An estimated 600,000 pounds of electronic waste and 750,000 pounds of household hazardous waste are expected to be recycled each year at Washington County’s new North Environmental Center in Forest Lake.
The $18.3 million center, which opens to the public on Wednesday, Dec. 18, will give residents in the northern part of county an opportunity to dispose of items like household chemicals, batteries, electronics, recycling and food scraps without having to travel to Woodbury, the site of the county’s other environmental center, said David Brummel, the director of the county’s public health and environment department.
Washington County Public Health and Environment Director David Brummel. (Courtesy of Washington County)
“It will put all county residents within a 25-minute drive of an environmental center,” Brummel said. “We have this long and skinny county, so current drive times to the Woodbury location can be 45 to 50 minutes long for some Forest Lake and Scandia residents.”
Located on 35 acres on the southeast quadrant of U.S. Highway 61 and 202nd Street in Forest Lake, the center features an operations building, a covered drive-through drop-off lane, office space, a free product room, and an education space, along with four acres for yard waste management.
The North Environmental Center also will include a free product room, where residents can pick up fertilizer or cans of paint that have been dropped off by other residents. County officials expect that residents will receive more than $500,000 in free materials, reusing items from the free product room, he said.
Additionally, the Washington County Northern Yard Waste site, currently located in Hugo, is moving next to the new environmental center in Forest Lake, he said.
Commissioner Fran Miron, who represents the Forest Lake area, said “more and more people are just recognizing the need to be environmental stewards. This facility is going to provide that tool that’s necessary for them to really be engaged in environmental protection and good management of our resources.”
The Southern Environmental Center, located at 4039 Cottage Grove Drive in Woodbury, has been popular with residents, and Brummel expects the Northern Environmental Center to record similar numbers once it opens. It’s expected to serve more than 40,000 customers a year.
In 2023, the Woodbury location collected 1.2 million pounds of household hazardous waste; 875,000 pounds of recyclable materials; 1.1 million pounds of electronic waste and 250,000 pounds of organic waste from about 60,000 drop offs.
Residents of Anoka, Ramsey and Chisago counties also can use the environmental centers, Brummel said. Washington County has reciprocal agreements with Anoka, Ramsey and Chisago counties, and the county gets paid by the home county for those residents’ drop offs.
Funding for the new center comes from the Washington County solid-waste fund balance, which must be spent on solid-waste plan strategies, he said. Money for the fund is generated by the county environmental charge, a 35 percent charge on all trash-hauling services, with no impact to property taxpayers through the levy, Brummel said.
Washington County collected $11.3 million from the CEC in 2023 and expects to get $11.5 million in 2024 and $11.8 million in 2025, according to Brummel.
North Environmental Center
A ribbon cutting for the North Environmental Center in Forest Lake will be on Monday, Dec. 16; the center will open to the public at 8 a.m. on Wednesday, Dec. 18.
The center will provide: collection of hazardous materials and electronics; self-serve recycling of cardboard, scrap metal, and mixed recycling; self-serve food scraps drop-off, and self-serve yard waste drop-off.
Hours will be 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Mondays; 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Wednesdays and Fridays, and 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. on Saturdays.
More information at washingtoncountymn.gov/3651/North-Environmental-Center.