Public Works and Environmental Services

CONTACT INFORMATION: Our office is open 8 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., Mon. - Fri.
703-324-5230 TTY 711
12000 Government Center Parkway
Suite 458, Fairfax, Va 22035
Eric Forbes
Director, Solid Waste Management

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Unified Sanitation Districts - Transforming Residential Waste Collection

What You Need to Know

Fairfax County is considering an option to implement a new waste collection system through Unified Sanitary Districts (USD). Virginia law requires the County to provide five-years of advance notice to private collection companies in advance of implementing the USD.

  • USD Waste Less Save More LogoThe first step is approval by the Board of Supervisors to start the five-year waiting period clock before implementing USD.
  • The Board approval of the five-year waiting period process does not mean the County will eventually implement USD.
  • Once the Board of Supervisors initiates the required five-year waiting period, the County will perform more detailed analyses informed by additional input from Board of Supervisors and the community about the type of services to be provided in USD.
  • Initial analysis indicates a cost savings to the average resident for comparable services provided today.
  • If the USD are implemented after the five-year waiting period ends, the County would manage waste for all single-family homes, making the process easier for single-family residents.
  • The Board of Supervisors will vote on moving forward with starting the required five-year waiting period for USD following a public hearing on June 24, 2025. Please see below for more information.

Want to know more? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.

The Board of Supervisors will vote on moving forward with the USD process at a public hearing on June 24, 2025. The public hearing will take place at the Fairfax County Government Center Board Auditorium located at 12000 Government Center Parkway, Fairfax, VA 22035.

More information on the public hearing

USD-FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions

Background

Continuing with the current waste collection system impacts the overall sustainability of the community. Residents will continue to experience inconsistencies in services, more trucks in the neighborhoods, increasingly variable pricing, and an overall reduction of the long-term resiliency of the community due to the landfill space and limited diversion options. From a countywide scale, there are known challenges with the current open market waste collection system. The Zero Waste Resident Survey results and permitting and compliance data showed a great variability in residential waste collection costs and service. The survey results also revealed that the majority of the almost 5,000 respondents expressed support for countywide collection through Unified Sanitation Districts.

2024 Zero Waste Resident Survey Results

USD would help the Solid Waste Management Program continue to meet the county’s strategic plan initiatives:

Effective and Efficient Government - We are called to respond to resident needs and equitably represent them. Under USD, Fairfax County would manage and enforce the collection contracts, making services more transparent, fair, and consistent across the county. Competitive pricing from USD could also mean up to 25% annual cost saving for residents. Environment and Energy - Currently, an average of three collectors service a neighborhood. That amounts to 18 trucks driving down community streets every week to haul trash, recycling, and yard waste. USD would significantly lower waste collection truck traffic, reducing greenhouse gas emissions and wear and tear on the roads.

Establishing USD was a proposed zero waste strategy to meet the Community-Wide Energy and Climate Action Plan (CECAP) goal to divert 90% of county waste from the incinerator or landfill by 2040.  The zero waste plan was originally going to be incorporated into the Solid Waste Management Plan (SWMP). However, it was recommended that the zero waste plan be separated from the Virginia Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ)  SWMP update submission scheduled for April 2025.  This adjustment removes the requirement for a public hearing in February and streamlines the DEQ update process. A public hearing to start the displacement timeline will take place in June 2025.

The Solid Waste Management Program is completely self-sustaining. The program receives no tax dollars and does not collect from the county’s General Fund. Fairfax County Solid Waste Management is an enterprise program. Each operation is funded through revenue collected for services, including waste collection, leaf collection, transportation and waste disposal, and ash disposal. Operations include a county-owned and operated refuse transfer station, two closed municipal solid waste landfills, a regional ash landfill, two recycling drop-off and disposal facilities, twenty-seven purple can glass recycling containers, and equipment and facilities for refuse collection, disposal, and recycling operations. The USDs and other future waste reduction programs would be funded through waste collection, disposal, and service fees, not taxes.

