Minneapolis council members push to close incinerator

Some Minneapolis City Council members are pushing to shut down one of the largest waste incinerators in Hennepin County, the Minnesota Daily reports, with Council members expressing concern over air pollution from the incinerator.

The Hennepin Energy Recovery Center (HERC) incinerates all waste collected in Minneapolis and surrounding suburban areas in Hennepin County to generate electricity. The HERC produces electricity for nearly 25,000 homes in the county, according to Hennepin County.

City Council will hold a public hearing Thursday for any comments from the community, with a plan to vote for the legislative directive Oct. 17.

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Council members in favor of the closure legislative directive aim to permanently shut down the HERC’s incinerator by 2027 and close the facility by 2033. Minneapolis Council President Elliott Payne says the directive is meant to be the catalyst for a move toward a zero-waste future.

According to the U.S. Environmental Protective Agency, the HERC emitted nearly 170,000 metric tons of gasses including carbon dioxide, methane, nitrous oxide and biogenic carbon dioxide in 2022.

The legislative directive focuses on the HERC’s disproportionate health impacts on Black and Indigenous residents located in north Minneapolis, saying about 230,000 people live within three miles of HERC and experience an increased likelihood of asthma, cancer and heart and lung disease.

Hennepin County passed a resolution in February 2024 with zero-waste recommendations that would help close the HERC. Many of the recommendations require legislation, such as requiring producers to expand recycling methods and securing funding for zero-waste initiatives.

Hennepin County spokesperson Carolyn Marinan says in a statement to the Minnesota Daily that the HERC is operated to minimize pollution and ensure that air is emitted under permit-set limits. Marinan said the county is accelerating the HERC’s closure by advancing zero-waste actions.

“We welcome working more closely with the city of Minneapolis and a coalition of additional cities, businesses, residents and lawmakers prioritizing the needed policy, programmatic and infrastructure changes to realize a zero-waste future,” Marinan says in the statement.