Public Services Committee

TOWN OF MOUNT PLEASANT, SOUTH CAROLINA PUBLIC SERVICES COMMITTEE Monday, February 5, 2018 Municipal Complex, Committee Meeting Room, 3rd Floor 100 Ann Edwards Lane, Mount Pleasant, SC 9464 Minutes Members Present: Jim Owens, Chair; Joe Bustos, Kathy Landing Staff: Eric DeMoura, Jody Peele Also Present: Andrew Wunderley, Kelly Thorvalson, Kate Dittloff, David Pagliarini Mr. Owens called the meeting to order at 2:40 p.m. 1. Approval of Minutes from the January 2, 2018 meeting Mr. Owens called for a motion to approve the minutes from the January 2, 2018 meeting. Mr. Bustos so moved; seconded by Ms. Landing; motion carried unanimously. 2. Public Comments None.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 2 of 32 3. Consideration of an Ordinance for Environmentally Acceptable Packaging and Products Jody Peele, Director of Public Services, stated that there will be three guests presenting this topic. Mr. Peele introduced Andrew Wunderley with Charleston Waterkeeper, Kelly Thorvalson with the South Carolina Aquarium, and Kate Dittloff with the Surfrider Foundation.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 3 of 32 Mr. Wunderley thanked the committee for the opportunity to speak today regarding the issue of plastic pollution and how it is affecting our waterways, communities, wildlife, and ultimately us. Mr. Wunderley stated that a few years ago he had a different understanding of these issues. He added that he was aware of the Pacific gyres and the issues such as the floating garbage patches of plastic in the middle of the ocean. Mr. Wunderley stated that he wanted to believe that these huge patches of debris in the ocean were from developing countries without robust recycling and waste management programs like we have here in the United States. Mr. Wunderley stated that in 2014, he met Dr. John Weinstein at the Citadel and after a few conversations, it changed all of his beliefs on these issues. Mr. Wunderley stated that was when he learned of our local “dirty little secret”. He added that our harbors, salt marshes, tidal creeks, and rivers are some of the most beautiful in the world as shown in the below slide.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 4 of 32 Mr. Wunderley added that these pictures do not show the 7.6 tons of plastic debris that are in our waterways at any given time. Mr. Wunderley stated that it is striking when you consider most of that weight is plastic material and how light plastic material can be. Mr. Wunderley added that Dr. Weinstein and his team at the Citadel developed that number based on the 2013 Beach Sweep River Sweep data.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 5 of 32 Mr. Wunderley stated that the Beach Sweep River Sweep is an annual community wide event put on by the South Carolina Sea Grant Consortium. Mr. Wunderley stated that if not for our salt marshes and the dense strands of spartina, our shorelines would be strewn with plastic debris much like areas in Indonesia and Mexico. Mr. Wunderley stated that the five most common types of plastic pollution are: plastic bottles, bottle caps, food wrappers, styrofoam, and plastic bags. Mr. Wunderley stated that all of these are convenience items given away cheaply and freely. He added that these items can then be carelessly or accidently discarded from car windows, boats, unsecured recycling bins, or trash bins.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 6 of 32 Mr. Wunderley stated that the pictures below are from Mr. Adam Boozer who lives on Shem Creek and takes pictures while fishing and kayaking the creek. Mr. Wunderley stated that it takes four to six weeks for this material to break down into microplastics. He added that through the process of photodegradation from sunlight and mechanical degradation from wave action and bacterial breakdown, four to six weeks is all it takes for these plastics to break down into microplastics.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 7 of 32 Mr. Wunderley stated that once plastic turns into microplastics, it stays in our waterways forever. Mr. Wunderley stated that the below pictures are the affects of microplastics.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 8 of 32 Mr. Wunderley stated that once microplastics are in the water, they are free to move into the food web. He added that the microplastics work their way into oysters, shrimp, fish, and eventually us. Mr. Wunderley stated that this process is called bioaccumulation which is shown in the below slide.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 9 of 32 Mr. Wunderley stated that if anyone has eaten local fish or shrimp then they have most likely consumed these microplastics. Mr. Wunderley stated that Charleston Waterkeeper has dedicated an enormous amount of time and resources the past several years to help educate the public to remove debris from our marshes, creeks, and rivers. Mr. Wunderley stated that in 2017, Charleston Waterkeeper reached 940 locals through their education work to help raise awareness on plastic pollution.