Agenda - Council Work Session - 11/10/2020

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More recently, there has been significant disruption to the recycling commodities markets resulting from a policy shift by China. Much of the United States' recyclable materials, especially plastics and mixed paper, had historically been shipped overseas to China. However, beginning in 2018, China implemented their National Sword policy that included a ban on importing certain scrap materials and for other materials, an extremely stringent contamination rate (not to exceed 0. S%, which is the equivalent of about 10 pounds of contamination per 1 ton of material). Essentially, this move created significant disruption to the recycling commodities markets, resulting in significant processing fees being applied to haulers at Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs). Again, ACE did not approach the City to discuss any sort of per unit fee adjustment. ACE Solid Waste has been providing dependable recycling service for the community for about 30 years. ACE moved their operation to Ramsey in the early 2000s and continues to invest in the community with improvements to their site. Most recently (2019/2020), this included an expansion of their transfer station facility, creating a more efficient operation (now that the Great River Energy Processing Plant is shut down). As part of this expansion, ACE also included a 'convenience center' for residents to drop off additional recyclable materials (e.g. cardboard, newspaper, etc., that doesn't fit in a residents recycling cart). This benefits residents by not having to 'store' excess recyclables nor drive to another community's recycling center. As a reminder, by offering recycling through a contracted service provider, each household is billed for recycling on a quarterly basis through the City. The hauler invoices the City monthly, they do not bill each residence directly for basic recycling service (they may potentially for walk up/drive up service, cleaning of carts, etc.). Each household is billed by the City regardless of whether they choose to participate in the recycling program or not. It is treated as another utility, similar to priority street lights and stormwater management. Timeframe: 20 Minutes Funding Source: Staff is handling this case as part of regular duties. The City receives funding from Anoka County for some costs associated with recycling, and the City charges a quarterly recycling utility fee to Residents for this service. Responsible Party(ies): Chloe McGuire, Senior Planner Tim Gladhill, Deputy City Administrator Outcome: Direct staff to either: 1. Continue direct negotiations with ACE Solid Waste, Inc. or 2. Start formal Request for Proposals (RFP) for new recycling contract Attachments DRAFT Resolution #20-225 Contracts Review Circle Pines Example Monticello Example DRAFT City Council Minutes dated October 3, 2020 Form Review