New MPCA plan calls for 15 percent reduction in Twin Cities waste

In January 2024, the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) released the Metro Solid Waste Policy Plan 2022-2042(External link), which includes 70 strategies for improving how the seven-county metro area manages a growing waste problem. The 20-year plan aims to reduce waste across the Twin Cities with strategies ranging from requiring curbside compost pickup to fees for takeout containers and grants for businesses to reduce food waste.

Hennepin County and other metro area counties are required to submit a county-specific plan that responds to the required and optional strategies in the Metro Solid Waste Policy Plan.

More trash is generated every year in the Twin Cities, and efforts to reduce the amount of waste that goes to landfills continue to be a challenge. The region generated 3.3 million tons of waste in 2021, and this number is expected to grow 19% by 2042. The Twin Cities recycling rate rose slightly last year to 49% — far less than the state’s goal of achieving a 75% recycling rate by 2030.

Hennepin County will work with the MPCA and engage cities, haulers, residents, and other stakeholders to develop a county-specific plan to meet the requirements included in the Metro Solid Waste Plan.

The county will focus its engagement on the following required strategies:

  • Place increased priority on waste prevention and reuse programs.
  • Make residential curbside organics available in cities with population > 5,000.
  • Develop plans to prevent and manage wood waste.
  • Reduce barriers and increase participation in household hazardous waste services.
  • Establish mandatory pre-processing of waste to recover recyclables from the trash.

The county will draft the plan in spring and early summer. 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 anticipates releasing the draft Solid Waste Management Plan for public comment in August and submit it for board consideration and approval in the fall. The plan must be submitted to the MPCA by October 29, 2024.

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