Solid Waste & Recycling

Solid Waste & Recycling Committee August 21, 2025 Third Floor Meeting Room #3308 Call Meeting to Order: Chairman Jim Gebauer called the meeting to order at 9:00 AM. Members Present: Jim Gebauer, Karen Cummings, Diane Albrecht, Rollie Thums, Mary Thums, Barb Kallenbach and Dan Hoffman Members Absent: Darrell Thompson and Joe Harris Other Attendees: Michelle Grimm, Nicole Hager, Kyle Noonan, Sue Noland, and The Star News Approve Minutes: Cummings moved to approve the minutes of the August 22, 2024 meeting; Seconded by Albrecht. Motion carried. Approve Agenda: Thums moved to approve the agenda with 10 items as posted; Seconded by Hoffman. Motion carried. 2025 Tonnages Thru July: Tonnages thru July comparing 2024 vs. 2025 were reviewed. Overall, volumes are down with a total of 344 tons of recyclables collected through July. The estimated weights are provided by GFL. 2025 Expenses To-Date: Administrator reported there was a carry-over of $54,076 from 2024. The expenses through mid-August are $34,136. Grant dollars of $88,473 have been received and distributed to joint municipalities. Joint Rib Lake received $18,518 and City of Medford was $26,200. The balance available is approximately $73,429. Future expenses will be the tire collection expenses, monthly office expenses and container billings being the greatest expense. 2025 Appliance/Electronic collection and Clean Sweep collection: The 2025 appliance and electronic collection was held on May 3 in Medford and Gilman. Approximately 45,440 pounds of misc. electronics were collected along with 393 old appliances, and 700 TVs and monitors. There were 458 participants in the electronics and 259 with appliances. A $5000 grant was awarded from the DNR to help with transportation and staff expenses of electronic collection. The Clean Sweep was held on June 12 in Medford with 138 participants of which 37 had never been to a clean sweep collection before. Participants were mostly from residents with a few farms and businesses. Accepted were chemicals, oil-based paint, cleaners, fluorescent tubes, and much more. There were 9100 pounds of chemicals, along with 1894 fluorescent tubes, and 208 pounds of household batteries collected. Tire collection: The tire collections were held in Gilman and Medford on August 9 and at Holway on August 16. Tentative numbers indicate there were 1343: up to 22" tires; 40: 23-24" tires; 2: over 24" tires; and 30: oversized tires. There were approximately 81 residents who took part in the collection among the three sites. Bee Line picked up tires immediately following the events. County Highway tires and Melvin Company tires are also part of the collection. 2026 Budgets: The proposed 2026 budgets for Solid Waste Disposal, Recycling Act 335, all Clean Sweeps, and grant revenues were reviewed. There is a slight increase due to NWRPC increasing fee by $500 for Clean Sweep collection. There will be some carry-over dollars utilized. The operating expenses for all budgets total $25,389. Hoffman moved to approve the proposed 2026 budgets as presented: Seconded by Cummings. Motion carried. Any Other Business: Administrator reported Taylor County was again awarded a $5000 grant to help with transportation and staff expenses for the electronic collection. Adjournment: With no further business, Albrecht moved to adjourn the meeting; Seconded by Hoffman. Motion carried. The meeting adjourned at 9:31 AM. Secretary: Kyle Noonan