Washington County briefed on Oregon Recycling Modernization Act; July 1 implementation set

Washington County health and human services staff on Tuesday briefed the Board of Commissioners on the Recycling Modernization Act and what county residents and operations can expect when the law’s implementation begins July 1, 2025.

The briefing described a statewide “shared responsibility” model that shifts responsibility and many costs for hard-to-recycle products to producers through a producer responsibility organization (PRO). Mira Samantel, director of Health & Human Services, and Erin Stein, interim solid waste and recycling manager, told the board the PRO for Oregon (Circular Action Alliance) will collect fees from producers, fund a statewide education campaign and pay for depot locations and facility upgrades needed to handle an expanded list of recyclables.

County staff said the new system is intended to expand collection, reduce contamination and move costs off local governments and households. “The pro is tasked with management of all the covered products sold into the state,” Erin Stein said. Staff highlighted funding for contamination reduction that equates to about $3 per person in the county per year if the PRO’s plan is approved by the state, and said the county’s current contamination rate is about 17 percent.

Why it matters: the Recycling Modernization Act (RMA) changes who pays for and…