Solid Waste Management Plan
The Hennepin County Solid Waste Management Plan will detail how the county implements state policy to reduce waste, increase recycling and advance a zero-waste future. It is written to respond to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency’s Metro Solid Waste Policy Plan with a 20-year vision and updated every six years.
The foundation of this plan will be the county’s Zero Waste Plan, developed in 2023 to meet the county’s goal of diverting 90% or more of waste from landfills or incinerators. The county further prioritized the highest impact zero-waste actions in the Plan to Reinvent Hennepin County’s Solid Waste System to accelerate the closure and repurposing of the Hennepin Energy Recovery Center (HERC).
Follow along to stay informed on the process to advance zero-waste in Hennepin County.
The Hennepin County Solid Waste Management Plan will detail how the county implements state policy to reduce waste, increase recycling and advance a zero-waste future. It is written to respond to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency’s Metro Solid Waste Policy Plan with a 20-year vision and updated every six years.
The foundation of this plan will be the county’s Zero Waste Plan, developed in 2023 to meet the county’s goal of diverting 90% or more of waste from landfills or incinerators. The county further prioritized the highest impact zero-waste actions in the Plan to Reinvent Hennepin County’s Solid Waste System to accelerate the closure and repurposing of the Hennepin Energy Recovery Center (HERC).
Follow along to stay informed on the process to advance zero-waste in Hennepin County.
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Updates made to solid waste plan and submitted for approval
Staff reviewed feedback received during the public comment period for the Solid Waste Management Plan and made changes to the plan, which are summarized below.
The updated solid waste plan (PDF) has been shared with commissioners and will be discussed in the Public Works committee meeting on October 8. See board meeting materials.
The county’s plan must be approved by the board and submitted to the MPCA no later than October 29, 2024.
Changes made to the Solid Waste Management Plan
The following changes were made based on public feedback.
Improving the reliability of the data
Strategy #3. Require waste composition study at least once every 5 years at all landfills that are located within the county.
This requirement does not apply to Hennepin County because there are no operating landfills in the county, the county is committed to collecting data to measure progress and inform our approach to program implementation and policy development. This strategy was edited to add that the county will conduct at least two waste sorts at a county facility or in collaboration with partners during the term of the solid waste management plan.
Regional solutions
Strategy #10. Commit to standardized outreach and education.
This strategy was edited to include actions from the county’s Zero Waste Plan related to culturally relevant outreach. The county will expand partnerships and continue to improve efforts to customize strategies, approaches, and messaging to resonate with different audiences. This aligns with comments that education should meet community needs and cultural differences.
Waste reduction
Strategy #16. Implement a formal county sustainable purchasing policy using MPCA guidance.
Commenters pointed out that the federal government recently announced a new directive related to single-use plastics and recommended that the county do the same. This strategy was expanded to reference that directive and say the county will review and consider integrating similar policies and practices.
Reuse
Strategy #21. Implement a green meeting policy.
This strategy was modified to clarify that it will be an internal county policy. The county will share its policy with cities and encourage implementation of similar policies at the city level.
Strategy #22. Implement a county policy encouraging the use of reusable food and beverage service ware.
Commenters said this strategy should do more than simply encourage use, and the county should lead by example in this area. This strategy was edited to say the policy will apply to both county-hosted events and county spaces. As with strategy #16, there is overlap with new federal policies for single-use plastics, which the county will look at to potentially incorporate.
Strategy #23. Adopt an ordinance with a mandatory consumer charge or ban for single-use items.
Commenters emphasized the importance of reuse as part of this initiative. This strategy was edited to include a focus on increasing reusable serviceware over disposables.
This strategy was also expanded to explain that the county will continue to allocate resources to existing programs that address single-use plastics. The MNinmize campaign, business, school, and multifamily waste prevention and recycling grants, and new zero waste community grants all provide incentives to switch from single-use plastics to reusables. The new extended producer responsibility for packaging legislation has the potential to help address this issue as well.
In addition to continuing our existing work, the county’s newly hired position to address plastic waste will work on expanding programming and policy on this issue.
Strategy#26. Establish a reuse location for residential drop-off and pick-up.
The county already provides a reuse location and provides funding for this type of activity, feedback suggested the county should go further. This strategy was edited to say the county will explore options for establishing a reuse hub.
