Pope/Douglas Solid Waste Management > Business > Organics Recycling

Organics Recycling

Organics — which includes food scraps and non-recyclable paper — makes up 38% of our garbage. Instead of going in the trash, organics can be recycled or reused.

Composting is more preferred.

Organics Recycling for Commercial and Business Brochure

Commercial/Business Organics Recycling Questions?
Event Recycling/Organics Recycling Questions?
Organics Recycling Overview

Pope/Douglas Solid Waste Management is working with garbage haulers to develop sustainable and comprehensive solutions and programs to manage Organics (food scraps and soiled/non-recyclable paper) in the garbage.

Organics make up 38% of our waste stream.

Organics management options exist and more will be developed as partnerships are created and long-term programs are rolled out.

Composting is an environmentally preferable solution that diverts waste from waste to energy facilities (incinerators) and landfills. Organic waste is wet and difficult to burn and emits methane gas, a detrimental greenhouse gas, when it decomposes in landfills. The resulting compost used in landscaping and road construction projects will improve the quality of the soil, reduce soil erosion, and prevent storm water runoff from contaminating wetlands, lakes and streams in our community.

Discovery Middle School Recycling Awareness

The Life of a Strawberry. Wasting Food Wastes Everything – Water, Labor, Fuel, Money, Love

 

What Does Large Scale Composting Look Like?

 

Participating Businesses/Schools/Churches/Multifamily Buildings

Pope/Douglas Organics Recycling participating businesses

The list continues to grow…

Household and Event Organics Recycling Drop Sites

Grant County Organics Recycling participating businesses – started December 2019

Program Roll-out: Grant County Herald Newspaper Article

Great Solution to reduce your garbage created!

Great Solution for restaurants, care facilities, grocery stores, schools and others that create a lot of food waste/soiled papers.

Great for your environmental footprint.

Great for your environmental commitment to the next generation.

 

 

 

 

 

2020 and 2021 Collection Schedule

Collection schedule for entities set up to receive curbside collection of organics.

Contact Pope/Douglas if you need additional information.

Organics Recycling Hauler

Pope/Douglas Organics Recycling (763-9340)

Organics Recycling for Commercial and Business Brochure

Get signed up for Commercial/Business Organics Recycling Service.  Contact Pope/Douglas today.

‘Pope/Douglas Organics Recycling’ is a contracted hauler to provide organics recycling service for all customers in the two county area – no matter who their primary hauler is.  As part of this service, entities who are signed up for organics recycling should work with their primary hauler to reduce costs through decreasing garbage pickup frequency and/or size of garbage carts/dumpsters.

  • Great Solution to reduce your garbage created!
  • Great Solution for restaurants, care facilities, grocery stores, schools and others that create a lot of food waste/soiled papers.
  • Great for your environmental footprint.
  • Great for your environmental commitment to the next generation.

 

Collected organics are transferred to Tri-County Organics in St. Cloud for composting and marketing of the finished compost.

Organics/Recycling/Trash Bin Signs & Stickers

FREE downloadable posters and signs to help educate your waste and recycling program!

Organics for Composting Signs

Paper Towels for Composting Signs

Single Sort Recycling Signs

Cardboard Only Recycling Signs

Trash Signs

Other Sign Options

Do the Three Sort. Color Coded Signs and Bins helps reduce contamination in the bin.

  1. Use BLUE bins to capture single sort recycling.
  2. Use GREEN bins to capture organics recycling or paper towels from bathrooms/hand-washing areas.
  3. Use GRAY or TAN bins to capture the trash.
Organics Recycling Carts/Dumpster

Pope/Douglas Organics Recycling Cart/Dumpster Options

  • 65 gallon (42 3/8″ high, 25 1/8″ wide, 29 1/2″ depth)
  • 95 gallon (45 3/8″ high including casters, 27 1/2″ wide, 33 1/4″ depth)
    • Carts/dumpsters are labeled to reduce contamination (of non compostable items).

  • 2 yard dumpster (48 3/4″ load height, 50″ max height, 78″ wide, 49 3/4″ depth)
    • Carts/dumpsters are labeled to reduce contamination (of non compostable items).
Compostable Bags and Compostable Products Vendors

As part of your organics recycling program – you must use compostable bags.  The use of plastic or ‘degradable’ bags are not allowed as they do not break down in the composting process.  Use of compostable bags keeps recycling bins, carts and dumpsters cleaner.

Some entities use paper bags, lawn and leaf paper bags and produce boxes to place items into.

Bags that are certified by the Biodegradable Products Institute (BPI) – third party certification organization – are required.  Bags that are labeled as ‘degradable’, ‘biodegradable’, or ‘made from plants’ are not compostable.

Plates, cups, and utensils that are used must also be certified compostable, if you intend to place them in the organics recycling.

Biodegradable Products Institute label

Which Size Bag to Use in What Size Receptacle?

As part of your organics recycling program – you must use certified compostable bags.  The use of plastic or ‘degradable’ bags are not allowed as they do not break down in the composting process.  Use of compostable bags keeps recycling bins, carts and dumpsters cleaner.

