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Frequently Asked Questions
- What is organics recycling?
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Organics recycling is an opportunity to reduce trash that ends up in a landfill. It is a separate collection that accepts organic material, such as:
- Food scraps (fruits; vegetables; meat, fish, and bones; dairy products; eggs and eggshells; pasta, beans, and rice; bread and cereal; and much more
- Pizza boxes from delivery
- Napkins and paper towels
- Paper egg cartons
- Certified compostable products
- Coffee grounds and filters
- Hair and nail clippings
- Cotton balls and swabs with paper stems
- Houseplants and flowers
- Wooden items, such as popsicle sticks and toothpicks
For a more comprehensive list of items accepted, view organics recycling disposal guide.
- How do I sign up for organics recycling?
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Residents can sign up with the City of Champlin. An organics recycling container will be delivered to you by your hauler.
- Who must offer organics recycling?
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Hennepin County requires cities with 10,000 or more residents to make organics recycling available. Cities have to provide the opportunity to participate in curbside collection of organic material to residential households that are single family through fourplex and other residential households where each household has its own collection container for mixed recyclables. Curbside collection of organic material must be provided year-round on a weekly basis. Multifamily properties (HOAs) where each household has its own collection Container for mixed recyclables must also provide the opportunity to participate in curbside collection of organic material.
- Who pays for organics recycling and what is the cost?
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State law (MN Statute 115A.93) requires that (in communities where organics recycling service is available) all residents must be charged for the service regardless of their participation. The fee is $3.85 per month for single family properties in the city's organized solid waste collection program. Properties outside of the city's program must work with their hauler to determine a fee.
- Why can't a fee be charged to only those who participate?
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Minnesota statute prohibits charging more to customers who recycle organics than those who do not. The same is true of mixed recycling. View Minnesota Statute 115A.93.
- What is the frequency / day of organics recycling collection?
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Organics collection must be provided year-round on a weekly basis. Pickup is the same day as residential refuse pickup.
- Do I also get charged fees for bags or containers?
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Organics recycling containers are provided at no additional fee to residents who are participating in organics recycling. Residents may purchase their own compostable bags. Compostable bags are sold at most grocery, hardware, and large retail stores. The City is providing one free box of compostable bags per household, available at Grady's Ace Hardware.
- What bags should be used for organics recycling?
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Organics must be placed in certified compostable bags before putting them in your organics cart. Place larger items (like pizza delivery boxes and paper egg cartons) directly in the cart. Compostable bags are sold at most grocery, hardware, and large retail stores. You will know a certified compostable bag by the BPI logo. For more information, view Hennepin County's organics brochure and setting up organics. You may use paper bags, but BPI bags are preferred because they hold liquid better.
- Will the organics container smell?
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Organics won't smell any more than your garbage does. You are simply moving the organics from the refuse container to the organics container.
Help prevent odors by using an indoor kitchen pail with a vented lid. Food waste decomposes and creates odors more quickly when access to oxygen is cut off. You can purchase a kitchen pail with a vented lid or you can make one using an ice cream pail or other container.
Consider collecting your "wet" organics (food scraps, meat trimmings, etc.) in a large yogurt or cottage cheese container or ice cream pail and keep the container in your refrigerator or freezer. Dump the wet organics into a compostable bag and place the bag in the organics cart the night before your collection day.
- Where does the organics material go?
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Once haulers collect the organics material, it is taken to the Brooklyn Park Transfer Station then taken an organics recycling facility that produces compost.
- Are there rebates or reimbursement for participating?
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The city and the county do not have a rebate program at this time.
- What items can I recycle in my curbside container?
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For a comprehensive list of what can be recycled view the recycling disposal guide. If an item is not listed visit the Hennepin County Green Disposal Guide. If you have further questions or can't find information on the item you need to get rid of, please contact Hennepin County Environment and Energy or the City of Champlin.
Hennepin County Contact Information
Email environment@hennepin.us
Phone 612-348-3777
City of Champlin
Email stouney@ci.champlin.mn.us
Phone 763-253-4299
- What items should NOT go in the recycling container?
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Items that should not go in the recycling include:
- Plastic Bags
- Random metal objects (cooking pans, pipes, tools)
- Pressurized tanks
- Single use straws or utensils
- Paper plates, cups, and takeout containers
- Black plastic
- Large plastic items (laundry baskets, toys, storage bins)
- Electronics and batteries
- Cords and string lights
- Needles and sharps
For a more comprehensive list view the recycling disposal guide.
- What day is refuse / recycling collected in my neighborhood?
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Find your refuse, recycling, and organics recycling collection schedule based on your hauler and address. View the Collection Dates and Maps.
Refuse and organics recycling is collected weekly on the same day of the week.
Recycling is collected the same weekday as refuse/organics, but every other week.
Yard waste collection service is weekly if signing up for seasonal service.
- What should I do if my refuse, recycling, organics, or yard waste container wasn’t picked up?
