Health department adopts county solid‑and‑hazardous waste plan; SNAP‑Ed education funding flagged for federal cut

Walla Walla County commissioners on May 19 adopted the county’s Comprehensive Solid and Hazardous Waste Management Plan (2024–2029) and heard a warning from Department of Community Health staff that the SNAP‑Ed nutrition‑education funding for local outreach may be at risk in the federal budget.

Solid‑waste plan: Environmental health specialist Crystal Grippen explained the long plan — described in the meeting packet as roughly 347 pages of backup — and said most updates reflect regulatory changes and statutory compliance. She identified the state organics‑diversion regulation as a primary compliance driver and told commissioners the schedule in the plan addresses organics waste management rule compliance. Commissioners asked about recycling markets and whether municipalities can make recycling economically viable; environmental staff and the county’s environmental health manager said markets and policy are shifting, and that market conditions that changed after China’s import restrictions have driven new regulation and product‑stewardship initiatives.

SNAP‑Ed funding warning: Community Health Director Nancy Wenzel told the board she and staff had received an early, non‑written warning that the federal SNAP‑Ed nutrition‑education line appears in the federal proposal to be eliminated for the county starting October 2025. Wenzel said the possible cut would reduce local SNAP‑Ed funding by approximately $84,429 to $101,000. She described SNAP‑Ed as longstanding county programming that supports nutrition education in schools, farmers markets and food banks and asked the board whether county officials might engage in advocacy with congressional representatives if the cut is finalized. Commissioners asked staff to explore advocacy options and said they would follow up on next steps.

Other Community Health items: The board also authorized an extension to keep a traffic safety position at 40 hours through Sept. 30, 2025 (the position had been kept at 36 hours earlier and the extension allows spending grant funds down), and the board accepted a written update from the Community Health Advisory Board about community care coordination and behavioral‑health coordination efforts.

Ending: The solid‑waste plan now governs county solid‑and‑hazardous‑waste policy through 2029; county staff will continue to monitor federal SNAP funding prospects and report back to the board on advocacy options.