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 manages recycling for many materials, creates a statewide list of accepted curbside items and requires local governments and service providers to align collection and education. County staff said implementation will require updates to Washington County code and solid-waste administrative rules and could require new contracts or contract amendments to support ramp-up activities.

What county staff described - Shared responsibility model: producers that sell covered products into Oregon will participate in the PRO, which is responsible for planning and paying for depot networks, collection events and improvements at commingled processing facilities. - Funding and uses: staff said the PRO’s program plan approved by the Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) includes money for system expansion, contamination evaluation and reduction, education and some operational costs. Staff characterized available contamination-reduction funding as “about $3 per person” annually. Stein said the PRO must also establish responsible end markets for materials managed under the program. - County preparation: staff described regional coordination with Metro and other local governments on equipment purchases, on-route collection changes and consistent public education. They said county rules (including Washington County Code 804 and solid-waste administrative rules) will need updating and that staff expect to return to the board later in 2025 with rule/code amendment proposals and potential contract requests.

Board questions and concerns Commissioners pressed staff on timing and phasing, public education, and which items will be collected on-route versus at depots. Chair Catherine Harrington said she “would really like to understand, this timeline,” and asked for a clearer multi-year sketch of when changes would be expected and what the county must do each year. Commissioner Jason Snyder asked specifically about “styrofoam and other stuff” and asked staff to provide the final list of hard-to-recycle items; staff said that list was finalized in state rule two months earlier and that they would follow up with details and links.

Staff emphasized that some near-term customer experience will remain the same because many areas in the Metro region already have on-route collection, and that the RMA implementation is phased over a multi-year period (staff described a three-year implementation window). They also noted that thresholds and exemptions determine which producers must participate and that fees will be “eco-modulated” (differing by material type) and adjusted annually.

Follow-up: staff said they will coordinate with Metro and the Regional Waste Advisory Committee (RWAC) on regional implementation, provide the board a clearer implementation timeline later this year, supply the county website and public-facing materials or links to PRO/DEQ resources, and return with any necessary code or contract actions.

Community implications and gaps Staff noted the RMA is expected to improve service to underserved residents (for example, multi-family housing) through targeted education and funding. They also acknowledged uncertainty in several areas: the detailed phasing schedule depends on funding and PRO plan elements, the definition and thresholds for “producers” were set by the state, and local government workload will include rule changes and community outreach. Several commissioners asked staff to provide an easily shareable slide or webpage listing: (1) where to find official state/PRO guidance, (2) the final hard-to-recycle item list (e.g., styrofoam), and (3) likely timing for changes affecting residents.

Ending note County staff thanked the board and said they will return in 2025 with rule amendments, a timeline and more details on public education and depot locations. The board asked staff to coordinate with Metro to produce an “overlay” showing how Metro’s regional system facilities and the RMA implementation interact with county operations.