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 10 of 32 Mr. Wunderley added that they also mobilized 1,506 volunteers to remove debris from the waterways. He added that in 2017 they removed over 14 tons of debris from the waterways and almost all of it was plastic. Mr. Wunderley added that if they had to pay these volunteers the going federal rate for volunteers, they would have spent right under $100,000 on these cleanups. Mr. Wunderley stated that you can see all the work being done and the ongoing cleanups in the community through the Anecdata website as shown in the below slide.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 11 of 32 Mr. Wunderley stated that in the 14 cleanups in Mount Pleasant there were 1,937 miscellaneous plastic items, 434 bits of styrofoam, and 227 plastic bags collected. Mr. Wunderley stated that he will turn the presentation over to Kelly Thorvalson from the South Carolina Aquarium who will talk about how plastic and microplastics impact our wildlife. Ms. Thorvalson stated that the South Carolina Aquarium has the Sea Turtle Rescue Program which experiences firsthand effects and dangers of plastics on wildlife. Ms. Thorvalson stated that at the South Carolina Sea Turtle Care Center they take in sick and injured sea turtles that have washed up on the South Carolina coast and even beyond State borders when the need is there. Ms. Thorvalson added that their ultimate goal is to rehabilitate and release these turtles back into the wild. She added that all sea turtle species are considered threatened or endangered and are protected under the Endangered Species Act. Ms. Thorvalson stated that depending on the year, anywhere from 50 to 70% of the turtles that come into their hospital come in with human influenced injuries or illnesses.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 12 of 32 Ms. Thorvalson added that they are only able to treat 15% of the turtles that wash up onto South Carolina beaches because the other 85% are unfortunately washing up dead. Ms. Thorvalson stated that South Carolina hosts more sea turtles in our waters and beaches then North Carolina and Georgia put together. She added that they have seen a trend over the years with increasing numbers of turtles coming in with plastics in their gastrointestinal tract. She continued by saying that in the past 17 years, 20 turtles have been admitted with plastics and 15 of those have been admitted within the last three years.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 13 of 32 Ms. Thorvalson stated that there is a considerable amount of time and effort put into protecting nests on South Carolina beaches. Ms. Thorvalson stated that once these turtles leave our beaches, they swim for several days and land on floating seaweed as shown in the below slide. She continued by saying that these turtles can live in these nests for up to a year. She added that after taking samples, that these nests are filled with plastics and styrofoam as well as microplastics.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 14 of 32 Ms. Thorvalson stated that the Aquarium’s sustainable seafood program, Good Catch, changed their focus this year to a local and regional setting. Ms. Thorvalson added that their goal is to support the local economy. Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 15 of 32  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 16 of 32 Ms. Thorvalson stated that this program has only been going on for six months and they plan on doubling the amount of Platinum members by this time next year. Ms. Thorvalson turned the presentation over to Kate Dittloff with the Surfrider Foundation. Ms. Dittloff stated that Surfrider is a volunteer run grassroots non-profit foundation that spends weekends and after hours keeping the low country clean.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 17 of 32 Ms. Dittloff stated that Surfrider has several programs that are both proactive and reactive that help address the current plastics problem. Ms. Dittloff stated that one of the proactive programs they have is the Ocean Friendly Restaurant Program as shown in the below slide. Ms. Dittloff added that the Ocean Friendly Restaurant Program was implemented in the tri-county area two years ago.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 18 of 32 Ms. Dittloff added that another proactive program was added this summer, Strawless Summer, which allowed Surfrider to engage with local restaurants and bars and to help enable them to make a difference in helping our environment. Ms. Dittloff added that this program pledged to only hand out straws upon request at local restaurants and bars. Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 19 of 32  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 20 of 32 Ms. Dittloff stated that one of the reactive programs they conduct are the beach and marsh sweeps. She added that local ordinances do work. Ms. Dittloff stated that Folly Beach was one of the first municipalities in South Carolina to pass a styrofoam and plastic bag ordinance. She added that the below slides show beach sweeps pre-ordinance and post-ordinance.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 21 of 32 Mrs. Landing asked if the sweeps are a one day all-out effort to clean up. Ms. Dittloff answered in the affirmative. She added that most of the sweeps last two to three hours with about 30-40 volunteers. She added that there are usually five to seven sweeps a year in each municipality. Ms. Dittloff turned the presentation back over to Mr. Wunderley.