Agenda - Council - 12/11/2018 - Laserfiche WebLink

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CC Regular Session 4. 7. Meeting Date: 12/11/2018 By: Chris Anderson, Community Development Information Title Adopt Resolution # 18-258 to Enter into a Residential Recycling Program Agreement with Anoka County to Receive SCORE Funds for 2019 Purpose/Background: Each year, Anoka County receives funding from the State of Minnesota pursuant to Minnesota Statute § 115A.557. The County distributes these funds, known as SCORE (Select Committee On Recycling and the Environment) funds, to municipalities within the county. In 2019, the allocation includes a base of $10,000 plus $5.00 per household. Ramsey's base allocation for 2019 is $55,390.00. The funding is intended to help municipalities achieve their recycling goals as established by the Anoka County Board of Commissioners. Ramsey's 2019 recycling goal, established by Anoka County, is 2,777 tons (this is up 81 tons from the 2018 goal). The goal is based on 215 pounds per person (single family households, up to four [4] units) and 160 pounds per person for multi -tenant households (five [5] or more units). The City of Ramsey has traditionally used these funds to promote recycling and waste reduction education and awareness, notifying new residents of the recycling program components, to offset costs of the spring and fall recycling day events and other collection events/opportunities, and to fund the recycling coordinator position, which duties are a component of the City Planner position. To receive the SCORE funding, each municipality must enter into an agreement with Anoka County that outlines required components of a municipality's recycling program. These required components include providing households an opportunity to recycle at least four (4) broad types of materials, a public information program, recycling drop-off opportunities, and notifying new residents of the recycling program. Furthermore, municipalities are encouraged, but not required, to look at opportunities to expand its recycling program by offering additional drop-off events, implement and/or enhance recycling at community events, enhance multi -family recycling opportunities, and/or develop opportunities for source separated compostables/organics collection. Observations/Alternatives: For the second consecutive year, the tonnage goal, which is based on both single family and multi -family homes, is being increased (increasing by five [5] pounds per person in single family homes; no change to the multifamily homes, which will once again be 160 pounds per person). The increase is the County's attempt to incrementally move toward the State's goal of recycling 75%, by weight, of total solid waste generated by 2030, which is a very challenging benchmark. Other challenges to recycling have been growing throughout the year. China has implemented very restrictive thresholds for contaminants in bales of recycled materials that it will accept (0.5% contamination, about the equivalent of 9 pounds in an 1,800 pound bale). Furthermore, China has stated that by 2020 it will no longer import any recyclable materials. This is primarily impacting recycling of plastics and certain fiber (paper) products. The downturn in the plastics recycling markets has also brought into question what is truly recyclable. At this time, items such as black, plastic frozen dinner trays, refrigerator and freezer boxes, and egg cartons, should not be put in the recycling cart as there is no longer a market for these materials. Due to the day to day changes in the recycling world, there needs to be a greater emphasis on the basic tenets of