Strategy #27. Establish a curbside set-out day to allow residents to set out used items for reuse.
Residents highlighted the need for additional collection and drop-off options, and cities had questions about the role of the county in this strategy. Thie strategy was clarified to say the county will commit funding to pilots and expand efforts.
Collection best practices
Strategies #33 & #34. Contracting for waste collection.
Many comments were supportive of organized collection, though we also heard that more discussion is needed. This strategy was expanded to say the county will commit resources to engage with cities and other partners on the organized collection process to identify and push for legislative changes to make the process easier.
Recycling management
Strategy #37. Provide assistance to multifamily properties to improve recycling.
Residents and cities expressed a desire for more equitable services for multifamily properties. The need for more support and resources goes beyond traditional recycling and extends to organics, mattresses, household hazardous waste, and more. This strategy was edited to say that county will continue to explore ways to provide the same level of access to waste services at multifamily properties that is available to residents through city programs.
Organics market development
Strategy #55. Require food-derived compost in county construction and landscaping projects.
Cities said they are looking for more support from the county on this strategy. This strategy was edited to add that the county will provide specifications and provide technical assistance. Changes also made it clear that the county will explore requiring the use of food-derived compost in city projects.
Additional edits
Additional edits were made to reference the policy plan objectives and add the county’s zero-waste dashboard metrics (page 22). The legislative zero-waste priorities needed to reinvent the county’s solid waste system were added to the supporting materials.
Acknowledging HERC
There continues to be productive tensions around the Hennepin Energy Recovery Center (HERC) and its role in the county's waste management system. The county remains committed to implementation of the Plan to Reinvent the Solid Waste System and continued conversations about HERC and its future.
The county is bound by state law to address the waste hierarchy to reduce waste, increase recycling, and process waste to recovery energy to reduce landfilling in this solid waste management plan. (Minn. Stat. §§ 115A.02, 473.149, 473.803)
The Hennepin County Solid Waste Management Plan:
- Complies with statutory mandates, covers solid waste planning for the period of 2024-2029, and advances a zero-waste future.
- Includes a statement to accelerate the closure and repurposing of the HERC (page 4).
- Describes the established zero-waste dashboard that defines the criteria to be met to responsibly close HERC (page 26) and as the metrics for tracking progress toward metro policy plan objectives and the county’s zero-waste goal (page 22).
- References the key operational and legal steps that would need to be completed to stop incinerating trash at HERC at any point in time (page 26).
Recognizing the need to go further, faster
The feedback on this plan from the public asked the county to go further and faster to achieve zero waste. With board adoption of this plan, the county’s vision of a reinvented solid waste system will be defined: a zero-waste future where less waste is created in the first place, where everyone shares responsibility, and where everyone benefits from easily accessible services. This system has widespread participation in programs and social norms that align with zero waste.
The county also recognizes that the success of this plan will be determined by the level of systemic change made, including:
- State leadership on zero-waste policies
- Funding and infrastructure development that matches the scope of the challenges and the ambition of the goals
- Ability for counties, cities, agencies and environmental advocates to align efforts
- Actions by businesses and residents to make zero waste a reality
The county is investing in this vision that will result in a circular economy, ensure an equitable system, and achieve climate and zero-waste goals.
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Summary of the key findings from the final comment period
The county gathered public comments on the draft Solid Waste Management Plan from August 13 to September 4, 2024, through an online written comment form. The county received 86 comments. The following are key findings:
Go further and act faster
Most of the comments on zero-waste actions recommend programs, policies, and strategies that the county is already implementing, illustrating gaps in awareness, accessibility, and reach of the county’s education, grants, and programs. Many comments reflect a desire for existing initiatives to be expanded, improved, or made more accessible. In general, the feedback said the county should go further and faster on the path to zero waste.
More specifically:
- Prioritize plastics more. Commenters supported the ban on single-use plastics, plastic bag bans, other plastic prevention strategies and ensure proper recycling.
- Increase reuse by establishing more drop-off locations, requiring the use of reusable serviceware for on-site dining, and offering tax incentives to resellers.
- Reduce food waste by educating and assisting consumers, addressing food insecurity, and expanding composting.
- Provide more support and resources for multifamily properties to make recycling, organics recycling, and other waste services more equitable.
- Organize organics recycling so that cities managed the service. Offer other financial incentives to make organics service more efficient and cost effective for residents.
