Regional system facilities plan

Reuse, recycling and garbage system symposium

In September 2023, Project staff held a reuse, recycling and garbage system symposium at the Oregon Convention Center. The event hosted an international panel of experts who shared how they address the big waste challenges in their communities.

See photos from the symposium and hear some of the opening remarks from Metro COO Marissa Madrigal and Waste Prevention and Environmental Services Director Marta McGuire, PhD.

The visionary panel was followed by an afternoon workshop where representatives from local governments, haulers, reuse nonprofits and businesses weighed in on future facility investments in greater Portland.

Community advisory group

Metro convened community members who represent diverse view points and experiences to advise on the system facilities plan. Members of the advisory group were chosen for their unique perspectives and connections to historically marginalized communities and for their interest and experiences in advancing environmental justice including holding waste education and collection events in their communities.

The group will help to advance racial equity in the development of the plan, identify service gaps, and advise on benefits and impacts of future facilities and services.

The advisory group will provide input and their expertise throughout all phases of the project. Meeting videos and presentation information can be found on the event webpages below:

Community advisory group meeting 1: May 18, 2022
Community advisory group meeting 2: June 14, 2022
Community advisory group meeting 3: July 28, 2022
Community advisory group meeting 4: Aug. 23, 2022
Community advisory group meeting 5: Sept. 19, 2022
Community advisory group meeting 6: Oct. 18, 2022
Community advisory group meeting 7: Dec. 12, 2022
Community advisory group meeting 8: Feb. 28, 2023
Community advisory group meeting 9: April 11,2023
Community advisory group meeting 10: June 13, 2023
Community advisory group meeting 11: July 11, 2023
Community advisory group meeting 12: Oct. 10, 2023
Community advisory group meeting 13: Nov. 14, 2023
Community advisory group meeting 14: Feb. 13, 2024
Community advisory group meeting 15: April 9, 2024
Community advisory group meeting 16: June 11, 2024

Phase 4 engagements

Phase 4 engagement report

In phase 4, Metro sought feedback on the draft plan, which outlines a set of investments to address gaps in the reuse, recycling and garbage system. Feedback was received from a public comment opportunity, a survey and engagements with interested parties.

The public comment report details the comments received and Metro’s responses.

Regional System Facilities Plan phase 4 public comment report

2.64 MB Adobe Acrobat PDF Published Jan 17, 2025

Phase 4 engagement meetings

The Garbage and Recycling community advisory group continued to advise on the plan. Metro staff also met with several interested parties about the draft plan, including:

The Metropolitan Mayors’ Consortium
The Regional Waste Advisory Committee
The Metro Policy Advisory Committee
The Clackamas County Coordinating Committee
The Washington County Coordinating Committee
Regional city and county governments

Staff also held roundtables with local government partners, reuse organizations and private industry.

Phase 3 engagements

Phase 3 Engagement Reports

In phase 3, Metro sought feedback on four scenarios to aid in choosing a preferred set of investments to address the gaps in the reuse, recycling and garbage system. The phase 3 final engagement summary report shares the information gathered from stakeholders over the course of phase 3, how that information shaped the plan, and what the next steps are.

Garbage and recycling system facilities plan phase 3 engagement summary

664.72 KB Adobe Acrobat PDF Published Jun 12, 2024

The engagement and outreach summary lists the major outreach events in this phase.

PDF icon Garbage and recycling system facilities plan Phase 3 engagement and outreach summary

Garbage, Reuse and Recycling System Symposium

The Reuse, Recycling, and Garbage System Symposium consisted of a panel discussion followed by an interactive workshop to review four draft scenarios proposed for Metro’s Garbage and Recycling System Facilities Plan. The scenarios were assessed using evaluation criteria developed in phase 2 of the project and presented to workshop participants, following the Workshop Discussion Guide. The scenarios represent different ways of responding to the gaps identified through engagement and technical analysis.  

Learn more about the Symposium:
International garbage and recycling symposium inspires local solutions

PDF icon Garbage and recycling system facilities plan workshop summary report

Site and Policy Staff

Staff from Metro’s Waste Prevention and Environmental Services department provided their input on the four scenarios developed for the Garbage and Recycling System Facilities. The intent was to seek input and expertise from all levels of staff currently involved with operating, delivering and planning garbage and recycling services. An online survey collected feedback from staff at existing Metro facilities: Metro South and Metro Central transfer stations, St. Johns Landfill, MetroPaint and the RID Deployment Center in addition to waste prevention, education policy and program staff.

PDF icon Waste Prevention and Environmental Services department staff survey results summary

Metro Advisory Committees

The Garbage and Recycling community advisory group continued to advise on the plan. Members of the Regional Waste Plan Advisory Committee, Committee on Racial Equity, and the Metropolitan Policy Advisory Committee also provided input during updates.

Regional Waste Advisory Committee meetings:

Committee on Racial Equity meetings:

July 20, 2023

Phase 2 engagements

Phase 2 Engagement Summary Report

This report summarizes the engagement completed in Phase 2 from September 2022 to January 2023. The work in this phase was focused on outreach to diverse audiences to help identify gaps and facility needs in the regional garbage and recycling system.

PDF icon Garbage and recycling system facilities plan Phase 2 engagement summary report

Gap identification roundtables

Metro and stakeholders including collection companies, local government partners, reuse, recycling and repair organizations and users of our current system, have recognized gaps and inequities in our public, private, and non-profit garbage, recycling and reuse infrastructure.

In the fall of 2022, Metro hosted a series of roundtables with key stakeholders to talk about gaps in services to inform how future facilities could fill these gaps. Gaps and ideas for new services that were identified will help to develop scenarios to improve the garbage and recycling system in phases 3 and 4.

Reuse & Repair Roundtable: October 4, 2022 PDF icon Reuse & Repair Roundtable
Community Partner Roundtable: October 6, 2022 Community Roundtable
Local Government Roundtable: October 31, 2022 Local Government roundtable
Industry Roundtable: November 3, 2022 Industry roundtable

Site and policy staff

Front line workers at Metro South and Metro Central transfer stations, household hazardous waste facilities, MetroPaint and RID see the benefits of and barriers that exist at facilities on a daily basis. During phase 2 of the facilities plan, these stakeholders were also engaged to identify system gaps and opportunities for investment.

PDF icon Garbage and recycling system facilities plan staff engagement summary

PDF icon Waste Prevention and Environmental Services department staff survey results summary

Metro advisory committees

Staff will also consult with the Regional Waste Advisory Committee (RWAC), and Metro’s Committee on Racial Equity (CORE) to update them on the project progress at each phase, and receive advice related Metro Council decision-making about the project.

A summary of input received from these conversations will be posted on the project webpage.

PDF icon Garbage and recycling system facilities plan Community Advisory Group engagement summary

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