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Reaffirming County's Plan to Reinvent the Solid Waste System - offered by Commissioner Fernando
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WHEREAS, Hennepin County engaged thousands of residents and businesses, as well as city staff, elected officials, waste haulers and environmental advocacy organizations to shape our vision for a zero-waste future for more than 4 years; and
WHEREAS, this engagement, research and deliberation led to a significant body of ambitious zero-waste policy work: the Zero Waste Plan in June 2023, the Report on HERC and its Role in the Solid Waste System in September 2023, A Plan to Reinvent Hennepin County's Solid Waste System in February 2024, all of which culminated in the 2024 Solid Waste Management Plan that was adopted by the county board in October 2024 and approved by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency in November 2025; and
WHEREAS, the county's Plan to Reinvent Hennepin County's Solid Waste System to achieve zero waste and accelerate closure and repurposing of the Hennepin Energy Recovery Center (HERC), which includes a plan for implementation for the county and its partners to achieve zero-waste and establishes a zero-waste dashboard with criteria to be met to responsibly close HERC between 2028 and 2040; and
WHEREAS, the county took action by committing resources to the implementation of zero waste by increasing waste reduction and recycling budget and hiring new staff to expand existing programs and new initiatives developed from community needs and priorities, such as reducing materials with the greatest climate impacts such as food, plastics, and building materials, and address long-standing disparities in access to recycling and organics services, especially in multifamily settings; and
WHEREAS, the county has made progress in the areas that the county has the most control: including policies like amending Ordinance 13 and increasing compliance with these food waste diversion and recycling requirements; programming lik...
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