Resource Recycling Advisory Council

Resource Recycling Advisory Commission Meeting of July 22, 2019 Middletown Senior Center, 7 PM Members Present: Monica Belyea, Izzy Guy, Robin Hanson, Alison Johnson, Debbie Stanley, Krishna Winston. Members not present: Bessie Bianco, Chantel DeArmitt, Rebecca MacLachlan, Harold Panciera Member of the Public Present: None Public Works Staff Present: Kim O’Rourke The meeting was called to order at 7:07 pm. The minutes of the April meeting were approved as presented. Recycling Coordinator Report Food Waste at Transfer Station- The City will be commencing the food waste collection at the transfer station on August 1st. Blue Earth Compost will provide carts for people to put their food waste in and it will be picked up once or twice a week. It will be delivered to the anaerobic digester in Southington. Textile bins- Harold has coordinated new textile recycling drop off bins at several of the schools. Attached is a flyer of all the schools now collecting textiles. The proceeds from these collections go directly to each school. Bring Your Own Bag Outreach – Kim is organizing outreach activities for handing out reusable bags. Attached is an update on what has been accomplished. Meeting with Superintendent – Kim, Harold and Milan (a summer worker) met with Dr. Conner to discuss recycling in the schools. He was generally supportive. The big changes this year are schools can no longer dispose their recyclables in plastic bags and shredded paper must go in the garbage, not recycling, unless they work with a private shredding company. Harold, Deb Stanley and Kim are hoping to get all the schools on board with milk carton recycling for lunch and breakfast. The group was hoping to get Dr. Conner’s support for food waste composting in the kitchens, but he has not committed to that yet. Swap Shack 7/24 Krishna 7/31 Izzy 8/3 Krishna 8/7 Alison 8/14 Debbie 8/17 Robin Sustainable Purchasing Policy As part of the Sustainable CT effort, Harold and Kim will be meeting with the Purchasing Supervisor to discuss ways the City can improve its purchasing of sustainable products. One of the efforts would include purchasing recycled paper and setting copiers to automatically print on both sides. Upcoming Events Members discussed the upcoming events: Open Air Market, Ewaste Event, Composting Workshop, Repair Café, and the Household Hazardous Waste Event. Monica said she will try to get buttons done for these events. The meeting adjourned at 8:15pm. Respectfully submitted, Kim O’Rourke Kim O’Rourke Recycling Coordinator