part of the commingled stream due to the impact bags have on the effectiveness of <br />sorting equipment. Material recovery facility (MRF) operators find that bags wrap around equipment <br />pulleys, axles, and screens designed to sort materials by size and density. Removing bags requires the <br />entire facility to be shut down and the sortation equipment becomes less precise as more and more bags <br />clog openings. <br />Commingled recycling is very convenient for Eugene residents, and was implemented without increasing <br />fees due to the cost savings it represents for collectors. Like any recycling program, it isn’t sustainable <br />unless the quality of the collected materials remains high. The relatively small volume of plastic bags in <br />the collection stream has lead to contamination problems at material recovery facilities which, in turn, <br />results in significant volumes of other plastics not being recycled. <br />The City is working with area grocers on a “return to retail” campaign that includes standard bins and <br />signage, display ads in The Register-Guard, and radio promotions. Keeping bags segregated from other <br />recyclable material ensures that they will be recycled into value-added products like composite lumber, <br />rather than causing problems throughout the commingled recycling process. Additionally, all Lane <br />County transfer stations accept plastic bags for recycling. <br />Sanipac is informing its customers of the changes in handling plastic bags in a direct mailing later this <br />month. The City will place display ads in The Register-Guard to inform community members of the <br />options for recycling plastic bags and Lane County is developing a radio ad that will begin running <br />EUGENE CITY COUNCIL NEWSLETTER PAGE 2 <br />January 10, 2008 <br />