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 22 of 32 Mr. Wunderley stated that he hopes we see what is being done in the community right now to try and combat the problem with plastic. Mr. Wunderley added that there is a lot of local research being done; education/awareness; cleanup work; voluntary programs; county and industry recycling programs; as well as recent changes to South Carolina law to help step up litter enforcement. Mr. Wunderley stated that even with all this activity, they still do not see a reduction in the amount of material that they are finding in these cleanup efforts. Mr. Wunderley stated that what they need is strong action from local communities to reduce this type of material that will end up in our local waterways, beaches, and marshes. Mr. Wunderley stated that the presentation is over, and they are open to questions from the committee. Mr. Owens thanked Mr. Wunderley for his presentation.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 23 of 32 Before stating her question, Mrs. Landing stated that she wanted to provide full and fair disclosure, explaining that she and her husband own a sailboat and are avid sailors as well as normal beachgoers at Isle of Palms. She added that she attended the Duke University Marine Lab in Beaufort, NC for a summer and she and her husband are active donors to the Nicholas School of the Environment at Duke University. Mrs. Landing then asked about specific outreach to all of the grocery stores. Mr. Wunderley stated that the bigger grocery stores are willing and ready to comply with whatever local ordinances are in place. He added that Trader Joe’s, Aldi, and Whole Foods all have no checkout bags available and encourage shoppers to bring their own. Ms. Dittloff added that when Folly Beach was considering this ordinance, the Harris Teeter located on Folly Road went ahead and proactively changed their bags to paper. Mrs. Landing added that an example she sees regularly with employees at some grocery stores in the Mount Pleasant area is  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 24 of 32 that their first thought is to grab a plastic bag to put meat and other groceries in even when she brings her own bags. She added that we should all go around and mention to management to train employees to first ask customers if they have their own bag or go to paper rather than plastic. Mr. Wunderley stated that there is certainly room for these activities to occur. He added that he believes they still need a strong backstop to prevent those things. Ms. Dittloff added that the biggest issue with a few of the businesses from the Strawless Summer initiative was that a lot of businesses had high turnover and they did not have the time or energy to retrain the new employees. Mrs. Landing stated that we know everyone will be looking for something concrete from the Town, at some point. She asked about a public awareness campaign or something that can get everyone thinking about this regularly and making a concerted effort on a number of fronts. Mr. Owens asked Mr. Bustos if he had any comments. Mr. Bustos stated that he understands that the State was looking at this issue which prohibited us from making an ordinance banning plastics. He asked if this was still a possibility or something that was going to happen.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 25 of 32 Mr. DeMoura stated that from his understanding a bill in such form made its way to a vote, but the vote was short. Mr. DeMoura added that this continues to open the door for home rule on this issue. Mr. Bustos stated that, with regards to this ordinance, the committee usually has a discussion and based on the discussion, a recommendation is made to council. Mr. Bustos asked Mr. Pagliarini if this ordinance was done by the Town or if it was a copy. Mr. Pagliarini stated that it is a compilation of others, but Chairman Owens would have more background. Mr. Owens answered in the affirmative. Mr. Owens stated that we have been looking at this for a couple of years now and putting this ordinance together for quite some time. Mr. Owens added that all of the verbiage has been tried and tested from the ordinances in areas such as; Isle of Palms, Folly Beach, Santa Cruz, California, and Seattle, Washington. He added that they have all have been tried, tested, and approved. Mr. Owens added that they are making certain that what we add in this ordinance is applicable to the Charleston County Recycling  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 26 of 32 Center. Mr. Owens added that there is nothing in this ordinance that has not already been approved by them. Mr. Bustos explained that in the past, the committee usually talks about it and then makes a recommendation to council, and then council would direct the Town’s attorneys to produce an ordinance based on a vote of council. Mr. Bustos added that after reading and reviewing this ordinance, there are a lot more issues than just plastic bags and the retraining of workers. Mr. Bustos stated that he supports the effort, but he would also like some buy-in from local businesses that use this material since this will be a town-wide effort. Mr. Bustos added that there are a lot of moving parts in this ordinance such as to-go packaging, event promoters, grocery stores, food providers, and individuals. He added that this ordinance goes beyond plastic bags such as styrofoam cups and several other things. Mr. Bustos added that he has no problem recommending this to go to council and for council to have the attorneys look at it and make sure it is applicable to Mount Pleasant and have their blessing on it. Mr. Bustos added that he supports this, but believes it should be sent to council so full council can have an opportunity to weigh in on it and its production.