Biodegradable Products Institute label

What size bag to buy to fit the organics recycling receptacles I want to use?

‘Household Kitchen Style’  measures 24″x30″

 

 

 

 

’32-33 gallon Brute Style’  measures 33″x48″

’55-60 gallon Brute Style’  measures 42″x48″

’64-65 gallon roll cart’  measures 48″x60″

’30 gallon/Tall Slim Jim Style’  measures 30″x39″

Small Site Composting Option

Backyard Composting is similar to Small Site Composting.

Community Gardens and Small Site Composting Sites can be developed in sync with each other.

The biggest difference is the much larger amount of materials that are allowed to be composted on-site and is a great fit for institutions like:

  • Schools, Colleges and Educational Sites
  • Healthcare Facilities: Hospitals, Clinics, Nursing Homes, Group Homes
  • Churches and other Places of Worship

‘Included in the definition of small compost sites is a provision limiting their size to no more than 120 cubic yards of material on site at any given time.

The size limit applies to all food scraps, yard waste and other feedstocks brought to the site as well as any active or finished compost. Compared to a typical backyard compost pile, this size limit is fairly large. 120 cubic yards is approximately the size of a semi trailer. Small compost sites are not required to obtain a permit from the state.’

Small Site Composting Resources
Community Garden Resources
Food to Animal Feeding Option

Large generators of food scrap are able to contract with a farmer or recycler – where your food scraps will be hauled away and processed into food for pigs.

The Minnesota Board of Animal Health permits swine/hog farms who wish to feed food scraps/food waste to their livestock.  The programs used are the ‘Garbage Feeding’ – Class A permit or the ‘Exempt Materials Feeding’ – Class B permit.

Food-to-Animal

Farms collect your business’ food scraps on-site. Then, as part of their diet, the scraps are fed to the livestock.

Garbage Feeding (Class ‘A’ Meat and Non Meat Food Wastes Accepted)
  • Your Farm?  Let Pope/Douglas know if your hog farm is interested in accepting food scraps to feed the pigs!
Exempt Materials Feeding (Class ‘B’ Non Meat Food Waste Accepted):

The following farms provide food-to-livestock programs:

  • Your Farm?  Let Pope/Douglas know if your hog farm is interested in accepting food scraps to feed the pigs!
  • Becker, Troy Home Farm: 320-760-0865 (Ottertail County)
  • Becker, Troy Farm: 218-267-2199 (Ottertail County)
  • Dreyer, Daniel Farm: 218-731-0601 (Ottertail County)
MN TAP (MN Technical Assistance Program)
Food-to-Animal (Feed Processing)

ReConserve collects and processes food by-products to create livestock feed ingredients.

Food to People Donation

Food Banks/Food Shelves make donating edible food easy from businesses.

Businesses are protected by donating food to Food Banks from any liabilities under the United States’ Good Samaritan laws, donating food is safe and legal.

Instead of trashing perfectly good foods – they are saved for an important need.

Food Banks in Minnesota have a statewide network with supplying our area food shelves.

Food Shelf/Food Donations
Food Bank Organization
How to Build Raised Garden Beds

Setting up organics recycling (food scraps, etc) is an important step.  The use of finished compost that is created from the composting process and growing local foods is even better!

Build your own raised beds at your place of business, home or wherever to increase access to local foods, eat healthier and use the nutrient rich compost.

Required Materials

  • Four 8 foot long 2-by-6s
  • Two 8 foot long 2-by-6s cut in half
  • One 6 foot long 4-by-4 cut into four 16” tall corner posts
  • Weed suppressing landscape fabric
  • 32 3” screws
  • 32 cubic feet of finished compost

How-To-Guide

  1. Prepare the location by removing grass and weeds.
  2. Outline the bed dimensions on the ground using chalk or string.
  3. Dig along the outline using vertical strokes to bury about half of your first wood board.
  4. Put down a layer of newspaper or weed-suppressing landscape fabric that extends to the outside edges of the outline.
  5. Set a 4-foot 2-by-6 on its thin edge on pavement, and place a 16” post at one end. Secure post with two 3” screws. Repeat at other end of board. Repeat with other short board.
  6. Join short sides with an 8-foot board; and secure with two screws. Add other long side. Add second layer of 2-by-6s.
  7. Place the bed into the outline made in step 3.
  8. Fill the bed with potting soil.
  9. Alternative: amend soil with completed compost.

Pope/Douglas Solid Waste is in the planning stages of developing a regional organics composting site to have local access to compost for use in gardening and landscaping projects.

Phone: 320-763-9340
Toll Free: 800-972-6318
Fax: 320-763-9342

2115 Jefferson Street
Alexandria, MN 56308

Office Hours
Monday-Friday 8-12 and 1-4:30
Closed Saturday and Sunday

Recycling Center Hours
Monday-Friday 8-5
Saturday 9-2
Closed Sundays

Hazardous Waste Hours
Monday-Friday 8-12 and 1-4
Closed Saturday and Sunday
No appointment necessary

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