- Reduce waste in school cafeterias and improve waste sorting practices in multifamily, businesses and retail locations.
- Promote and provide more drop-off options for items that could be reused, refurbished, and recycled, such as batteries, household furnishings, electronics, and other hard-to-recycle items.
- Improve data collection, increase compliance with hauler reporting, and share data with partners.
Strategies that received mixed reactions
- Mandates and requirements: Residents that seek to close the Hennepin Energy Recovery Center (HERC) expressed strong support for requirements and mandates to accelerate progress. Cities urge caution and a deliberative process for requirements and other policy mandates. Other commenters suggest centering equity to ensure required fees or mandates do not overly burden residents with lower incomes.
- Recycling recovery facility: Some residents are concerned that people will no longer recycle if they know trash is being sorted. Environmental advocates suggest requesting state funding for other zero-waste infrastructure, saying mixed-waste processing does not result in materials that are high enough quality to build circular supply chains.
HERC and its role in the solid waste system
The majority of the feedback focused on HERC. Many respondents rejected the zero-waste dashboard as criteria to meet to responsibly close HERC. These respondents said the plan was deficient because it does not include an immediate or specific date for the closure of HERC. Conversely, some respondents expressed their support for use of HERC to avoid landfilling.
Review all of the comments
For additional information on the feedback received, review the verbatim comments (PDF)
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Public comment period closed
The county received 86 comments on the solid waste plan between August 13 and September 4. Staff are reviewing the feedback now and drafting final edits to the plan.
Key findings from public feedback and a summary of final changes made to the plan based on this feedback will be shared when the plan is recommended by the Hennepin County Administrator for approval and communicated at an upcoming board meeting.
The county’s plan must be approved by the board and submitted to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) no later than October 29, 2024.
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Draft plan available for review
Provide comments on the 2024 Hennepin County Solid Waste Management Plan by September 5
The draft 2024 Hennepin County Solid Waste Management Plan (PDF) is now available for the public to review. Provide written comments by the solid waste plan comment form.
Next steps
We welcome your thoughts on the strategies included in the plan. Comments submitted by September 5 will be considered by the solid waste plan development team as the plan is finalized.
Staff will develop a summary of the public feedback received and will share a summary of final changes made to the plan based on this feedback.
The plan will then be submitted via a board action request for formal consideration and adoption by the Hennepin County Board of Commissioners. The county’s plan must be approved by the board and submitted to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) no later than October 29, 2024.
More about the plan
Metro counties are required to implement the MPCA’s Metro Policy Plan
Hennepin County, like all metro area counties, must submit a county-specific plan that implements the required strategies and various optional strategies in the Metro Solid Waste Policy Plan (PDF) (metro policy plan). The county-specific plan must address the waste hierarchy to reduce waste, increase recycling, abate landfilling, and advance a zero-waste future. (Minn. Stat. §§ 473.149, 473.803).
The 2024 Hennepin County Solid Waste Management Plan complies with these statutory mandates and covers the next 6 years of solid waste planning.
Accelerate zero waste
The county’s solid waste plan builds on the research, engagement and policy development from the past three years to accelerate zero waste.
Foundations of the solid waste plan includes the county's Climate Action Plan, Zero Waste Plan, and the Plan to Reinvent Hennepin County’s Solid Waste System.
The solid waste plan incorporates the county's prioritized highest impact zero-waste actions to accelerate a zero-waste future (see Section II: Zero-waste priorities, pages 14 - 20).
County-specific responses to each of the MPCA’s Metro Policy Plan strategies
The metro policy plan is prescriptive. It outlines 75 strategies, some of which are required and others are optional and assigned a point value. Each county must develop a plan that incorporates the required strategies and enough optional strategies to reach a minimum of 75 points. Hennepin County's proposed solid waste plan totals 148 points.
