Blue Earth County, MN Trash & Recycling: Recycling Rules (2026)

Sec. 16-12(f) governs how licensed commercial haulers price residential and commercial pickup in unincorporated Blue Earth County. Paragraph (f)(2) requires all collectors of mixed municipal solid waste to charge for collection on the basis of weight or volume of waste collected, with charges required to increase with the volume or weight collected, the county's version of pay-as-you-throw pricing. Paragraph (f)(3) then protects households and businesses that recycle: collectors may not impose a greater charge for refuse collection on customers who recycle than on those who do not, so a hauler cannot penalize recycling participation through its base trash rate.

These pricing rules sit inside the broader commercial haulers licensing scheme in Sec. 16-12(f), which requires any hauler collecting from residential, business, institutional, or industrial generators to hold an annual license and a vehicle permit issued by the environmental services department, with applications disclosing routes, vehicle safety inspections, insurance, and a statement confirming that customers are billed by weight or volume. Sec. 16-12(a) also folds in state agency rules governing collection and transportation generally. The environmental services department administers licensing and can inspect any hauler's vehicles or records to confirm compliance with the weight-or-volume and no-recycling-penalty pricing requirements.

Sec. 16-9(a) makes a violation of any chapter 16 provision, including this pricing mandate, a misdemeanor punishable as provided by state law, with each day of noncompliance charged as a separate offense, and the county may also pursue an injunction or other district court action under Sec. 16-9(b) to force a hauler into compliance.