Oakland County staff outline state-mandated materials management plan; committee backs household hazardous-waste interlocal

Oakland County planning staff on Feb. 11 briefed the county committee on a state-required materials management plan meant to replace the county’s decades-old solid-waste plan and boost recycling, reuse and composting across municipalities.

“Basically, we’re looking to make your recycle bins bigger than your garbage can,” said Whitney Calio, principal planner and project manager for the plan, describing the county’s goal to move materials up the recovery hierarchy and preserve landfill space. The presentation, led by Kristen Wilpang of the Planning Division, outlined a three-year state timeline triggered by the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes and Energy (EGLE) and the county’s role in coordinating municipalities for approval.

Staff said Oakland County generated approximately 1.439 million tons of material sent to landfills in 2024. Using a consultant model, they estimated that about 54% of that tonnage was either compostable or readily recyclable under programs that currently exist, and that the county sent roughly 180,000 tons of food waste to Michigan landfills in that year. Calio said the modeled market value of recoverable material for 2024 was about $10 million.

The plan will require coordinated municipal approval and a public-comment period. Calio described outreach so far: three town halls, presentations to municipal associations and more than 1,200 resident survey responses. Staff also reported 56 responses from elected officials/municipal staff and about 89 restaurant responses; additional business and hauler surveys and focus groups are planned.

Commissioners raised implementation questions. Commissioner Johnson urged greater emphasis on commercial food-waste solutions and mentioned consumer-facing apps as potential tools. Commissioners also pressed staff on multifamily recycling access and the timing lag in performance reports; staff said some benchmarks are constrained by data-collection cycles but pledged to tighten reporting cadence.

Separately, the committee recommended to the full board an interlocal agreement to continue the NOAZ (North Oakland) household hazardous-waste collection program that serves northern townships that rely on subscription haulers. Staff said participating communities opt in and pay for the collection; commissioners debated participation cycles (some townships participate every other year), and staff said the materials management plan should help streamline access for residents across the county.

The committee received and filed the materials management presentation and approved the NOAZ interlocal agreement to be forwarded to the board. Next steps: a 60-day public comment period and a public hearing once a draft plan is released, followed by municipal approvals required under state rules.