The metro policy plan included some strategies and/or details that were not specifically addressed in the county’s zero-waste priorities. These 17 strategies include:
Strategies to implement with cities
- Make residential curbside organics available in cities with population > 5,000 (required strategy #40)
- Collect recyclables, organics, and trash on the same day (required strategy #30)
- Adopt an ordinance with a mandatory consumer charge or ban for single-use (optional strategy #23)
- Establish a reuse location for residential drop-off and pick-up (optional strategy #26)
- Establish a curbside set-out day to allow residents to set out used items for reuse (optional strategy #27)
Strategies to implement with other partners
- Establish mandatory pre-processing of waste (required strategy #36)
- Develop plans to prevent and manage wood waste (required strategy #45)
- Develop contingency plans for large facility closures to reduce landfill reliance (required strategy #12)
- Improve hauler reporting (required strategy #1)
- Work with retailers on consumer awareness for handling batteries (required strategy #61)
- Improve recycling data collection at businesses within the county (optional strategy #4)
Strategies specific to county operations
- Implement a formal sustainable purchasing policy using MPCA guidance (required strategy #16)
- Implement a green meeting policy (required strategy #21)
- Require food-derived compost in county construction and landscaping projects (required strategy #55)
- Expand composting and mulching capacity beyond existing markets (optional strategy #52)
- Implement a county policy encouraging all county events and food providers use reusable food and beverage service ware (optional strategy #22)
- Use purchasing guidelines to require environmental product declaration for concrete (optional strategy #71)
Findings from public engagement efforts related to these strategies are included in the draft plan.
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Recycling opinion survey
The county conducted a statistically representative survey of approximately 500 residents across all 7 county commissioner districts in June 2024. The survey assessed opinions on residential recycling and organics recycling programs and level of support for various actions to meet the county’s zero-waste goals.
Key findings
The following is a summary of the key findings. Insights from the resident survey are included with the applicable zero-waste priorities and county-specific strategies throughout the draft solid waste plan.
Review the full residential recycling opinion survey report (PDF).
There are notable differences in satisfaction with cost of trash and recycling across income and race/ethnicity
Residents from lower income households were less satisfied with the cost of trash and recycling than those from higher income households. Those who identify as Black or African American or Hispanic/Latino were less satisfied with the cost of trash and recycling than those who identified as white.
Use of recycling drop-off locations is low
Most respondents report never using a recycling drop-off location for most of the materials accepted. Fluorescent bulbs are the least recycled at drop-off centers (81% of respondents reported never dropping these off), while old paint is the most frequently recycled (only 38% of respondents reported never dropping this item off). Residents with lower incomes were more likely to report never using recycling drop-off centers.
Ease of finding information about disposal associated with race/ethnicity
Respondents who identify as white are more likely than people of any other race or ethnicity to find it easy to locate information about trash and recycling disposal.
Residents who use curbside organics recycling are satisfied with the frequency and costs of collection
42% of surveyed residents use the curbside organics recycling program as their primary means of disposing of food waste. Of those, 80% indicated that they were satisfied both with the frequency of collection and the cost of the program.
Residents are generally positive about organics recycling
Overall, Hennepin County residents have positive feelings with respect to organics recycling. Over 70% of residents find it easy to do, believe it is a high-impact way to reduce waste, or feel that it should be required of all residents. However, those who do not use organics recycling were more likely to find it unpleasant or expensive.
Participation in organics recycling differs across the county
Although awareness of organics recycling is consistent across the county, there are some differences in use of organics recycling in different areas of the county. These differences are expected given the variation in programming, including how long organics recycling has been available, the type of program available (i.e., curbside collection or drop-off site), whether the city contracts for service, whether the programs are opt-in or voluntary, and the level of education and outreach.
Residents are mostly supportive of policies that support waste reduction
Residents are generally supportive of policy measures that would reduce waste in Hennepin County. Residents are most supportive of allowing cities to contract for collection of recyclables and trash to reduce cost (84% support) and reduce the number of trucks on the road (87% support). They are less supportive, however, of punitive measures and policies that would prohibit disposing certain materials in the trash.
Punitive measures and prohibitions are generally opposed by residents with lower incomes residents, while fee discounts to encourage recycling are strongly supported by lower-income residents. There was no association between commissioner district, race/ethnicity, or gender and policy support.
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Leveraging outreach opportunities with partners to maximize community connections
Staff used existing outreach opportunities with partners to connect with community on zero-waste actions. Staff attended community events, engaged the county’s Trusted Messengers program participants and select Zero Waste Plan community groups, and attended other meetings and events throughout the summer.
County staff presented to 25 Trusted Messenger participants in June 2024 to share information on the amount of waste produced and the county’s Zero Waste Plan, including actions to expand the reach of county waste education, grants and other programming and create a materials management system that reduces racial disparities and advances equity. Participants were interested in learning about waste issues. Some participants shared that they hadn’t given a lot of thought to waste issues before but were interested in learning more and sharing ideas and resources with their communities.
