- I'd like to call to order this meeting of the Executive Committee the Waste
- Reduction District of Monroe County and Mr. McGlasson can you please call the roll.
- Pete Monsmith? Here. Thomas? Here. Wilts? Here.
- Note that Ms. Wilts is here virtually.
- Dr. Wilts can you start your video or is it not feasible?
- It is started.
- Just a minute. We have to. We can do that at the next
- district meeting. Certainly. Can you not hear me?
- We can hear you but we can't see you. You have to be visible to vote.
- Right. My video is turned on.
- First case scenario. Is there a sticker over it?
- First case scenario we can do it at the next board meeting.
- Yeah. The three of us can vote at the next board meeting on the minutes.
- That's the only thing we have to vote on. There is. There are two of us here.
- We could vote on the minutes. Yeah.
- As Councilor Wills. And Councilor Wills was not in attendance for the RMI meeting.
- No. This is your second set of minutes.
- Okay. All right. Let's just keep moving.
- Okay. So we will look at the executive committee meeting minutes for our meeting with Rocky
- Mountain Institute about the landfill solar on April 29th. Their motion to approve.
- And move to approve.
- Okay. So let's vote on those minutes. Councilor Wills.
- Oh, Councilor Wills can't vote because can't see her.
- Oh, we can't second that.
- Oh, okay. Well, I'll second it.
- Okay.
- Commissioner Thomas.
- Yes.
- I'll vote yes. And then we have the executive committee meeting of April 29th.
- Motion to approve that one.
- Motion to approve.
- Second.
- Commissioner Thomas.
- Yes.
- I will also vote. Let me just forward. Sorry.
- There were a couple of minor corrections.
- Yes, I received those and those are incorporated in the version here for signature if they're
- approved.
- Okay. The only substantive ones was that.
- Commissioner Thomas, you were not there as far as I recall.
- Yeah, I was not there and I am listed as virtual.
- Yeah.
- Right.
- But I can still vote on that because I watched the meeting after.
- And then the only other substantive correction is that Mr. Whitty is the chairperson and not the
- vice chairperson of the CAC.
- Correct. I did try to demote him.
- You're not getting away with that.
- Okay, sorry. So now let's vote. Commissioner Thomas.
- Yes.
- And I'll vote yes.
- Got the executive committee meeting minutes done.
- Any comments on the board of director meeting minutes?
- I had a few small corrections that I put in the drop box.
- Yes, I've seen those and have made those for back.
- Any other questions, comments on those minutes?
- No.
- Councilor Wilks.
- Okay, well then we can just move those to the floor for approval.
- Mr. McGlass, would you like to tell us about resolution 2025-09?
- Sure, as mentioned in the memo on page 11 due to a recent resignation and
- one of the site operators and moving staff around to fill that regular scheduled position
- and looking at our scheduling and scheduling patterns with time off and time off available
- to our regular site operators, Mr. Long and Joey Long and I thought it would be in the best
- interest
- of the district to actually hire two replacement site operators at this time just to help alleviate
- some potential scheduling issues that we saw for people taking the time off that they want or need.
- As indicated in the memo, the replacement operators don't have any impact on the budget.
- It's just an extra body to fill in when somebody's off which is going to happen whether we have
- three replacement operators, four, five, or six of them. So what this resolution, all this
- resolution
- does is increase the pool of replacement operators from five to six and I would note for the record
- in interviewing replacement reviewing interviewing candidates for the replacement operator position,
- we actually did have two that that we were interested in hiring and it was a difficult
- decision. We had to hire somebody at that time so we do actually already have a person in mind
- for the position that the board approves this change. Great, sounds good to me.
- Councilor Wilks, do you have any questions or comments on that one? I do not.
- Mr. Thomas? No? Okay so we can move that to the whole board.
- Next we have a declaration of surplus property.
- Yeah if you recall we did the last board meeting. I'm going to check the courier auto group for the
- two new green business trucks. Those are both in our possession and up and running for us now so
- we have two extra trucks that are taking up space on our lot that we'd like to get rid of.
- One of them still has some value to it the other one is ancient. Well yeah on the on our asset
- inventory you know one does still have some value and I mean that's just a function of you know the
- we generally apply a 10-year expected lifespan to those vehicles and so we purchased it five years
- ago and that's just a function of the depreciation given the expected life of the vehicle.
