Vol. IX No. 1
January / February 2015
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Minnesota Compost Rule Changes Get Frosty Reception from Industry
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ule changes which Minnesota officials say are designed to streamline regulations and encourage more large and small compost operations as a way to help the state achieve a 75 percent recycling rate by 2030 are receiving a less than enthusiastic response from the composting industry. “My opinion on the rules is that at best they will have no effect in encouraging composting at all, and at worst will substantially add to the cost of new facilities which will inhibit or reduce the amount of composting that goes on in the state,” says Tom Halbach, a professor and extension educator in the Department of Soil, Water and Climate at the University of Minnesota and a board member of the Minnesota Composting Council. “Why pass a rule that’s supposedly going to encourage composting when in fact it does either nothing or actually makes it more difficult.” “We’re going backwards. We’re not going forwards,” laments Marcus Zbinden, vice chairman of the composting council and environmental specialist in Carver County. “We’re going to seek legislative relief for this rather than going through the MPCA (Minnesota Pollution Control Agency).” The agency spent some five years developing the new compost rules, which hadn’t been closely looked at since the late 1980s or early 1990s, notes Tim Farnan, principal planner with the MPCA. “In 2010, several local governments asked us to amend the compost rule to better support the composting of source-separated organic materials,” he explains. “We agreed that changes were necessary to expand composting opportunities and to align the rule requirements with modern
By P.J. Heller
composting practices. Our first objective was to streamline requirements in order to expand composting opportunities.” “I don’t believe that goal was met,” counters Doug Johnson, a veteran in the composting industry and director of operations at Full Circle Organics. “It’s a good start but it’s a work in progress.” Farnan, however, says the MPCA supports efforts to increase composting. “It avoids disposal of organic material, moves the state toward its goal of achieving a 75 percent recycling rate and allows Minnesota to fully realize the environmental benefits of composting,” he says. Under the rule changes which became effective Dec. 30 — they were approved Nov. 18 by the MPCA Citizens’ Board and subsequently signed by Gov. Mark Dayton — two new categories would be added to the state’s list of three compost facilities. The new categories would be for “small compost sites” and for “source-separated organic material” (SSOM) compost facilities. Left virtually unchanged were the categories for backyard compost sites (for single-family household sites only and with materials limited to food scraps, garden wastes, weeds, lawn cuttings,
leaves and prunings), yard waste compost facilities, and solid waste compost facilities. The small compost site category would apply to facilities such as those operated by community gardens, schools and universities, churches and others. “We’ve had a real increase in interest in urban gardening and urban farming, not only in Minneapolis and St. Paul but all across the country,” Halbach says. Among the items the small compost sites would be allowed to accept are food scraps, yard waste and nonrecyclable paper. Fats, oils, grease, meat, dairy, animal manure, diapers and sanitary products are not allowed. Small compost site operators would be limited to 120 cubic yards of material on site at any one time. “It sounds like a big number for a backyard composter but for commercial people it’s really really small,” notes Halbach, adding that local governments will now have to come up with ordinances to address those sites. No permits are required for small compost or backyard compost sites. Zbinden said he would have preferred a much larger limit on the amount of compost at a site, Continued on page 3