Columbia County solid waste staff on July 2 described a recently signed primary funding agreement to receive contamination‑reduction funding tied to implementation of the Recycling Modernization Act and said staff will place the detailed agenda and the county's signature on next week's consent agenda.

Jacob Anderson, Columbia County Solid Waste Coordinator, said the funding is intended to support contamination‑reduction activities and implementation steps for the Recycling Modernization Act. "The funding is $3 per capita, for contamination reduction, specifically," Anderson said, and listed possible uses including educational mailers, container labels, tagging and contamination audits, truck‑mounted cameras and spot checks.

Why it matters: the Recycling Modernization Act expands the number and types of materials that can be recycled; contamination in the recycling stream reduces recyclability and increases processing costs. The county's plan for the received funds will affect outreach, auditing and equipment choices that local haulers and residents encounter.

Details and discussion: Anderson said the county already signed the primary funding agreement and must now finalize the agenda that details how the funds will be used. He described typical contamination‑reduction tactics: educational mailers and labels, tagging programs where inspectors note improper items in recycling carts, contamination audits and vehicle‑mounted cameras that capture what falls out of a bin during collection. Anderson said the county will coordinate with local haulers on reporting requirements and that part of the funding may support city reporting needs through intergovernmental agreements.

County staff characterized the funding as modest on a per‑person basis but useful for discrete measures such as labels and targeted cameras; larger items (for example, adding multiple cameras to truck fleets) would be a bigger expense. Anderson told the board he will work with haulers and partners to determine which contamination‑reduction actions the county will implement and that the county must be able to document the work done with the funds.

Board action: Adam (staff) asked to place the item on next week's consent agenda for board approval; commissioners indicated support for bringing the finalized agreement and agenda back for formal signature. No formal vote on programmatic uses occurred during the meeting.