Resource Recycling Advisory Council

Resource Recycling Advisory Commission Meeting of February 22, 2021 7:00 p.m. Via Webex Members Present: Stephan Allison, Bessie Bianco, Alison Johnson, Rebecca MacLachlan, Krishna Winston, Lydia Wolfe, Tisha Zawisky. Members not present: Chantel DeArmitt, Debbie Stanley. Members of the Public: Rafael Bianco, Eleanor Nettleton Public Works Staff Present: Kim O’Rourke, Recycling Coordinator Call to Order Ms. Winston called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Minutes were accepted from the January meeting. Ms. Zawisky suggested changing the item on the agenda from “approving the minutes” to “accepting the minutes.” Recycling Coordinator’s Report Food Waste Collection in the Sanitation District: Ms. O’Rourke said the Sanitation District Commission had not met in January because of a snow storm (meetings are held in person), and would now not meet until February (Feb. 23). A meeting with the vendor, Blue Earth Compost, Director Russo, and Deputy Director Holden had been held to address the Director’s concerns. The Director agreed to move the project forward as long as the Sanitation District would not incur additional costs and the Commission supported the effort. Blue Earth Compost and Ms. O’Rourke would be presenting to the Sanitation Commission on 2/23. Considering that the program would realize a cost savings, it would be surprising if the Commission did not approve it. Then the Mayor, the Finance Director, and Director Russo would need to sign off on it, after which implementation could begin. Pending those approvals, the collection could begin in early May. It would include collection from restaurants in the Main Street and Washington Street areas and from MacDonough and Snow Schools—the first such municipal collection program in the state. Eleanor Nettleton joined at 7:10. She had had trouble getting into Webex. Ms. Winston asked for introductions from everyone. Terracycle Programs: Ms. O'Rourke announced that a box for recycling office supplies had been added on the second floor of City Hall, accepting broken pens, pencils, label sheets, and binders, with a similar container at Middletown High School. The preference is to collect items that cannot be reused. The initiative for this collection came from a local high school student, who had also lobbied for cigarette-butt recycling. Ms. O'Rourke had agreed to get a cigarette-butt recycling container for Main Street, on a trial basis. She would update the City website on these new programs. Ms. Winston asked about the cork recycling. Ms. O’Rourke affirmed that the corks did have to be real. She explained that she does a visual inspection when corks come in and removes the synthetic ones. Since the COVID pandemic began, an artist had been taking the corks and using them to make bulletin boards, hot plates, and other decorative items (including a “super cute” snowman in the Public Works office) and returning the unused pieces, which are sent on to Re Cork. ReCork makes them into yoga blocks and sandals and the insides of surf boards. The artist had previously obtained corks from restaurants, but they were not collecting them during COVID. She had just sent out 22 lbs of cork. Ms. Winston felt that would make an interesting story for the Commission on the Arts. Mr. Allison mentioned a Middletown artist who made cityscapes out of corks. Rockfall Foundation WASTED Series: Ms. O’Rourke reported that the Rockfall Foundation, the Wesleyan Sustainabilty Office, RiverCoG and the City were sponsoring a series on waste, starting in March, that would include topics including environmental justice, reuse, waste audits, legislation and composting. Ms. Winston mentioned the Repair Café, which was held several times before the pandemic. She hoped that event could be revived to help people get items fixed. More information is available in the Recycling Coordinator’s Report for February 2021. Chairman’s Report Meeting with the Mayor: Ms. Winston announced that there had been a plan to invite the Mayor to a Commission meeting, and she wanted to raise the possibility again, especially now that he had been co chair of the CCSMM Increasing Recycling Working Group and was of course aware of waste issues in Middletown. She asked the group whether he should be invited to the March meeting, and all favored the idea. Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act Resolution: Ms. Winston and Ms. O’Rourke reported that they had made a presentation to the Public Works Commission, which was very receptive and voted to forward the resolution to the Common Council for its March meeting. Meeting Time: Ms. Winston asked for a quick poll on changing the meeting time occasionally to the middle of the work day. Everyone agreed that that was possible and agreed to make the change for the meeting with the Mayor. Sustainability Framework: Ms. Winston reported that the Mayor had been hesitant about creating another formal commission to coordinate the City’s sustainability efforts, but had volunteered to come to the meetings of the informal working group known as the Sustainability Team instead. Ms. Winston, Anna Salo-Markowski, and Jen Kleindienst had put together a framework based on the Sustainable CT process that brought together all the areas of action relevant to sustainability with the departments, commissions, task forces, and other City entities and non-governmental bodies involved. She offered to share the document with anyone interested. Ms. Bianco joined the meeting at 7:30 p.m. Swap Shack Ms. Winston said she had written to the Director to inquire when the renovation might begin. She explained that the decision had been made to use the original concrete pad and framing. She referred to her memo on items to be accommodated in the Swap Shack and asked members to send her their thoughts. Ms. Nettleton suggested the shelves be adjustable. The interior will be designed with the help of Jeff Bianco, with Ms. Bianco as the intermediary. Several matters to consider included whether the Swap Shack should remain open all the time or only when it could be staffed with volunteers. Ms. MacLachlan proposed deciding that question before doing the design, because staffing might have implications for the configuration. Mr. Allison brought up the question of signage for the Recycling Center. Ms. O’Rourke said she was working on signage for the vehicle scale and would write up notes on the other signs for the signage group to discuss. Ms. Winston suggested also thinking about signs for inside the Swap Shack. Easter Candy Car Cruise: Ms. O’Rourke reported that the Recreation Department was holding another car parade for Easter on March 27 at Crystal Lake, and anyone is interested in helping should let her know; the event would offer a good opportunity for getting information to a wider audience. Compost Bin and Rain Barrel Sale: UConn Master Composters would be recording a video prior to the sale of compost bins and rain barrels, with distribution to take place on April 11 at Veteran’s Park. Paper Shredding on April 24: Ms. O’Rourke asked for volunteers to help with the event at Veteran’s Park, scheduled for 9am–11am. Earth Day Zero Waste Swap Event on line on April 20: Ms. O’Rourke announced she would offer a brief introduction to the trash crisis in CT and the principles of Zero Waste and then review some ideas for eliminating personal waste generation. The program was being sponsored by the Russell Library. She hoped the library would be able to resume its in-person swap events at some point. Open Air Market August 29: Members discussed whether the Commission should participate in this event. Ms. O’Rourke explained what had happened in the past, and it was agreed that if members would be available to cover the day in shifts, it was a good community event to be part of. Other New Business Ms. Zawisky asked if the membership of the Commission was posted on the City website. Ms. Winston said it was not, and Ms. O’Rourke will look into adding the information. Members discussed the general absence of information on commissions’ missions and membership. Ms. MacLachlan asked about the South Farms Food Scrap Drop-off and Ms. O’Rourke reported no approval had yet been received from DEEP. Ms. Winston mentioned that if anyone was interested in taking over as Chairperson, she felt no necessity to remain chair for life. Mr. Allison made and Ms. Johnson seconded a motion to adjourn at 8:10pm. Respectfully submitted, Kim O’Rourke Kim O’Rourke Recycling Coordinator