Solid Waste Authority briefing: officials urge Tamarac to join regional ILA to avert future landfill costs

Representatives from the Broward Solid Waste Authority (SWA) presented an interlocal agreement and master plan to the Tamarac City Commission on May 11, urging the city to join a countywide authority to manage disposal and processing.

Denise Horland, council president for the City of Plantation and current president of the Broward League of Cities, opened by warning of limited landfill and waste‑to‑energy capacity and pointing to Miami‑Dade’s experience of trucking waste long distances. “We are in a crisis in Broward County,” she said, urging scale and collaboration.

Sam May, the SWA’s interim executive director, outlined the authority’s aims: reduce reliance on landfills by increasing recycling and reuse programs, leverage countywide purchasing power to lower tipping fees, and establish convenient drop‑off centers for household hazardous waste, paint, and recycling. May estimated the SWA fee at about $2.89 per household per year (roughly $2.22 per ton initially) and said the plan phases funding based on population, tonnage and — later — a non‑ad valorem assessment on tax bills.

“By joining the SWA you’ll be of most‑favored‑nation status and get the best negotiated unit prices,” May said, adding that curbside collection would remain under the city’s existing arrangements and the SWA would handle disposal and processing.

Commissioners asked clarifying questions; after the presentation, Mayor Gomez noted the item already appears on a future agenda for formal consideration. No vote was taken at the meeting; staff will include the ILA on the commission docket for a later decision.