How will this impact me?

  • Simplicity - The county would manage single-family residential waste hauling contracts, making it easier for issues to be reported and addressed.
  • Affordability - The scale of USD leads to stronger negotiating power and consistent pricing, meaning residents could see up to 25% annual cost saving.
  • Customized service - Residents would experience a more consistent level of service and have options like choosing their cart size and curbside food scraps collection.
  • Improved quality of life - USD result in fewer large trucks on neighborhood roads, reduced greenhouse gas emissions, transparent pricing, and increased opportunities for waste reduction and diversion.
  • Innovation - USD will allow the county to expand services and explore new and innovative technology for waste processing and disposal options such as composting and advanced recycling.

Single-family residences include both attached and detached single-family homes and townhomes. At this time, USDs would not include multi-family residences, apartments, or commercial properties.

USD would move contracting services from the homeowner association (HOA) to county management.  Virginia law requires the county to provide five years’ notice to a private company before establishing USD that could potentially displace the business (§ 15.2-934. Displacement of private waste companies). The five-year period would allow the county to engage with HOAs, explore any contractual or legal questions or concerns, develop specific plans and districts, and put the infrastructure in place to provide a seamless transition to this new collection system.  

Yes, USD would still include collection of trash, recycling, and yard waste services. The county would not do away with curbside recycling. In fact, the county plans to make recycling easier with expanded recycling programs, including curbside organics/food waste collection. They also plan to expand programs for hard-to-recycle materials, like electronic waste and batteries, through the establishment of zero waste centers and mobile drop-off events. 

If you currently receive county waste collection service, you are already familiar with USD.  Currently, the county collects trash, recycling, and yard waste from over 44,500 households.  While some residences receive collection from county crews, the county contracts out some service areas and yard waste collection for all county waste collection service areas.  This service model, where the county contracts with a private collector to provide service, the collector abides by county operational guidelines, and the county provides customer service, mirrors USD.

In Managing and Transforming Waste Streams: A Tool for Communities, the United Stated Environmental Protection Agency explores policies and programs communities can implement to reduce the amount of waste disposed in landfills and promote waste prevention and reuse. The tool identifies service provider contracts and franchise agreement incentives or requirements as a way to achieve higher waste diversion. USD is the only way for the county to set these requirements and incentives.

How will this impact my community?

Waste Collection Trucks on Street

While contracts have not been developed, USD in other municipalities have contractual requirements that will increase service quality and economies of scale have shown consistent decrease in cost. Currently, the county assumes there is an average of three waste collectors operating in a neighborhood. Each collector makes two passes along the road to pick up trash, recycling, and yard waste from each side of the street. That means 18 waste collection trucks drive on a neighborhood street every week.  USD would reduce the number of trucks to six which would improve road safety, lower road maintenance costs, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

On average, Fairfax County already transfers almost 3,300 tons of trash per day to Reworld and landfills the ash. In 2023, the I-66 and I-95 Recycling and Disposal Centers recycled 2,688 tons of household hazardous waste, 4,908 tons of glass, 55,707 tons of yard waste, and 5,015 tons of metal. Additionally, the county collects trash, recycling, and yard waste from over 44,500 households, either through contracts or with county crews. The collection, transfer, and disposal or recycling of waste is often done so seamlessly that residents are not even aware of the vital role Fairfax County government plays in keeping our community clean, healthy, and sustainable.

The management of USD would just be just another part of the extensive solid waste management the county already performs. USD allow the government to have more control over the level of service and set penalties for poor performance. Having one collector serve a larger service area leads to a more effective and efficient collection system.

USD do not mean a “one size fits all” approach. The Solid Waste Management Program recognizes that curbside collection would not look the same in every neighborhood in Fairfax County. Over the next five years, staff would review successful existing countywide waste service models to develop a system that would best reflect Fairfax County.  

