Monona to monitor Dane County food‑scrap drop‑off pilot; staff to follow up with neighboring municipalities

The committee reviewed a Dane County pilot program that will place food‑scrap drop‑off sites at several municipal locations and decided to monitor the pilot’s rollout this summer before pursuing a local collection site in Monona.

Thor and other members noted that the county received a grant to fund five collection sites and that the county’s pilot includes drop‑off locations such as Warner Park and McFarland Public Works. Thor said the grant currently covers five locations but the county indicated a willingness to discuss Monona participation outside the grant terms.

Nut graf: The committee favored sharing information with residents about county drop‑off locations and directed Thor to contact nearby municipalities (McFarland and others) and county staff to learn how the pilot operates before recommending a Monona site.

Discussion and next steps: - Committee members raised operational concerns about contamination and enforcement at drop‑off sites; several urged letting other communities’ pilots run for a season before establishing a local site. - Thor agreed to reach out to McFarland’s assistant planner/sustainability coordinator (a named contact) after the pilot launches and to report back on how collection sites handle participation and contamination control. - Committee members suggested promoting county drop‑off locations to residents once the pilot launches this summer and considering a peer‑to‑peer exchange with nearby municipal sustainability committees.

Ending: No formal action was taken; staff will follow up with county and McFarland contacts and report pilot observations and potential next steps at a future meeting.