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A virtual tour of several long-running municipal programs that are successfully diverting hundreds of thousands of tons of yard trimmings annually is described. Reports from facilities in Iowa, South Dakota, and New Carolina provide valuable insights on equipment investments, processing strategies and markets.

Fabricators, consultants and various facility managers share the experiences and insights into selecting protective materials, building components and controlling costs. The composting facility is doing well and the epoxy-coated steel building that houses Davenport, Iowa's 28 dry ton per day composting operation opened in 1995.

Florida has tackled the largest storm debris cleanup of the modern era after four major hurricanes that has caused at least $ 22 billion in damage according to preliminary federal estimates. According to Patrick Byers, assistant director of compost and yard waste for the Palm Beach County solid waste Authority, in Palm Beach County, county crews and hired contractors moved more than two million cubic yards of green waste and mixed debris in first 30 days of cleanup operations.

Revised specifications and successful highway projects set the stage for compost-based solutions for erosion and sediment control and storm water management. Minnesota DOT's inclusion of compost BMPs in its road construction specs will be a major factor in increasing the use of compost among contractors and landscapers.

AgRecycle first composting site on 41 acres in rural area outside of Pittsburgh provides an excellent example on the ways a private composter can fill a public sector needs. The possibility of building a facility to process servicing private companies in the region that have clean organics that would be allowed under a general permit is discussed.

Sierra Contracting, Inc. in the village of Ruidoso Downs is one of the fastest growing composters in the southwestern U.S. A series of ordinances were passed in June 2002 mandating fuels management on all lands within village limits and to all site development extending approximately three miles outside village limits.

Eureka Recycling conducted a study with the city of St. Paul, Minnesota, comparing five recycling collection methods, which varied by frequency, type of containers used, types of materials collected, and how materials were separated. The study demonstrated that by carefully implementing important changes in what and how the city of St. Paul recycles, the recycler could control costs, improve convenience and divert 74 percent of the discards that households generate through composting and recycling.

One of the major components of the municipal solid waste stream in North American cities is the organic material. In order to separate and compost the organic fraction, five pilot projects were developed in the twin cities of Minnesota namely Minneapolis and St. Paul.

An overview is presented on processing wood wastes into marketable mulch and compost products. Topics include conversion of wood pallets, yard trimmings, and production techniques for plant disease quarantine zones. The article also examines the effects of legislation such as landfill disposal bans.

An overview is presented on structural elements, building materials, and protective coatings and their ability to withstand the corrosive environment produced by composting. These include positive aeration, fabric-covered buildings, concrete push walls, insulation, epoxy coatings, and stainless steel.

State and local governments are increasingly turning to private contractors to process yard and wood wastes resulting from storm disasters. Discussion includes grinding equipment features, parts, and usage.

Las Vegas, Nevada-based Biodiesel Industries has become the world's biggest producer of diesel fuel derived from used cooking oil. The fuel is biodegradable, nontoxic, and significantly reduces emissions, and offers similar horsepower, torque, and lubricity. A brief overview of production operations is also included.

The factors that lead building's structural integrity from corrosion due to heat, moisture, oxygen and nitrogen compounds, and composting operations are presented. Some of the strategies like using stainless-steel or epoxy coated steel as building material, coating Preferred Solutions (PSI), and using macrofiber fabric cover are highlighted.

Crews are cutting healthy ash trees within a half-mile radius of infested trees, which are then removed, chipped and burned to prevent the further spread of emerald ash borer as they are entering Detroit. They are responsible for the death of approximately 15 million of Michigan's 700 million ash trees, and infested forests in parts of Indiana, Ohio and Ontario.

A discarded, Case grain elevator in Coalville, was converted as an efficient reliable device for screening material used to make compost with a few alterations. The city, which began composting its treatment plant sludge in the late 1900s, will produce about 800 cubic yards of compost in 2004.

North Carolina's Piedmont Triangle focuses on making and utilizing a blend of fuel derived from organic feedstocks as a solution to air pollution problems in 2004. Several public entities in the Piedmont area, including the State of North Carolina, are using biodiesel in their vehicle fleets, aided by federal grants to help cover the cost difference between biodiesel and standard diesel fuel.

Washington State University (WSU) has operated a major composting facility, processing 12,000 tons of collected organic material generated annually by the school's two largest academic entities: College of Agricultural, Human and Natural Resource Sciences (CAHNRS) and College of Veterinary. WSU uses West Salem Manufacturing High Torque Shredder Model to produce its compost and is a compact unit that fits nicely into the corner of the recycling warehouse.

Biomass was seen as an alternative energy source with greatest potential for reducing energy cost. It is suggested that making biomass energy user friendly would make it the most practical and affordable solution.

Peerless Resource Recovery has become a significant C&D recycler in Missouri in order to steadily increase the percentage of waste material it can reclaim. Peerless receives about 4,800 tons of cupboards each year.

An overview is presented on wood waste processing by Taylor Recycling Facility L.L.C. of New York. Feedstocks are sorted for mulching or for conversion into landfill cover. The facility is also planning to introduce biomass conversion technology, which may fuel the plant's processes in the future.

The article describes several municipal policies for processing wood and yard wastes left by storms. Processing agreements are pre-arranged with contractors by municipality officials prior to storm disaster events, so cleanup procedures can be launched promptly afterward.

Plymouth, Minnesota has curbed surface water pollution by passing a law in 1995 to restrict the marketing of phosphorus-based lawn fertilizer. This law fostered a state-wide ban on these products.