- It's declared surplus. We use the GovDeals auction website and you know we have the ability to set
- minimums and we'll endeavor to get as much out of it as we can. Will that money
- oh yeah so that'll be money that we'll just go to our reserves. It'll just be a miscellaneous
- income
- it was not budgeted revenue for the year and there is no bearing on our appropriations.
- Two just language things in the actual resolution.
- So at the end of the first paragraph it says it's intended and be considered surplus property for
- the purpose of resale reuse or recycle. I would change that to recycling. Recycle is not down.
- And then the same thing under number one.
- The thing I would like to see is specificity about trying to sell at an auction. What if it
- doesn't sell at auction then what happens? So you know because it could be donated there might be
- somebody they're good right. So I think it's important to know what's going to happen.
- If it doesn't sell at that it's going to auction if it doesn't sell at auction
- we're going to do whatever. I just think that kind of specificity is really good to have for
- transparency sake. And would that be something that we put into the now there for the resolution or
- that be something in the memo regarding the agenda item? I think memo's fine. I think it's fine. I
- just think it's helpful about that. Yeah what are your plans? Yep yep you're going to try to sell
- out to sell at auction we're going to do this. The money's going to go when it gets sold at auction.
- I can see you now.
- Yeah that's a good idea.
- Thank you Julie. Any other comments on this item?
- No. Now we can't hear you Kate.
- I don't have any comments. I logged off and logged back in to get my camera to work. So
- okay let's proceed. All right.
- Okay well then we can move on to the next item on the agenda which is the Back to Earth Collected
- Composting Programs Report. This is a kind of a follow-up to the discussion at the last month's
- board meeting with the proposed service agreement for the next phase of this but it became apparent
- in that discussion that not all board members had seen the interim report that was provided
- last November by one sustainable joe and I mentioned at that time that he was also working
- on a final report given that the initial agreement term had just ended. So both of those reports
- are
- included in here for informational purposes and discussion of their desire to do so.
- Sister Wenny wants to stay with us here if there's any questions and I would note that I
- I do have a follow-up to this if after there's any questions or discussions regarding the
- um Mr. Wenny do you want to add anything or I don't have anything particular to point out
- just happy to answer any questions that you have about the reports that are included in the packet.
- Thank you. Are there any questions for Mr. Wenny or comments?
- Um it was curious that the I think it was site number two
- the the amount of materials just kept going up and down up and down.
- Yes yeah any idea what's happening there? Yes I mentioned briefly in the report that
- it's just basically the inconsistency of users entering the weight of the material weighing it
- and submitting it before they add it to the bio. So I noticed that trend the very the very first
- dip
- in April of their first um I guess would be their their fourth month participating and so I spoke
- with the turners there who were adding the material and they mentioned that there were
- no significant fluctuations in their generation and just that they weren't consistent in weighing
- and submitting the weight which is why I also noted that of the totals provided for the program
- about 10 to 20 percent I would estimate that about 10 to 20 percent more material was diverted than
- what was recorded. So you can you can see particularly with site number two because
- they contributed about half of the overall program totals but the the overall program totals vary
- with or fluctuate with the same variations that that particular site does and I did what I could
- to reinforce the value of weighing the material I showed them their weight trends so they were
- aware
- of the impact it was having and it was I guess the matter of an item that's beyond my control.
- Yeah how does the so does the the family the household that brings the material
- are they the ones who are supposed to weigh it? Yes. And is there scale there or how does that work?
