April 15, 2022 update
DEQ completed its public review process for a draft solid waste permit for the facility and did not receive any public comments. DEQ issued a permit to the facility effective April 7, 2022. The issued permit and permit evaluation are available at DEQ’s Ridwell webpage.
On April 15, 2022, Metro issued a solid waste facility license to Ridwell Inc. The term of the license will begin on April 19, 2022, and expire on June 30, 2027. The license, staff report and public comments received are now available. Metro’s response to comments received can be found in the staff report.
Feb. 2, 2022 update
Metro held a 30-day public comment period on Ridwell’s solid waste facility license application from Nov.1 to Nov. 30, 2021 and held a public information session on Nov. 17, 2021. Metro received 56 comments during the public comment period and will include a response to those comments in the staff report for the proposed license. Metro does not intend to make a final decision on Ridwell’s license application until the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) completes its public review process on Ridwell’s DEQ solid waste permit application. Information about the DEQ permit application is available at DEQ’s Ridwell webpage.
Name and location:
Ridwell Inc. Portland Warehouse
7006 NE 79th Court, Portland, Ore.
Description of facility and application
Ridwell Inc. applied to Metro for a new solid waste facility license. The Ridwell Portland Warehouse accepts recyclable and reusable materials for consolidation, sorting, and transport to recycling and reuse markets. The facility must obtain a solid waste facility license from Metro.
The Ridwell Portland Warehouse is owned and operated by Ridwell Inc. headquartered in Seattle, Washington. The facility accepts recyclable and reusable materials collected as part of Ridwell’s residential subscription service which provides doorstep collection of plastic film, batteries, light bulbs, plastic clamshell takeout containers, expanded polystyrene (e.g. Styrofoam), as well as reusable items such as handheld tools, bike accessories and holiday lights.
These materials are transported to the Ridwell facility, where they are sorted, screened for unacceptable waste and consolidated. The consolidated materials are then transported to recycling and reuse partners. Any residual waste that cannot be recycled or reused is disposed through standard garbage collection service at the facility.
The property is zoned General Employment 2 (EG2) and the proposed use is allowed outright in this zone by the city of Portland. The facility is also required to apply for a Solid Waste Disposal Site Permit from the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) by Nov. 15, 2021.
A copy of the license application can be downloaded from the link below. If approved by Metro, the new license would authorize the Ridwell Portland Warehouse to receive, consolidate and sort recyclable and reusable materials on site. A standard Metro license generally has a term of five years.
Metro will respond to the comments it receives during the public notice period as part of a staff report which will be posted to this page when available.
Metro is responsible for the regulatory oversight of facilities like Ridwell that receive, sort and consolidate garbage and recyclable materials. Local jurisdictions are responsible for regulating collection services, like the subscription service provided by Ridwell, which are separate from the proposed activities under this license application.
Metro hosted a virtual information session on the proposed license for the Ridwell Portland Warehouse on Nov. 17 at 6 p.m. The information session provided an overview of the applicant’s request and an opportunity to ask questions about the proposed license.