After years of stakeholder-driven work, Michigan’s solid waste management law was amended in December 2022 with a new focus on sustainable materials management, such as recycling and composting, instead of just landfilling. Under the amended law, each county will be required to have a Materials Management Plan that will pave the way for Michigan to achieve a 45 percent residential recycling rate.
Phil Roos, director of the Michigan Department of Environment, Great Lakes, and Energy (EGLE), called for Michigan counties to begin developing these new plans as of Jan. 8, 2024. Plans will include information about waste volumes generated in the planning area, current recycling rates, recycling goals and strategies, improved facility siting processes, and enforcement mechanisms. Counties can collaborate with other counties to develop their plans.
“Materials Management Plans are an important step in changing the mindset from treating our trash as a burden to that of using it as a valuable resource,” Roos said. “This is a time for municipalities, counties, and residents to work together to increase our recycling rate, decrease our reliance on landfills, and build an economy that puts unwanted materials to a new use.”