About 50 community members with the Zero Burn Coalition packed a Hennepin County board meeting Wednesday afternoon, demanding officials set a date to shut down the Hennepin Energy Recovery Center.
HERC is slated to close sometime between 2028 and 2040, but no specific date has been set. The coalition urges commissioners to close the incinerator by 2028. The meeting marked the first time since April 10 that protesters were able to speak face-to-face with commissioners after three members began a hunger strike, according to Zoe PiSierra, a spokesperson for the Zero Burn Coalition.
HERC is located near Target Field, between downtown and north Minneapolis, and burns about half of Hennepin County’s garbage, totaling around 360,000 tons annually. Protesters with the Zero Burn Coalition said HERC emits harmful pollutants, which increase health risks such as asthma and heart disease…