Participants were invited to tour the county’s drop-off facility in Brooklyn Park in July. Participants were glad to see the household hazardous waste collection process in action and expressed interest in doing more to promote the proper disposal of batteries, bulbs, and other hazardous items. Participants described opportunities to reduce waste in their own operations, for example reducing single-use water bottles for religious celebrations, and shared unique barriers for their communities, such as a distrust of public water service. County staff shared information about education resources and assistance available to improve recycling at community locations.
To support community-led zero waste action, the county offers the Green Partners Environmental Education grants to fund community-led education and behavior change zero-waste projects. In August 2024, the county established a new program - the Community Zero Waste Grant Program - that will focus on community-led projects that directly reduce or divert waste in communities that have higher barriers to waste programming. Examples of projects could include community-led swaps, repair clinics, special material collections, and recycling or organics drop-off sites that address waste programming gaps and/or culturally specific needs in communities with inequitable access to zero-waste tools.
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Feedback from cities
Cities play an important role in implementing recycling services, from contracting for service delivery to face-to-face interactions with residents about these services.
County staff met with city managers in May 2024 to discuss the highest impact zero-waste actions presented in the Plan to Reinvent Hennepin County’s Solid Waste System. The city managers discussed the needed investment in resources to maximize curbside programs, support for the county leading on organized waste collection efforts, interest in exploring more about recycling recovery facilities and how this technology can supplement curbside collection, and that the county can help cities communicate to residents the value of organics programs.
Staff also engaged city recycling coordinators on select strategies that affect their cities and residents – both required strategies that the county must implement and optional strategies the county is considering for implementation.
Staff held in-person and virtual meetings in May and June 2024 and sent a follow-up survey after the meetings. Cities that did not attend a meeting were invited to meet individually with county staff.
Of the 44 cities in Hennepin County, 31 cities representing 98% of the county’s population gave feedback through one or more of the input opportunities. Cities gave feedback on the following strategies:
Same-day collection
Required strategy #30: Collect recyclables, organics, and trash on the same day.
Recycling, trash, and organics are already collected on the same day in most cities. Most of the cities that have materials collected on different days did not express opposition to changing collection. For cities that don’t already have same-day collection in place, the change would require amending their ordinances and/or changing hauler licensing requirements.
Organics recycling collection in all cities with population over 5,000
Required strategy #40: Make residential curbside organics collection available in cities with a population greater than 5,000 by 2030.
Hennepin County’s recycling ordinance (Ordinance 13) requires cities with a population over 10,000 to make organics recycling service available to all households with curbside recycling, so this strategy would only affect Hennepin County cities with populations of 5,000 to 9,999 residents.
Some of the affected cities have already established organics recycling drop-off sites and wanted to know whether the drop-off site would need to be maintained after implementing curbside collection. Maintaining these drop-off sites would not be required but would be encouraged.
Cities with organized recycling collection see the benefit of also organizing organics, but they would like to maintain open collection for trash. Some of the affected cities said it would make sense to pursue organics collection as part of their new recycling contract and plan to include curbside organics collection in their recycling contract renewal discussions.
Support the county could provide to help the transition to curbside collection includes:
- Working with cities to incorporate organics collection into their new hauling contracts.
- Continuing to provide SCORE funding to cities to reduce the cost residents pay for curbside organics service and provide more funding to cities that implement organized collection.
- Assisting with the development and distribution of education and outreach materials.
- Encouraging participation by providing free supplies and incentivizes to residents, such as food scrap collection containers, initial supply of compostable plastic bags, and compost.
Using compost in construction and landscaping projects
Required strategy #55: Require food-derived compost in county construction and landscaping projects.
Although this strategy applies to counties in the Solid Waste Management Plan, the Hennepin County Zero Waste Plan extends this to cities. So, this is considered a required strategy for cities. Some cities already require compost to be used in their construction and landscaping projects.
There was some concern about whether there would be an adequate supply of material if all Hennepin County cities are required to use food-derived compost in their projects. However, this could be beneficial in terms of driving market development.