While USD may be new to Fairfax County residents, it is being used successfully in many other cities and counties across the United States. Arlington County provides trash, recycling, and organics collection to single-family homes, duplexes, and some townhouses. Montgomery County, Maryland, collects trash and recycling for all single-family residences in the county, as well as requires mandatory recycling and waste reduction for multi-family properties. USD, also referred to as franchising, is popular throughout the United States, including San Diego, California, Seattle, Washington, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Harris County, Texas, Phoenix, Arizona, Miami-Dade, Florida, and Broward County, Florida to name a few.

At this time, USD would focus on single-family residences only. To expand USD to other sectors, Virginia law requires the county to provide five years’ notice to a private company before establishing USD that could potentially displace the business (§ 15.2-934. Displacement of private waste companies). 

How will this impact waste collectors?

The intent of USD is not to put collectors out of the job. Supporting small, women-owned, and disadvantaged businesses is a Board of Supervisors priority, but USD service areas and the contracts have not been developed. At the direction of the Board, staff would explore options to support small, women-owned, and minority-owned businesses as they develop USD contracts.

Currently, about 100 county employees manage and operate county trash and recycling collection, which services about 10% of Fairfax County residents. Over the next five years, staff in these positions would transition to county jobs assisting the establishment of USD, supporting solid waste education, finance, or enforcement, and operating the proposed zero waste centers. This transition would provide opportunities for professional development and career growth, as well as the possibility of higher pay.;

Over the next five years, the county would engage with residents and collectors, analyze trash and recycling disposal information, residential housing data, and evaluate truck routing efficiencies to develop sanitation districts.  They will take these variables into consideration when creating the districts. 

How will this impact Fairfax County government?

Current county staff levels are not adequate to meet the needs of a countywide USD. Before the county can implement USD, there must be a five-year displacement period (see Virginia Code § 15.2-934. Displacement of private waste companies). During this period, the county would increase its finance, education, and enforcement staff to support USD. Following the displacement period, USD would be phased in, allowing additional time to scale up.

To establish USD, the county would create 24 new positions over 13 years. This includes 16 enforcement staff. The current compliance section has three full-time staff for the entire county, meaning one person must enforce solid waste codes for both residential and commercial sectors in three Board districts. Additional enforcement staff, along with finance, outreach, and contract specialists, would help provide an enhanced level of service by proactively identifying issues, responding to complaints, and holding the collectors responsible for meeting contract requirements.

What are the next steps?

Virginia law requires the county to provide five years’ notice to a private company before establishing USD that could potentially displace the business (§ 15.2-934. Displacement of private waste companies). The five-year period would allow the county to engage with residents and collectors, develop specific plans, shift existing staff and hire new positions to support the expanded services of USD, and put the infrastructure in place to provide a seamless transition to this new collection system.

The Board of Supervisors will vote on moving forward with the five-year displacement period following a public hearing in June 2025.  More information on the public hearing will be provided on this webpage this spring.  The focus of the hearing is on the inadequacies of our current waste management system, not the future replacement system which is not yet fully designed.  During the required five-year period under Virginia law, the Department of Public Works and Environmental Services will develop detailed plans for service implementation and provide multiple opportunities for public review and input. For the latest waste management updates and opportunities engage on USD, subscribe to the Fairfax Recycles newsletter and follow us on Facebook and X @ffxpublicworks.

Fairfax County is at the very beginning of a years-long process. Right now, the county is exploring the option to pursue USD.  The first step is to initiate a five-year displacement period.  The five-year period would allow the county to engage with residents and collectors and develop detailed plans that will address cost, bin size and options, district layouts, contracts, and other key components to provide a seamless transition to this new collection system.

If you would like to submit input on the proposed USD, please email us at USDfeedback@publicinput.com. We will review your response and share all feedback received with the Board of Supervisors prior to the June public hearing. For the latest waste management updates, subscribe to the Fairfax Recycles newsletter and follow us on Facebook and X @ffxpublicworks.


Simplifying Trash Collection: Understanding Unified Sanitation Districts – EnviroPod #51

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