- Correct there is a scale stationed at all of the compost bins and the reason that site number two
- is an exception is they are a co-op house so they aren't the same apartment style individual
- households all bringing out their same waste they as a house accumulate all of their waste together
- and they only had a specific number of residents bringing the waste out so that's why they're
- in I guess I'm making a comparison that in an apartment setting if one person wasn't weighing
- the material they would only represent a small fraction of those at the site all together so
- there everyone is each household bringing out weighing the material whereas at the co-op
- there was only a certain a small number of people sub to the residents who were bringing out the
- material for the whole household so that's why they forget exactly it has a bigger impact
- exactly so their weigh-in process was a little bit different in that respect okay but otherwise
- and then except the city's finished the amount so that was my follow-up okay
- so I think it's important to look at kind of the conclusions that Joe reached that are
- outlined at the end of the November report feasibility of broad spectrum implementation
- I mean the upshot really is that it's working it's a good program but it's not financially
- yeah needs a subsidy because you're never going to make that self-supporting it's not
- that was never the plan nice
- well but then it begs the question of who's gonna keep paying for this you know and
- well I think the I mean when we were discussing you know the pilot and getting that started you
- know the idea was that the district through its contractor once named Joe would help get this
- started and then the idea being that the apartment complex and its and its management maintenance
- route would eventually take over the management and there doesn't seem to be
- I guess that the the participants at this point they don't seem to be
- jumping in jumping in to take that over I guess what I would say is the the bulk of the cost is
- creating the site assembling I guess the cost of materials and assembling materials
- the maintenance cost is lower and I think something that properties would be able to assume
- over like the post-partner period I think that the from discussions I've had with the existing
- participants the property managers are willing to pay the estimated amount for operation going
- forward for their particular site because they are spending less on waste hauling out of the
- facility is that right so far it's been out of an interest in providing or providing the service
- to the residents that's good yeah but what I guess my conclusion is that I don't expect that any
- site
- would be willing to pay for the entire cost including the whole upfront for giving it this
- and I guess that's what I meant when I said that you know a district to its contractor would get
- this started we're going to bear the brunt of the upfront cost to construct bins and educate
- residents and stuff but yeah then whether it be through you know interest you know a good pr to
- attract tenants that hey we have this program if this is something you're interested in you know
- that yes and ultimately the the complex would take it over and manage and run the operation moving
- forward I'm just wondering what so we've we're planning to renew the pilot but at what point
- is it no longer a pilot and it's just a program that well I mean do we then do we then offer
- grants to apartment complexes or somebody like once that's something that you know that we can
- consider we have already discussed you know in the next year's budget possibly establishing
- some sort of a community grant program that could go towards something like this
- I think and you correct me but and the next service agreement that the board had already
- looked at last month you know what's in there is some is some continued support for the existing
- complexes but the bulk of the focus and both the funds are to get this established an additional
- complex but what we weren't turning we weren't turning our backs at this point on the existing
- participants but we want to start steer them toward making the commitment to it and either
- take it over and have this as a part of your community at your complex
- you know and I hope that that's what happens well I don't want to see it
- just go by the wayside and get left and you know and abandoned but at what point do we say
- we've done our part and it's it's up to you to make this continue that's exactly my question
- so the line I've taken so far by May is I've informed the participating site managers that
- the intent is for after the partner period that they will assume the cost of the program going
- forward and that as Dominic mentioned the proposed contract for phase two is almost is designed
- entirely for new sites with a possibility to provide funding to existing sites on an as needed
- basis where both the district and one sustainable joe agree that it's rented so it's much less
- continued support for existing sites than it is establishment of new sites with the possibility
- to retroactively support existing sites if deemed necessary and I guess they requested and
- exactly and I guess in my mind what was for the existing sites was more of a time commitment to
- resident turnover hey we have a new group of people that are interested but they have no
- idea what they're doing so okay we're going to devote some time to you to educate your
- new residents that want to do this. It seems like a weekly video could be made. It could.
- Distributor has been trying to use that. It seems you know that the cost should be zero.
- I don't know. Are any of these four sites heavy on student population? Are they mostly
- not students? I would say they are mostly really ballpark around students.
- Half the sites are half within. Sorry each of the sites have a roughly half student population
- so the turnover is an issue. Yes yeah. Do any of the current participants
- I mean I guess looking specifically at the non-student residents within those complexes or
- you know is there something that we can do or any of them seem like they would have an interest in
- learning enough to spearhead it going forward and so that you we can take a step back. I see.
