Minnesota Composting Council's Mission Statement
The Minnesota Composting Council is the MN State Chapter of the United States Composting Council (USCC)
As a state affiliate of the USCC, the MNCC is dedicated to the development, expansion, and promotion of the composting industry based upon sound science, principles of sustainability, and economic vitality. The organization will achieve its mission by:
As a state affiliate of the USCC, the MNCC is dedicated to the development, expansion, and promotion of the composting industry based upon sound science, principles of sustainability, and economic vitality. The organization will achieve its mission by:
- Encouraging and guiding research
- Promoting best management practices
- Establishing standards
- Educating professionals and the public
- Enhancing product quality and markets.
MN Composting Council Board Members
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Ginny Black, Chair
ginny_compost(at)yahoo.com Ginny is a retired Organics Recycling Specialist who used to work at the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. In her job, Ginny provided technical assistance to compost facility operators and promoted markets for finished compost. She provided education to citizens to help them make informed decisions and take actions that conserve resources and prevent pollution to benefit the environment, economy, and society. Kala Fisher, Vice Chair, City of St. Louis Park
Kala is the Secretary of the MNCC and a Solid Waste Program Coordinator for the City of St. Louis Park. Kala coordinates residential recycling and organics recycling programs for the city. She has also served in similar roles at the county and regional level for Hillsborough County, Florida and Pope/Douglas Solid Waste in west central Minnesota. Her career experiences includes working with commercial composters, haulers, educators, businesses, schools, and residents to expand organics recycling and promote the use of compost. Kala has also worked with a number of stakeholders on issues surrounding certified compostable foodservice packaging during the development of the CIty's Zero Waste Packaging Ordinance. Kala is a graduate of St. Cloud State University where she received a BA in Environmental Studies. |
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Mia Thomton, Treasurer, Natur-Tec
Mia is the Manager of Customer Relations and Operations for Natur-Tec®, a compostable product manufacturer here in Minnesota. In her role, she engages with all stakeholders in the organics recycling industry – generators, haulers, and processors and is excited to bring her passion and experience to the MNCC board. Mia is a graduate of the University of Minnesota, Twins Cities where she received a BA in Global Studies with an emphasis in Environmental Sustainability. Kellie Kish, Secretary, City of Minneapolis
Kellie is the Vice Chair of the Minnesota Composting Council. She worked for Carver and Anoka Counties as well as the Recycling Association of Minnesota (RAM) prior to joining the City of Minneapolis in April 2013. Her BA degree is from the University of Minnesota in Global Studies, Environmental Science, Natural Resources and Policy Management. She has played a major role in planning, studying and collecting data on composting Source Separated Organics at the Carver County Compost Project and in the City of Minneapolis' organics recycling program roll-out. |
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Tim Farnan, Minnesota Pollution Control Agency Tim Farnan works in the Sustainable Materials Management Unit at the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. Tim’s work focuses on waste prevention and recycling with an emphasis on Organics Recycling. Tim has been a member of the board of the Minnesota Composting Council since 2014. Tim has been with the MPCA for since 2007, prior to working for the agency he was the customer service manager for Eureka Recycling. Tim Goodman, NatureWorks Tim is the cradle-to-cradle manager for NatureWorks, LLC and is responsible for developing and implementing End-of-Life (EOL) management strategies for the recovery of PLA from the post-consumer waste stream. Current efforts are focused on the recovery of PLA through both composting and recycling initiatives. Tim has over 35 years in the waste and recycling field, and prior to NatureWorks held positions in local government, the private waste industry, and as an independent consultant working with clients on composting and recycling programs/policy. |
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Tom Halbach, University of Minnesota
Professor Tom Halbach is an Emeritus Extension Educator and State Specialist for Waste Management and Water Quality at the University of Minnesota. Tom's research and education interests include the beneficial utilization of waste materials in agriculture, forestry, horticulture, and mineland reclamation. Tom has taught at the Midwest Composting School since 1995. Tom's expertise includes studies on many types of wastes, from ash and fish waste to food waste and refuse. He also serves on the SWANA, Minnesota Land of Lakes Chapter, Board of Directors. Lynn Hoffman, Eureka Recycling Lynn has years of experiences in implementing Zero Waste strategies including waste reduction, recycling and composting. Her experiences ranges from community, local policy and advocacy, and operations. She has a deep commitment to understanding and supporting composting strategies that provide the most benefit for our community in terms of climate change, environmental justice, and local economic development. She is currently Co-President of a $14M organization with 102 employees, she brings experience with budgeting, human resources, board development, internal communications, and other organizational development issues. Chuck Joswiak, Specialized Environmental Technologies Chuck directs Sales & Market Development while helping oversee site operations at SET, a compost processing company with facilities around the Twin Cities. He has 26+ years in the landscape and horticultural industry and is a member of MNLA. He has worked with contractors, landscape architects, engineers and municipalities designing projects and utilized hundreds of thousands cubic yards of compost. Tim Lundell, Western Lake Superior Sanitary District Tim Lundell is the Senior Solid Waste Operator at the WLSSD in Duluth, MN. Since 2002, Tim has worked in household hazardous waste, assisted with the operation and supervision of a materials recovery center, yard waste collection site, and WLSSD's source separated organics composting facility. Tim earned a Bachelor of Science Degree at Bemidji State University and has previous work experience with the National Park Service and the MN Department of Natural Resources. |
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Max Milinkovich, OTI of MN Max’s role at OTI of MN focuses on building new business opportunities and development. In addition he works to grow awareness and influence policy and best practices in the burgeoning organics and recycling industries in Minnesota and the greater Midwest. Max has over a decade of experience in the waste and recycling industry and previously held positions in higher education and hospitality. Max also holds a board member-elect position with SWANA and is on the US Composting Council's International Compost Awareness Week Committee. Marcus Zbinden, Carver County Marcus has worked in the Solid Waste industry for the past 20 years. After graduating from the University of Wisconsin Stevens Point with a degree in Resource Management he began working as a Recycling Coordinator for Gallagher's Service, an independent hauler in the Twin Cities. In 1992 he took a position with Carver County as an Environmental Specialist where he continues to work with recycling, composting and other solid waste programs. In 1999, he received a Masters of Liberal Studies degree from the University of Minnesota and he is currently Vice Chair of the Minnesota Composting Council and Chair of the Recycling Association of Minnesota. |
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