LANSING, MI -- The volume of waste added to Michigan landfills increased by 3 percent in 2017 thanks, in no small part, to the 10.5 million cubic yards of trash brought into the state from Canada.
Up from 8.8 million cubic yards in 2016, the number represents an about 19 percent increase in the volume of waste being imported from Canada. Canadian solid waste made up about 21 percent of the 50.6 million cubic yards of trash added to Michigan landfills last year, according to a recently released state report.
The Michigan Department of Environmental Quality on Wednesday, Jan. 31, announced the release its annual solid waste report. The report looks at landfill disposal during the 2017 fiscal year, which ran Oct. 1, 2016, through Sept. 30, 2017.
After announcing a hike in Michigan's trash tax intended to help fund state environmental programs, Gov. Rick Snyder cited the data in a tweet decrying the amount of trash being imported into the state.
The governor's tweet references the fact that, according to the DEQ report, 25 percent of waste disposed of in Michigan landfills is imported -- counting both trash brought in from Canada and from neighboring states.
About 2.3 million cubic yards of trash from 13 other states was dumped at Michigan landfills in 2017, primarily coming from Ohio, Indiana and other Midwest states:
Ohio: 1.4 million cubic yards
Indiana: 598,361 cubic yards
Wisconsin: 218,740 cubic yards
Illinois: 30,762 cubic yards
The out-of-state waste imported to Michigan in 2017 was actually a reduction of about 14 percent, when compared to the nearly 2.7 million cubic yards brought in from other states in 2016.
Homegrown waste from Michigan households, businesses and industry makes up the remaining 37.7 million cubic yards of trash added to landfills in 2017. That is a slight increase from the 37.4 million cubic yards thrown away in 2016.
The 10.5 million cubic yards of trash from Canada is the largest volume recorded since 2008.
The import of trash, often credited to the state's lower disposal rates, has long been a hot-button issue in Michigan, particularly when it involved garbage coming across the state's international border.
Michigan brought in less than 3 million cubic yards from Canada each year in the late 1990s. That figure grew quickly in the early 2000s, to a height of 12 million cubic yards in 2006.
Volumes dipped back below 10 million cubic yards in 2009, but have been on the rise again in recent years. The volume has grown each year since the 10-year low of 6.7 million cubic yards recorded in 2012, according to the annual reports from the Michigan Department of Environmental Quality.
Snyder's "Renew Michigan" proposal announced earlier this week would increase the state surcharge on landfill waste from 36 cents to $4.75 per ton, a roughly 1,200 percent increase in so-called "tipping fees."
The proposed increase would match Ohio's tipping fee and raise Michigan's rate past that of Illinois and Indiana, which charge $2 and 60-cents per-ton, respectively. Wisconsin charges $13 and Pennsylvania charges $6.25.
It would raise $79 million annually to, among other things, cleanup and redevelop polluted properties, tackle emerging contaminants like per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances, (or PFAS), and reduce nutrients in Lake Erie.
The proposal would have to clear the legislature, which doesn't have a bill yet. That could be a challenge since, in the past, Republican lawmakers have opposed such proposals because increased costs are generally passed on to individual ratepayers.
Snyder's office estimated the average household would see a $4.75 annual increase in the cost of trash pickup under the proposal.