- And they can educate the new residents when they come in and like you produce some YouTube videos
- and that should be all you need. I would say for about half of the sites so two of the sites
- there's one one site that has very few residents and is the co-housing and I think that they are
- capable of doing that training going forward. I don't think they will rely very heavily on
- continued intervention and I think the same is also true or I hope to be true of co-op for a
- similar reason because it's a single household altogether. They have people generally assigned
- to certain responsibilities in the house and it seems that they have the intent to be able to
- transfer that knowledge going forward. Whereas with the two more conventional apartment style
- properties I don't think that any of the residents are interested in taking it up on behalf of the
- apartment and I don't think the property managers are necessarily interested in their staff and
- maintenance or I guess staff managers filling that role. So well I don't think that it would
- be a zero cost for them to have like continued training or support. I don't think it will be
- substantial and that's what I am expecting to be close to a realm that they would be willing to
- continue to fund going forward and so far from the discussions we've had and the estimates I've
- provided it looks like it will. Oh okay well hopefully now that would be the model as long
- as you're available to do that kind of follow-up right and they're willing to pay what it costs.
- Exactly and and so far that's the I guess arrangement and expectation but again like
- I mentioned in the initial report in November one big question is how long the equipment will last
- because that that will be a substantial cost to replace that would definitely be a barrier if it
- were you know needed to be replaced on a two-year basis versus a five or six-year basis. Well and
- in
- your updated report you already say there are some hinges and stuff that need to be built. Yeah
- there
- are small modifications that I'm already making with the intention of this phase creating greater
- florescence and longevity for the equipment. I think my concern is this should be getting
- us closer to having a program for the whole county community at rural sites etc and I feel like
- that
- should be the next the thing that we do next and it's not you know we're still talking about
- apartment complexes in the city I just feel like
- we need to we need a big program like this demonstrates that it works on a small scale
- and that there's a lot of counts of waste diverted which is great right but I think it would be
- really good to have some planning focus maybe starting with staff coming back to board but
- you know what can we do to develop a significant program that would be something that would either
- be a subscription base or something else for county residents across the whole county
- because we had something and they stopped us they ceased operations so you know what would it take
- to find do can we do an RFQ and see if there's anyone you know in the vicinity who can do this
- should we I don't know I just I just feel like this is like it's good to have statistical
- information about the value of the program you know number of residents how many pounds are diverted
- that's huge but I feel like grants to apartment complexes is not
- the best use of our time in the future I think getting a good program going would be
- a better use of our time I suppose and because we have so many people living in apartments that
- inside and outside the city limits and so that is a population that you're probably not going
- to get them to go to a you know a site to get rid of unless they're already bringing their
- recycling
- to one of our offices unless they're all right and very conscious and doing I mean you would
- have to do this as part of a recycling program for residents I mean I think recycling not posting
- those together for me but but for a big program we need a place that's going to take well
- we've had organic waste task force we've had some of these discussions if there is
- hobo incorporated I think we've referenced it about their board meetings they have a facility
- outside of Sheffield you know the mature we've looked at we've talked with them about
- what would it take to have collection in Monroe County to get into your facility
- and you know we're looking at eleven twelve hundred dollars a pool
- probably closer to seven or eight seven or eight well then you had the disposal on top
- so we're up roughly a thousand maybe a little bit more
- to get a box set and swabbed out but it gets full from Monroe County to Shelby
- and learned from their facility so and so we talked with MCCSC schools participating in such a
- thing
- is there another entity that we had identified reached out to? We talked to ANISA and IU
- which says you guys need to follow up on. Yeah and then the sustainability office of IU Bloomington.
- So they're probably on the less likely camp that are trying to do something on their own
- because it wouldn't pull it out completely. So we are we are looking at an option that is
- not most cost effective necessarily and that's part of the problem with doing it is
- there is there's nothing there's there's not a facility nearby to take that from place to
- and that's ultimately whether it's private facility a public partnership
- but the long-term solution is to have a facility in the area that will take that material.
- Yeah I'll just note that the target audience for this particular program is high density housing
- which happens to be in higher concentration in city limits that's yeah the difference is they're
- able to do it on their property whereas to get a very large inclusive program requires a processor
- in a whole different structure right right I understand that yeah I definitely agree though
- that I mean I just the last thing I heard at the last meeting was oh it's a high price pay okay
- well what else are we going to do like we can't just I don't know we just we used to go out and
- find one place that's expensive and then go well that's it it's expensive to move on I mean I just
- feel like we I just ask staff to think about other ways to accomplish something like this because
- it
- is a huge huge impact on our place I mean it's it's huge. Well I mean we have the task force so
- um I guess this is a request to ask the task force to comb through and see if there's any any other
- options. There might be an answer out there that's not a processor of the scale but what is it
- called
- well is it you know that yeah that's the one outside of Shelby yeah and there's also another
- business I don't think we've identified it's about the same distance that's south toward the river.