Cities stressed that clear specifications from the county would make it much easier to get internal support to implement this requirement and to ensure they are compliant. They suggested the county draft a specification and send it to the cities for review. Suggested elements of the specification include:
- Defining food-derived compost
- Types of projects that must use food-derived compost
- Best and/or required applications for food-derived compost
- How much compost has to be used in a given project or application to be compliant
- Guidance on the types of equipment that are most effective for applying compost
- Any exemptions, such as if the cost of food-derived compost increases project costs by a certain threshold amount
Cities encouraged the county to provide presentations and other outreach to the cities to facilitate implementation.
Managing wood waste
Required strategy #45: Develop plans to prevent and manage wood waste in each county and throughout the region.
The responses related to this strategy reinforce the need for better coordination of wood waste management and the need for more reliable processing options.
Some cities asked for more specifics of what would be required. Cities said the county could help with this strategy by providing additional disposal options.
Curbside set-out for reuse
Optional strategy #27: Establish a curbside set-out day to allow residents to set out used items for reuse.
A few cities expressed interest in this strategy, and several cities have recently worked with a nonprofit organization to collect some items for reuse at their cleanup events.
Cities had many questions about how this would be implemented. Cities raised concerns about costs, staff capacity, vendor capacity to pick up items, weather, quality of materials set out, and how much of the material set out would actually get reused.
Cities expressed the most interest in the following approaches to citywide reuse programs:
- Adding a reuse component to the annual cleanup drop-off event, which are already popular and well-used.
- Combining a curbside reuse event with a citywide garage sale and annual clean up drop-off event.
Help the county could provide for these programs include creating a list of the most popular or valuable reuse items and coordinating a curbside reuse day with a county operated hazardous waste collection event in the city to promote reuse, proper disposal of waste, and increase participation in these activities.
Contract for residential recycling and organics
Optional strategy #33 : Contract for residential recycling and organics by 2030.
Several cities that currently have open collection for organics are interested in exploring organized collection or are already in discussion with their haulers about changing to organized collection. Others stated that they are not considering the change at this time. Only one city has open collection for recycling. Several cities said the county putting requirements in place would pave the way for city staff and city council members to make the change. Cities said the county could provide staffing support to answer calls from residents about this change.
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Feedback from waste haulers
Staff invited all 161 Hennepin County licensed waste haulers to provide input on implementing zero-waste actions, 7 of which asked for individual meetings with staff.
Waste haulers provided feedback on the following strategies:
Same-day collection
Required strategy #30: Collect recyclables, organics, and trash on the same day.
Haulers said that same day collection is already common and preferred my most customers, so this strategy is not viewed as a major challenge. Some haulers said there could be challenges if many cities across the metro require collection on the same day. They also said cities could help by coordinating efforts to avoid having multiple haulers trying to use the same narrow alleys or streets at the same time. Haulers said exemptions should be considered for certain circumstances, such as organics recycling routes with few customers or routes with space or safety challenges.
Pre-processing of waste
Required strategy #36: Establish mandatory pre-processing of waste at resource recovery facilities and landfills by 2030.
Haulers expressed many concerns about this strategy. They had questions about the MPCA’s definition of pre-processing, expectations, and standards for what is acceptable. They had concerns related to confusion among customers, contamination, quality of materials, ability to find end markets, and cost. They wondered if this was the best way to invest in zero-waste initiatives. They suggested delaying implementation until more is understood about how the new Packaging Waste and Cost Reduction Act would affect this strategy. They also wondered if organics would be included and if co-collection of organics would be part of this strategy.
Managing wood waste
Required strategy #45: Develop plans to prevent and manage wood waste in each county and throughout the region.
Most haulers said they don’t handle tree waste, and any wood waste they deal with is related to construction and demolition waste. One hauler that owns a yard waste site shared concerns about having an outlet for the material and agreed that more needs to be done to support capacity.
Hauler reporting
Required strategy #1: Increase compliance with hauler reporting per Minn. Stat. § 115A.93.
All haulers said they currently comply with the requirements and are okay with this strategy since they appreciate standardized requirements. Some haulers noted that the reporting process is cumbersome and could be made easier.
Organized collection
Required strategy 33 and #34: Contract for residential recycling and organics by 2030.
Haulers had mixed opinions about this strategy, with some strongly opposed, some neutral, and some supporting aspects of it. Several haulers noted that organics participation was significantly higher in cities that contracted for organics service. Haulers felt similarly about a consortium model, with some supporting it and others strongly opposed. Small and medium sized haulers were concerned that large haulers would take over an organized system.