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 27 of 32 Mr. Bustos asked if this was final form. Mr. Owens replied in the negative. Mr. Owens stated that he sent this copy to all of council last week for review. Mr. Owens added that council has an obligation to the citizens to review the document and edit it accordingly and bring back something that is substantial to the Town. Mr. Bustos stated that he would not feel comfortable editing an ordinance since we have attorneys for that. Mr. Bustos added that he does, however, support the effort. Mrs. Landing stated that the committee is still the place where you want to air as much information as possible since it seems like this is the real working body before it goes forward. Mrs. Landing added that she would like to hear what the impact would be on small businesses. Mrs. Landing added that she does believe they should change their patterns, but after reading the ordinance and seeing the fines and a few other things, she has a concern for the smaller businesses. Mrs. Landing added that a lot of the fast food restaurants have already gone back to using paper or things that are biodegradable.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 28 of 32 Mrs. Landing stated that she would like to have the small businesses weigh in and see what the impact would be of this ordinance actually being a dollar and cents ordinance as opposed to an awareness campaign and an all-out effort saying we all need to do our part. Mr. Owens thanked Mrs. Landing for her comments. Mr. Owens stated that he would like to address some of the points that were brought up by Mrs. Landing. Mr. Owens added that he went out to local businesses in Mount Pleasant to touch base and receive feedback. Mr. Owens continued by saying that the Lowes in upper Mount Pleasant already has methods in place to change over from plastic to reusable. Mr. Owens added that not only Lowes, but Walmart, Harris Teeter, and both Chick-Fil-A’s in Mount Pleasant have programs. Mr. Owens added that there are environmental impacts throughout our region in regard to plastics and microplastics and that it ultimately gets into our food chain. Mr. Owens stated that we all want to be proactive and try to eliminate as many microplastics as possible.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 29 of 32 Mr. Owens added that one of the big issues in the ordinance that he sees is on page one where it states that the Town of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina has a duty to protect its natural environment, its economy, and the health of its citizens. Whereas the Town of Mount Pleasant, South Carolina desires to eliminate the use of polystyrene/plastic foam and single-use plastic products and other non-locally recyclable or non-properly compostable food packaging in order to protect marine life and wild life. Mr. Owens stated that our legal staff is certainly capable of reviewing this ordinance and amending it in any way they see fit. Mr. Owens added that it does make a lot of sense, as Mr. Bustos stated, to forward this to council for further review and discussion for possible approval. Mr. Bustos stated that he would like to make a motion to send this to full town council with our recommendation that it be sent from council to the attorneys for final form if approved by full council. (Discussion)  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 30 of 32 Mrs. Landing stated that she was reminded by something that came out only two weeks ago regarding a town in California. The town came up with an ordinance banning the use of straws, and that it was reported as being like an “anti-state”, making it dictated rather than making the people want to do the right thing. Mrs. Landing added that going to council would be the right thing to do since everyone will be able to see it. Mr. Owens agreed with Mrs. Landing’s comment. Mr. Owens added that there would be a rollout period of a year from the time the ordinance would be approved. Mr. Owens added that if there is a small business or any other business that can find hardship, they will be granted an extension. Mr. Owens stated that as far as cost goes, there are things in the ordinance that suggest that a business can charge $.25 or roll the cost into the price of their products. Mr. Owens stated that we are not looking to hurt any businesses, but to grow businesses, and we as a community need to be mindful of our environment.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 31 of 32 Mr. Owens opened the floor up for questions. Kevin Cunnane, 3032 River Vista Way, stated that this comment is not meant as a zing in any way, but last week at the Council Retreat there were styrofoam cups on the table and plastic bottles of water and this week there are plastic cups on the table. Mr. Cunane stated that maybe the Town should comply with it first and sooner than everyone else. Mr. Owens stated that it must be an ordinance first, then we will all act. Mr. Bustos called for a motion to send the ordinance to full council for them to review and refer it to the attorneys if that is the collective will of council. Mrs. Landing seconded the motion. Mr. Owens stated that we have a motion, and a second to send this to council for further consideration and asked if there was any further discussion.  