Contact: Becky Helgesen, 651-757-2421, 800-657-3864
St. Paul, Minn. -- The Minnesota Pollution Control Agency (MPCA) has awarded waste-reduction grants to Carlton County, Dodge County, Olmsted County and the Tri-County Solid Waste Management Commission in St. Cloud.
The Solid Waste Environmental Assistance Grants are intended to help communities reduce the amount of solid waste sent to landfills by increasing waste reduction, reuse, recycling and composting. Since landfills generate methane, a greenhouse gas, any reduction in the amount of garbage sent to landfills also reduces greenhouse gas emissions. Greenhouse gases are the primary cause of global warming or climate change.
Carlton County was awarded $4,765 to help establish a backyard composting program to divert organic material from landfills. Composted organic material does not produce methane gas.
Dodge County was awarded $9,860 to establish curbside organics collection and develop on-site composting for businesses, schools and residents.
Olmsted County was awarded $9,999 to work with the Rochester Community and Technical College and other schools to increase waste reduction and recycling.
The Tri-County Solid Waste Management Commission in St. Cloud was awarded $9,999 to develop and implement waste reduction, recycling and green cleaning programs in St. Cloud area schools.
In addition, two projects that required staff time instead of funding were developed with the Western Lake Superior Sanitary District (WLSSD) in Duluth. One project is to expand recycling options at convenience stores that increase employment for people with disabilities, and the second project to increase organics recovery from businesses served by WLSSD’s compost facility.
In a 2008 report to the legislature, the Minnesota Climate Change Advisory Group set greenhouse gas reduction goals for the entire state. The MPCA chose to focus some of its environmental assistance awards on projects that emphasize reduction of greenhouse gas emissions through waste reduction, reuse, recycling and composting programs.
Waste reduction, reuse, recycling and composting not only help eliminate greenhouse gas produced in landfills, they also reduce greenhouse gas emissions associated with the manufacture and production of new materials. By separating organic materials for composting, business and homeowners also provide themselves with nutrient-rich material to fertilize their gardens, reducing the demand for petroleum-based fertilizers.
For more information about waste reduction, reuse, recycling, composting and climate change, visit the MPCA’s Web site at http://www.pca.state.mn.us.