- Oh okay but same issue same yeah because it's a transportation issue yeah
- you know which which is you know cost and urban footprint yep yep
- there are options and if I think this is to me it's a it's a stomachable option
- if we go into it short term with a plan to do something local in the near future.
- Yeah but you got to have that local plan yeah I agree do that forever yeah. I mean
- Volkashi opens up some other possibilities right like you don't have to have a farm to do Volkashi.
- But you still have but you still have the solid product that needs to finish as has been described
- it's a it's a much shorter term but it still has to go and sit somewhere and finish composting yep
- and you know and again and again you get into the you know I get part of the the purpose of
- looking at the multi-dwelling and we referred to update at the board meeting you know a
- neighborhood
- centric model is is is to avoid standard the threshold that gets you on item trade-off
- you gotta look at registering or permitting a facility and that's 300 square feet is that
- threshold okay okay did you have some feedback
- um I mean I'm interested in the conversation I do think that Julie has a point about thinking about
- longer term solutions and it just makes me wonder if 300 you said 300 square
- 300 square feet is the compost pile by dimensions that is the items threshold that puts you under
- their purview to be permitted to register it's at the county parks you were cutting out I'm sorry
- sorry what if we had setups at the county parks
- I mean I'm just envisioning kind of a way to have
- places well that's that's just one of the things that was discussed at last month's meeting with
- the request the garden quest has and they have partnered with will debt park to do the finish
- to do the finished composting of the solid byproduct from the bokashi fermentation
- um you know but but again they're they're still limited to that 300 square foot threshold
- if I may add one of the I guess thinks apart or not right thinking about it in terms of distributed
- or centralized is how we've been doing it in the task force and then distributed model no matter
- what someone has to be able to maintain right right so there has to be I love it but yeah there
- still has to be somebody to be able to maintain it even if that's small volume so obviously a high
- amount of distribution makes it manageable for a small number of people but it also significantly
- limits the amount of waste we're able to take overall so centralized could collect from
- institutions in a way that decentralized can't yeah what I'm understanding about the Bokashi method
- is there's certainly it's a less labor intensive you know once you take that the solid product
- fermentation and do the finished composting because it doesn't sound like it's something
- that you don't have to churn consistently yeah so it's but it has to sit for a long time I think
- it was three to four months that's not for the fermentation process I thought it was like closer
- to two or three weeks yeah but then you have to bring you make juice off that and he's talking
- about burying the solids for I think but I thought he said it was like three months and then you
- should be able to yeah I thought it was I thought it was even longer than that between county parks
- and city parks yeah there might be oh I mean I mean maybe that's you know we're
- leading ourselves into another option that we should investigate yeah but yeah
- well anyway if the task force can keep working on it I think that would be good I think we need
- multiple approaches here you know I don't I don't think we should be satisfied no yeah I mean it's
- and I and until until there is a large-scale local option available it's you know multiple
- approaches well you know I think the things that we're doing are the best step that we can take
- at this point of course that you're talking about have a representative from extension on it
- Purdue extension is that Monroe County extension services we do not but they are you know I can
- reach out and grab them in the office so we get it certainly yeah it just seems like that might be
- a
- worthwhile resource we can extend that invitation certainly
- um I have a question about a different topic if we can move on um well we have the update on the
- if yeah the agreement was once the city the city has agreed to the MOU uh in essence um or um they
- got back to me we're uh fixing some of the some typographical errors and dates that need to be
- corrected on for the timing of it but they have agreed to the MOU um so I would ask if there's
- interest to bring the uh service space to the service agreement back to the board next week
- and then and then I had a question related that for the initial pilot agreement
- I could not find a record of where the board took action on the MOU
- we they have delegated that I signed I signed off on it and then once it was signed off on
- we brought the service agreement to the board stating that the MOU had been executed
- so the president the board chair didn't sign it either I that jogged my memory I think that
- was the case I think it was a matter of timing with the city where the board said that the
