Washington County Organics and Food Scraps Program Expansion to Oakdale

Hannah Keller and Analie Garlets from Washington County presented details on the new food scraps pickup program, a collaboration between Ramsey and Washington counties. The program is expanding to Oakdale in April 2024. Residents sign up to receive durable, BPI-certified compostable bags, which they fill with food scraps and place in their regular trash carts. These bags are then separated by AI robots at the Ramsey Washington Recycling and Energy (R&E) Center in Newport and sent to a commercial composting facility. The program is free and aims to divert 20% of household food waste, aligning with state mandates for waste reduction and energy conversion. County Commissioner Karasi highlighted the program's role in meeting a 2030 mandate for 75% waste diversion and urged high resident participation. Key considerations included the unique durability of the program's specific bags, which are required for the sorting technology, and resident adaptation to new collection methods.

Status Updates on 3M Water Settlement Priority 2 Funding

Monica Siglet provided an update on the approximately $20 million 'Priority 2' allocation from the 3M water settlement, specifically for natural resource damage. She detailed the revised goals: restoring aquatic/terrestrial resources, understanding fish tissue contamination, and enhancing outdoor recreational opportunities. The application process will involve a 30-day Letter of Intent followed by a 60-day full project proposal, with a workshop planned to assist applicants. A key restriction is that projects cannot be in 'high-risk screening areas' (e.g., disposal sites, Raleigh Creek downstream from Oakdale, Mississippi River at Cottage Grove production facility) as the funding is not for remediation. Discussion included the definition of 'environmental justice' in project evaluation (ensuring no disadvantage to communities regarding health and safety) and the likelihood of projects needing to be on public land. The target for project initiation is roughly a year from now.