Wisconsin Statutes & Annotations
Chapter 287 - Solid waste reduction, recovery and recycling.
287.11 - Effective recycling programs.

287.11 Effective recycling programs.
(1) Department review. Upon request of a responsible unit, the department shall review documentation of the responsible unit's solid waste management program created under s. 287.09 (2) (a) and determine whether the program is an effective recycling program. The department shall complete its review and make a determination within 90 days after receiving the documentation.
(2) Effective program criteria for responsible units. A responsible unit's solid waste management program is an effective recycling program if it includes all of the following:
(a) A public education component to inform residents of the region of the reasons to recycle, local opportunities to recycle and the prohibitions in s. 287.07 (3) and (4).
(b) A requirement that the occupants of single-family residences, buildings containing 2 or more dwelling units and commercial, retail, industrial and governmental facilities in the region separate the materials identified in s. 287.07 (3) and (4) from postconsumer waste generated in the region.
(c) A requirement that owners of buildings containing 5 or more dwelling units in the region do all of the following:
1. Provide adequate, separate containers for the program established under par. (b).
2. Notify tenants at the time of renting or leasing the dwelling and semiannually thereafter of the programs under this paragraph and par. (b).
3. Provide for the collection of recyclable materials separated from solid waste by the tenants and the delivery of the recyclable materials to a recycling facility.
(d) A requirement that owners of commercial, retail, industrial and governmental facilities in the region do all of the following:
1. Provide adequate, separate containers for the program established under par. (b).
2. Regularly notify all users and occupants of the facilities of the programs under this paragraph and par. (b).
3. Provide for the collection of recyclable materials separated from solid waste by the users and occupants and the delivery of the recyclable materials to a recycling facility.
(e) A system for collecting from single-family residences in the region any materials separated pursuant to par. (b).
(em) A system for the processing and marketing of recyclable materials collected by the responsible unit or by municipalities located in the responsible unit.
(er) A prohibition on disposing of in a solid waste disposal facility or burning in a solid waste treatment facility any material identified under s. 287.07 (3) and (4) that is separated for recycling as part of the program.
(ew) Provisions for the management of postconsumer waste that is not separated for recycling or recovery under par. (b) consistent with the highest feasible priority under s. 287.05 (12).
(f) Other provisions established by the department by rule.
(g) Adequate enforcement of the programs established under pars. (b) to (f).
(h) The equipment or means necessary to implement pars. (a), (b), (e), (em) and (g), including contracts for service, staff, supplies and equipment from vendors.
(i) A reasonable effort, through the implementation of pars. (a) to (h), as applicable, to reduce to the maximum extent feasible the amount, by weight, of each material specified in s. 287.07 (3) and (4) that is generated as solid waste within the region and disposed of in a solid waste disposal facility or converted into fuel or burned without energy recovery in a solid waste treatment facility.
(2m) Variance.
(a) In this subsection:
1. “Cost of disposing of processed material" means the gross cost of transferring processed material to a solid waste disposal facility and disposing of the processed material in the facility, including any disposal costs not paid through fees charged by the facility.
2. “Cost of selling processed material" means the net cost, including any storage costs, of selling processed material to a broker, dealer, or manufacturing facility, plus any cost of transporting the processed material from the waste processing facility to the destination specified by the broker, dealer, or manufacturing facility, less the portion of any state financial assistance received under s. 287.23 attributable to the processed material.
3. “Processed material" means a component of solid waste that has been collected, transported to a waste processing facility and prepared for sale to a broker, dealer or manufacturer.
(b) The department shall, at the request of a responsible unit that has been determined to have an effective recycling program under this section, grant a variance to the applicable requirements in sub. (2) (b) and (er) for up to one year for a material identified in s. 287.07 (3) or (4) that is generated in the responsible unit's region if the department determines that the cost of selling processed material exceeds any of the following:
1. Forty dollars per ton of processed material, as annually adjusted by the department to reflect changes in price levels due to inflation since 1989.
2. The cost of disposing of processed material.
(c) The department may on its own initiative grant, to one or more responsible units that have been determined to have effective recycling programs under this section, a variance to the applicable requirements in sub. (2) (b) and (er) for up to one year for a material identified in s. 287.07 (3) or (4) that is generated in the responsible units' regions if the department determines that the cost of selling processed material exceeds the amount under par. (b) 1. or 2.
(2p) Materials excepted from prohibitions on land disposal and incineration.
(a) The requirements of sub. (2) (b) and (er) do not apply to a material that is subject to an exception under s. 287.07 (7) (b), (bg) or (c) or a waiver or conditional waiver under s. 287.07 (7) (h).
(b) The requirements of sub. (2) (er) do not apply to a material that is subject to an exception under s. 287.07 (7) (f) or a waiver or conditional waiver under s. 287.07 (7) (g).
(c) The department may grant a responsible unit an exception to an applicable requirement in sub. (2) (b) or (er) for up to one year for a material that is subject to an exception under s. 287.07 (7) (d).
(d) A responsible unit may not prohibit the beneficial reuse of a material within a solid waste disposal facility if the beneficial reuse of the material is approved in the solid waste disposal facility's plan of operation under s. 289.30.
(e) A responsible unit may not prohibit the disposal in a solid waste disposal facility or the burning in a solid waste treatment facility of any material for which the department has granted a waiver or conditional waiver under s. 287.07 (7) (g).
(2s) Notification.
(a) The department shall notify the department of agriculture, trade and consumer protection whenever variances granted under sub. (2m) (b) for a plastic container, foam polystyrene packaging or any type of packaging that contains carbonated or malt beverages are in effect for responsible units representing 25 percent or more of the state's population.
(b) The department shall notify the department of agriculture, trade and consumer protection if, within 2 years after providing notification under par. (a) for a packaging material, the condition under par. (a) no longer exists for that packaging material.
(3) List. The department shall prepare and periodically update a list of responsible units that have an effective recycling program.
History: 1989 a. 335, 359; 1993 a. 245, 345; 1995 a. 142; 1995 a. 227 s. 894; Stats. 1995 s. 287.11; 1997 a. 27, 60; 1999 a. 9; 2001 a. 16; 2003 a. 321; 2011 a. 32; 2013 a. 166.
Note: The 7th circuit court of appeals in National Solid Waste Management Assn. v. Meyer, 165 F.3d 1151 (1999), held unconstitutional the requirement that out-of-state waste may not be disposed of in this state unless the originating community enacts an ordinance in compliance with Wisconsin's recycling program.