For over 20 years, Kaysinger has been an administrator for the Quad Lakes Solid Waste Management District. Similar to the planning commissions, the solid waste districts are divided up to cover every community within the state.
Missouri is divided into 20 solid waste management districts. The districts were created to foster regional cooperation between cities and counties in managing solid waste. The districts help plan and implement recycling services and other alternatives to waste disposal at the local level. They also administer waste reduction, reuse, recycling and composting grants to support these efforts. Funding for the districts is provided from the tonnage fees paid at Missouri landfills and transfer stations that transfer waste out of state. These funds are received by the department’s Waste Management Program. The department allocates the funds to the districts based on a statutory formula. The districts submit grants to the department for approval and the funds are then paid to the districts based on the grant amounts. The districts then award grants to various entities including local governments, small and large businesses, schools, sheltered workshops, not-for-profit organizations, and individuals to support activities to recycle, compost, reuse, reduce waste, and educate the public on these topics.
The Quad-Lakes Solid Waste Management District (District J) serves the Missouri counties of Bates, Benton, Cedar, Henry, Hickory, and St. Clair. The purpose of the solid waste district is to utilize a portion of landfill fees and to redistribute those into recycling grants.
For more information, please contact Shannon Stewart at:
To visit the Missouri Recycling Association’s website, please click here. To visit the Solid Waste Management Program’s website, please click here.
Recycling Initiative Grant Applications are now available through the FY26 Quad-Lakes Solid Waste Management District (QLSWMD).
The purpose of the District grant program is to provide financial assistance to organizations within the six counties it serves (Bates, Benton, Cedar, Henry, Hickory, and St. Clair) through eligible entities such as private, for-profit, public and non-profit that will:
There is $65,000.00 in available funding for FY26 grant programs.
For more information, contact Shannon Stewart at [email protected] or [email protected] or (417) 298-6070.
ONLINE ONLY applications must be submitted NO LATER THAN 4:00 p.m. on April 11, 2025.
Late applications will not be considered for review.
FY25 City of Warsaw: Poured-in-Place scrap tire playground safety surface
FY25 Meredith Recycling: Radiation Detector
FY24 Clinton Christian Academy: Poured-in-Place scrap tire playground safety surface
FY24 Stockton State Park: Recycling baler/equipment and materials to build a protective lean-to for baler
FY23 Appleton City Booster Club: Rubberized 8-lane recycled material track surface
FY23 Henry County Industries: New pallet jacks, recycling equipment repairs/relocation
FY23 Wheatland School District: Playground equipment made from recycled materials
Abandoned piles of household garbage, bags of yard waste, discarded appliances, old barrels, used tires and demolition debris can threaten the health of humans, wildlife, and the environment. These open dumpsites can be found throughout Missouri at the bottom of ravines, in empty lots and pastures, and along roadsides. These are illegal disposal sites. If allowed to remain, they often grow larger and attract more dumping by others.
Open dumps create a public nuisance, divert land from more productive uses and depress the value of surrounding land. They can also pose the following health, safety, and environmental threats:
Causing or allowing open dumping is illegal and may result in substantial penalties. Report open dumping to your local authorities. They can enforce any local laws and ordinances that prohibit open dumping. They can also work with the state to enforce state laws that prohibit dumping. The Department of Natural Resources is committed to investigating citizen reports of illegal dumping of solid waste. Complaint investigators are located in each Regional Office. While not every complaint can be solved quickly, we are committed to investigating promptly and taking appropriate action. You may also file a complaint online via the Illegal Dumping Complaint Report Form which is offered below. When the form is received by the department, it will be forwarded to the appropriate Regional Office for investigation. You are encouraged to provide as much information as possible about the dump, including a detailed description and information about its location (county, address, driving directions, etc.). We will also need information about the owner of the property where the dump is located. This information will help to expedite our investigation process. You may remain anonymous. We only ask for your identity so we can contact you in case we need more information to investigate your complaint and to provide you with information on the results of our investigation. Despite the best intentions, anonymous complaints often do not provide enough information to pursue the complaint properly. If you wish to remain anonymous and do not provide enough information, we will be unable to investigate your complaint. To report illegal dumping use our online form. Complete the form and return it in any of the following ways:
The department uses surveillance cameras at dumpsites across Missouri to combat illegal dumping. The goal is to educate people and provide alternative options, such as obtaining commercial trash service or using a permitted landfill, transfer station, or recycling facility for environmentally sound disposal.
