County Ordinance 110 Solid Waste Management includes recycling and waste management requirements designed to reduce waste going to landfills, improve the quality of materials recycled, and make progress toward the state's goal to recycle 75 percent of waste by 2030.
Requirements include the adoption of a standardized, designated list of recyclables that everyone must recycle, including residents, businesses, schools and government. In addition, certain businesses that generate organics (food scraps) must collect them for proper management (e.g., commercial composting). Standardizing the basic items that we recycle and collect for organics – no matter where you live in Dakota County or the hauler you have – benefits everyone.
Effective dates
- July 1, 2020: Business already required to recycling under the state's commercial recycling law must meet requirements listed below.
- Jan. 1, 2021: All other businesses and organizations (e.g., manufacturers, small businesses/churches) must meet the requirements listed below.
- 2020: Labels must be placed on trash, recycling and organics containers (if collected) purchased after 2019 and by Jan. 1, 2022 for containers purchased prior to 2020.
- Jan. 1, 2022: Some businesses must collect food scraps.
Who is responsible?
The property owner and manager of commercial buildings and properties.
Recycling requirements
Business Compliance Brochure
Provide recycling service
Provide recycling service for tenants, employees and customers through a contract with a hauler or self-haul recyclables. Work with your hauler to increase service levels if hauler-provided carts or dumpsters are overflowing.
Provide recycling containers in buildings and on grounds to collect the county's designated list of recyclables and keep items on the designated list of contaminants out of the recycling containers.
Locate recycling containers with trash containers
Wherever there is a trash container, place a recycling container within 10 feet. The recycling container must be large enough, so it doesn't overflow or result in recyclables being placed on the ground or in the trash.
Label containers
All recycling and trash containers on building grounds, both indoors and outdoors, must be labeled according to County Labeling Requirements. Replace labels if they become unreadable.
Waste haulers are responsible for labeling all waste containers they provide (e.g., carts and dumpsters).
Provide standardized recycling education
Deliver basic recycling education to employees, tenants, and housekeeping and custodial staff/contractors following County Education Requirements in print or electronic format. Education must be documented for reporting purposes and be provided at least once per year, within 30 days of a new hire or new tenant and within 30 days of a major change to the recycling or waste program.
Report program effectiveness
Document and report recycling program effectiveness, including education activities to the county annually. The county will notify businesses when the reporting requirement goes into effect and provide a report form.
Requirements for some businesses to collect organics (food scraps)
Certain businesses that generate at least one ton or contract for at least eight cubic yards of waste per week and generate food scraps from their back-of-house operations (i.e., pre-consumption food scraps from kitchen prep areas, dishwashing and storage areas but not food that has been served to the public) must have organics collection in place.
Affected business sectors and when requirements go into effect
Effective by Jan. 1, 2022:
- Food wholesalers, distributors and manufacturers
- Grocery stores
Effective by Jan. 1, 2023:
Effective by Jan. 1, 2024:
- Office buildings with dining services
- Hotels
- Farmers markets
- Food shelves and food banks
- Restaurants
- Shopping centers
- Golf clubs and country clubs
- Public/rentable commissaries or kitchens
- Nursing and residential care facilities
- Sports venues, event centers and caterers
- Large event venues with organics
There are three main options for managing organic waste properly:
- Commercial composting: Food waste is processed into compost, a valuable soil amendment
- Food to people: Edible food is donated to organizations that help people in need
- Food to animals: Food scraps are processed into feed for livestock
Organics requirements
Provide organics service
Provide organics collection service and provide containers to collect the designated list of organics from back-of-house areas for collection and proper management. Containers must be large enough or serviced frequently, so organics do not overflow or result in food scraps being placed on the ground or in the recycling or trash containers. Work with your hauler to increase service levels if hauler-provided carts or dumpster are overflowing.
Label containers
All organics containers on building grounds must be labeled according to County Labeling Requirements. The label color must be green and include images. Replace labels if they become unreadable. Your waste hauler is responsible for labeling the waste containers they provide.
Provide standardized organics education
Deliver basic organics program education in print or electronic form to employees, tenants and housekeeping and custodial staff/contractors involved in proper food scrap sorting and management of the organics that follows County Education Requirements. Education must be documented for reporting purposes and be provided at least once per year, within 30 days of a new hire or new tenant, and within 30 days of a major change to the organics, recycling or waste program.
Report program effectiveness
Document and report organics program effectiveness, including education activities to the county annually. The county will notify owners and managers when the reporting requirement goes into effect and provide a report form.
Recycling resources
Go to the Funding & Resources page to get started.