- executive director could proceed with the agreement so there would have been a vote though to say
- that
- right yeah I I'd like to go back through minutes um so we did it wrong last time yes
- but I but I have no problem with the board voting to allow Tom to sign I mean that's fine
- that's no big deal but by this I guess by the same token you know if I sign it and we bring
- everything to the board at next week's meeting and the board doesn't approve the contract the
- mo is null and void so are you saying that last year or two years ago you signed it before the
- board approved the the resolution the resolution for the service agreement said that the mo you
- had been executed and the dating of the signatures indicate that that's the legal question how it
- happened but I can go back to the minutes perhaps there was a consensus or a vote taken to delegate
- um the mo you um it's every regardless I you know I could just tell the city that
- all you know the mo you will have to go to the board for approval at the next meeting
- that's probably the why is that I don't know oh okay I don't know why why why would we shouldn't be
- yeah I think that would be the the clearest and most transparent way to do it is to bring both
- mo you and the contract agreement to the board
- under separate or the same resolution to be under separate resolutions wouldn't they
- oh I would say the same one yeah the same thing yeah you can just reference the mo you
- yeah so that could steal that means I got to rewrite the thing I can't just update enough
- no that's that's fine
- so yeah so the question is given that the city has agreed to the mo you
- is the committee agreeable to that resolution and the service agreement theme on the
- agenda for the board meeting yes
- David's shaking yes nodding yes shaking yeah that's what I meant to say
- consensus to bring that to the board at the next one that's what I
- okay all I have on that issue thank you Julie you had another topic what is the transition date for
- rumpy service one day two days ago for yesterday yeah so
- is there any information available at the rural sites or I don't see it on the website about
- the new expanded I need to I need to give a joey joey was trying to clarify some things
- with with runky on the coated cartons we know and we understand but I think that there was also
- potentially plastic or paper and or paper changes but we're soon to get that clarification
- we'll get information posted and we will get sign it new signage order to indicate the changes
- okay
- social media
- where do the
- experts go are they going paper they don't I mean I think it's a big deal and they just started
- applauding about it but I think you know it's a substantial amount of material yeah
- but now the little plastic spouts and that's them out and keep them so I'm ready to get rid of them
- that we now potentially get revenue yeah oh yeah what about the little plastic spouts
- I cut them out do those need to be cut out mr going yes to put the plastic spouts on the coated
- cartons on the milk cartons yeah you should take those off same thing with the uh folded
- tech you know this what about the plastic piece that's kind of built into the carton
- you can leave that in that that's not enough contaminant okay
- cut mine out well that's the message we need to get across yeah I would say cutting them out is
- the best practice yeah cut them out when I can but I got a basket full of ready to go
- now that's a big deal it's a huge deal really
- but I think yeah anything you could do that's flashing on the website and
- be helpful you can do that yeah my social media person is in peru right now
- oh I'm sure I'm sure I will do my best to make it happen
- is that kayla or elisa elisa okay but kayla can I'm not confident kayla can develop use canva and
- develop something that we can post and put some text with
- but we do on the website too it's it's one of the strongest social media
- and a lot of folks that do look at the website but what can I bring
- what can't I bring the recycle we strap people to the website
- okay any other um topics that um any members wanted to bring up I may
- I'm either going to be virtual for the morning or not able to attend so yeah why I
- Julie can you chair the July board meeting because I will not be able to attend yeah
- well that uh and we have budget stuff in July the budget first presentation for the budget but no
- action right okay but discussion and do we need to talk so we're gonna are we gonna talk about the
- budget I think second meeting again in July and I would anticipate I would provide you a preview
- of the presentation the other uh I think it's the other thing I need to ask to have on the agenda
- for the June board meeting is the joint joint meeting with the CAC in July to review the budget
- which historically has been either piggyback on the board meeting or the CAC meeting
- board meeting tends to be the easier one to do because the board members are already available
- there I would keep that if you can so but do you do I would do that if you can confirm that
- the board with the board okay all right make sure we have a forum okay got it
- anything else for the good of the order
- nope okay well I don't have anything else so I think we can adjourn
- ("Pomp and Circumstance")