Public Services Committee Minutes February 5, 2018 Page 32 of 32 There was no further discussion. The motion carried unanimously. Mr. Owens asked Mr. DeMoura and the committee members if there was any further business to address in this committee meeting. Mr. DeMoura and the committee members replied in the negative. 4. Adjourn There being no further business, Chairman Owens adjourned the meeting at 3:25 p.m. Respectfully submitted by, Andrew Dolan February 8, 2018 Photo Credit: Town of Mount Pleasant Instagram Photo Credit: @adamlawtonboozer Photo Credit: @adamlawtonboozer Bioaccumulation Impacts of Plastic Pollution on Wildlife Kelly Thorvalson South Carolina Aquarium 11 12 13  Treating more turtles than ever with plastic ingestion Plastics in SCA Sea Turtles 8 # of turtles with plastics 6 5 3 2 0 *Data as of January 25, 2018 14 15 16 17  Research: Plastic Bags Harmful Effects on Wildlife • Particularly for sea turtles, plastic bags are commonly perceived as the most frequently ingested and dangerous item1 • Plastic bags have been identified as the second most harmful item to marine fauna after ghost fishing gear 2 • Plastic bags were the most frequently recorded plastic item found within the digestive tracts of deep diving whales, likely due to confusion with cephalopod prey 3 • In addition to whales and turtles, porpoises, birds, and other animals have been harmed by eating plastic bags4 • Zooplankton in the wild have been confirmed to be ingesting plastic 5 18 19  New Partner Requirements in 2017 • From global to local/regional focus • Supports local economy • Strictest regulations • Lowest carbon footprint • Gold and platinum partners serve higher % local/regional seafood than basic partners • Platinum partners also committed to reducing single-use plastics at their businesses 20  6 Months into Transition • Platinum partners agree: • No single-use plastic bags • No Styrofoam to-go containers • Straws only upon request • Plastic cutlery only upon request • Recycle according to city rules • Restaurants are overwhelmingly wanting to be platinum • Of 21 partners at the higher level of regional seafood, 17 are platinum • Expect to double the platinum partners over next 12 months 21  In Conclusion • Compared to most other consumer plastic items, plastic bags pose one of the greatest impacts to ocean wildlife and….warrant the specific attention they have received from governments and advocates to address their use2 • Research suggests that legislation, such as plastic bag bans, is likely to reduce individual and, possibly, population level impacts to marine wildlife2 22  SOURCES: 1National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration Marine Debris Program. 2014 Report on the Occurrence and Health Effects of Anthropogenic Debris Ingested by Marine Organisms. Silver Spring, MD. 19 pp. 2Wilcox, C., Mallos, N. J., Leonard, G. H., Rodriguez, A., and Hardesty, B. D. 2016. Using expert elcitation to estimate the impacts of plastic pollution on marine wildlife. Marine Policy 65:107-114. 3Lusher, A. L., Hernandez-Milian, G., Berrow, S., Rogan, E., and O’Connor, I. 2018. Incidence of marine debris in cetaceans stranded and bycaught in Ireland: recent findings and a review of historical knowledge. Environmental Pollution 232:467-476. 4United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP). 2016. Marine litter legislation: a toolkit for policymakers. Nairobi, Kenya. 109 pp. 5Archives of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology. JW Desforges, M Falbrakth, P Ross. Ingestion of Microplastics by Zooplankton in the Northeast Pacific Ocean. Volume 69, Issue 3, pp 320-330. 23  Charleston Chapter Kate Dittloff RAP@charleston.surfrider.org Ocean Friendly Restaurant Program • Program created to reduce waste in the environment and waterways • Introduced in Charleston two years ago • 7 Criteria, including: • No plastic bags • No Styrofoam food containers • Recycling on premises • Straws upon request Ocean Friendly Restaurant Program • 38 Charleston area restaurants taking part • 4 Restaurants in Mt. Pleasant Including: • Triangle Char & Bar • 5 Loaves Cafe • Metto Coffee and Tea • Sesame Burgers and Beers • Working to certify more in Mt. Pleasant!  Strawless Summer • Huge Success! • More than 115 restaurants voluntarily participated, including 10+ in Mt. Pleasant • Restaurants pledged to provide straws only upon request  Strawless Summer • Why? • Straws can’t be recycled! • Every straw created still exists on the planet somewhere • Dozens of restaurants still participating, many have switched to paper straws  Local Ordinances Work! Folly Beach S.C. • Ordinance passed October 2016 • Pre-ordinance plastic bags collected (avg): 33 Bags • Post-ordinance plastic bags collected (avg): 7 Bags Massive Reduction in plastic bag waste!  Local Ordinances Work! Compared to municipalities with no ordinance: • Mt. Pleasant Average: 38 plastic bags • Charleston Average: 178 plastic bags • Sullivan’s Island Average: 69 plastic bags