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Residents should contact haulers directly for missed pick-ups, carts not fully emptied, if additional bags are placed outside the container, or if an additional pick-up outside of normal service is required.
Hauler Contact Information
- ACE: 763-427-3110
- Republic Services: 320-252-9608
- Republic Services includes legacy Randy's and Walz customers
If you have further concerns, please email utility billing or call (763) 923-7135.
- Can I have another recycling container?
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Yes, residents may request a second recycling container at no additional cost to your monthly bill.
To request one:
- Request a Change of Container Size (please note need of additional container)
- email utility billing or call (763) 923-7135.
- How do I repair a broken container?
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If you would like to replace or exchange your refuse bin, please fill out the Report a Lost or Damaged Container form or email utility billing or call (763) 923-7135.
The City will respond by email confirming your request within two business days. Please note you are only allowed one size exchange per year. Additional size exchanges are $20.
All requests must be submitted by 12PM the day before your service. Anything received later will be scheduled onto your next service day.
- Do I need to clean or prepare goods before recycling them?
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You should rinse cans before recycling to ensure they are clean, as this helps improve the quality of the recycling process. For example, food waste from a tin can containment the paper goods in your recycling container. While the food waste would be burned off in the smelting process, the food waste could make the paper goods no longer acceptable for recycling.
Remember, clean, drain, dry!
Other tips:
- Don’t bag your recyclables – place them loose in your recycling cart.
- Leave plastic caps on plastic bottles. Do not place caps in the bin on their own.
- Metal caps can be collected in a metal can when it’s full, carefully squeeze the top of the can shut and place it in your recycling.
- Remove pumps from spray bottles.
- Flatten boxes.
- Don't crush containers like milk jugs, juice cartons or cans. With modern sorting equipment, uncrushed containers are more likely to end up in the right spot.
- How do I dispose of plastic bags or film?
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Plastic bags are NOT accepted in curbside recycling programs. Clean plastic bags can go to a retailer that offers plastic bag recycling drop off. Examples of facilities that accept plastic bags for drop off are grocery and department stores. Check with your local grocer or retailer to see if they offer plastic bag and film collection. Additionally, the Hennepin County drop off facilities in Brooklyn Park and Bloomington accept them for free. Otherwise, plastic bags and films need to be placed in the refuse container.
- How do I dispose of electronics or batteries?
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Electronics and batteries may not go into the refuse or recycling container per city ordinance Sec 46.17. It is the responsibility of the property owner to dispose of hazardous waste in a safe, legal manner. View electronics and batteries disposal guide.
- How do I dispose of hazardous waste (paint, chemicals, etc)?
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Hazardous waste may not go into the refuse container per city ordinance Sec 46.17. It is the responsibility of the property owner to dispose of hazardous waste in a safe, legal manner. View hazardous waste disposal guide.
- How do I dispose of large appliances?
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Major appliances may not go into the refuse container per city ordinance Sec 46.17. It is the responsibility of the property owner to dispose of hazardous waste in a safe, legal manner. View major applicance disposal guide.
- Who pays for recycling?
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State law (MN Statute 115A.93) requires that all residents must be charged for recycling service regardless of their participation. View utility billing rates. Properties outside of the city's program must work with their hauler to determine a fee.
- What happens to the recycling after it has been collected?
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Recycling starts at the curb with you separating your recyclables from trash so they can be picked up by your hauler.
The next step is processing. Haulers bring the recyclables to material recovery facilities (MRFs) to be sorted, graded, cleaned, and prepared for markets. Materials are sorted to remove contaminants that may damage processing equipment and graded to reclaim higher-value materials. Various methods are used at MRFs to sort materials. Mechanical processes such as magnets, air jets, and screens use physical differences among materials, such as weight or magnetism, to sort them. Hand-sorting is usedto sort materials that the mechanical methods cannot. After the recyclables are processed at the MRF, the materials are sold to manufacturers that make them into a wide variety of new products. Paper is turned into a pulp and recycled back into paper, newspaper, boxes, napkins, paper towels, egg cartons and more. Glass is crushed, heated and recycled into glass bottles and jars or used in insulation, floor tile, road construction projects and more. Steel or aluminum is heated, melted and recycled back into steel or aluminum cans. Plastics are shredded, melted and recycled into a variety of products, including plastic bottles, carpet, furniture, clothing and more.
The final step in the recycling process is closing the recycling loop by buying products made from recycled materials.
- Why is recycling important for our community?
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There are many reasons recycling is important such as:
- It helps reduce waste in landfills, which conserves natural resources and protects the environment.
- Recycling requires less energy to produce new products compared to manufacturing from virgin materials, thus lowering greenhouse gas emissions.
- It supports local economies by creating jobs and supporting businesses involved in recycling and waste management.
- By participating in recycling programs, residents can contribute to a sustainable future and promote environmental awareness.
Overall, recycling plays a vital role in maintaining a clean and sustainable environment for future generations.