Implementing Hennepin County Ordinance 13
Hauler role in implementing the county’s recycling and organics requirements
Some haulers said the county needs to improve compliance efforts, with some suggesting more focus on medium-sized generators. Most haulers said they support partnering with the county on communications. Haulers are concerned about contamination and said there’s a need for more education and training.
Hauler licensing
Regional hauler licensing and expanding licensing to recycling haulers
Most haulers are already licensed through cities, and haulers were generally supportive or neutral about this idea.
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How much waste do we need to manage?
More trash is generated every year in the county, and reducing the amount of waste that goes to landfills and incinerators continue to be a challenge.
Businesses and residents in the county generated 1.3 million tons of waste in 2023. The county’s recycling rate rose slightly last year to 43% — far less than the state’s goal of achieving a 75% recycling rate by 2030.
The county recently published our annual recycling progress report. The report highlights the full scope of the waste prevention and recycling programs the county offered in 2023 to support residents and businesses on their zero-waste journey. Despite these impressive efforts, progress is incremental.
A dramatic shift in priority at the state level to advance zero-waste policies is needed to meet our zero waste and climate goals. The Solid Waste Management Plan will outline the actions the county will take to continue to drive the transformational change required.
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Community engagement approach
Facilitating public involvement is an essential part of preparing the county’s Solid Waste Management Plan. The county’s approach includes the following actions.
Building from the broad base of learning from the development of the Zero Waste Plan
The county’s Zero Waste Plan (PDF) was developed with extensive public feedback from more than 1,800 participants over the previous two years. Staff will build from these key findings as we gather additional input on how to implement the zero-waste actions and organize these actions to meet the objectives defined in the state’s metro policy plan.
Learn more about the learnings from the development of the Zero Waste Plan, including what we heard during the first phase of engagement focused on community members typically not reached during solid waste planning processes and key findings from the public comment process.
Gathering further input on implementation of prioritized zero-waste actions, especially with cities and haulers
Cities play an important role in implementing recycling services, from contracting for service delivery to the face-to-face interaction with residents in providing these services. County administrators met with city managers in May to discuss the Plan to Reinvent Hennepin County’s Solid Waste System (PDF).
Staff are engaging city recycling coordinators on select strategies that affect their cities and residents – both required strategies that the county must implement and optional strategies the county is considering for implementation. Two in-person meetings with city recycling coordinators were held in May and two virtual meetings were held in June.
Staff are also reaching out to waste haulers to gather their input on implementing the Zero Waste Plan and prioritized actions.
Educating residents on the amount of waste produced, engaging in solutions, and building support for needed policy and behavior change
To gather additional feedback from residents, the county will conduct a statistically representative survey of approximately 500 residents across all seven districts of the county. The survey will collect people’s opinions on residential recycling and organics programs and level of support for various actions to meet the county’s zero-waste goals.
Leveraging outreach opportunities with partners to maximize community connections
Staff will also be leveraging existing outreach opportunities with partners to connect with community on zero-waste actions. Staff will attend community events held by Green Partners grantees, engage the county’s Trusted Messengers program participants, and attend other meetings or events throughout the summer.
Learnings from this phase of engagement will be shared as soon as they are complied.
Follow Project
Timeline
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April – June 2024
Solid Waste Management Plan has finished this stageGather feedback to improve implementation of zero-waste actions
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May 2024
Solid Waste Management Plan has finished this stageFormat Zero Waste Plan actions into required format for Solid Waste Management Plan
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July 2024
Solid Waste Management Plan has finished this stage- Summarize feedback
- Complete draft plan
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August 2024
Solid Waste Management Plan has finished this stageRelease draft plan and conduct public comment period
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September 2024
Solid Waste Management Plan is currently at this stageMake final edits to the plan
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October 2024
this is an upcoming stage for Solid Waste Management PlanSubmit the plan to the Hennepin County Board of Commissioners for consideration and adoption
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October 29, 2024
this is an upcoming stage for Solid Waste Management PlanSolid Waste Management Plan due to the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency
Who's Listening
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Waste Reduction and Recycling Manager
Email ben.knudson@hennepin.us -
Project Manager
Email john.jaimez@hennepin.us -
Engagement Coordinator
Email joseph.vital@hennepin.us