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Home My WebLink AboutCB Minutes 2020-06-04 Town of Ithaca Conservation Board Thursday,June 4, 2020(via Zoom Video Conference) Final Minutes Members in attendance: Lori Brewer, Lindsay Dombroskie, Hannah George, Elizabeth Hageman, James Hamilton, Eva Hoffman, Carolyn Lee, Michael Roberts Staff: Mike Smith 1. Persons to be heard a. None 2. Members concerns a. Hannah—Raised the idea that the conservation board should find a way to incorporate environmental justice into its work goals. b. Lori—Suggested we reach out to minority community groups to get their perspective on use of natural areas, parks trails, conservation. Some additional thoughts from the group were i. To promote visibility of issues important to people of color on our platform (as it relates to conservation (e.g. Black Birders week). ii. Hannah -California state parks did a big study to see how their different user groups wanted to use their parks. One of the findings was that some Latinx groups wanted larger group-use spaces. iii. Lori -We should identify barriers to people of color who wish to experience public trails or parks iv. Hannah -Town ought to make proactive steps towards including the voices of minorities in the planning process for Parks, Recreation, and Open Space plan. v. Groups with diverse cohorts: Multicultural resource center, Black Lives Matter, Standing up for Racial Justice (SURD) vi. Hannah recommended a book: Black faces, White Spaces by Carolyn Finny 3. Chair and Coordinator reports a. Some applications for projects in the pipeline for ERC b. Town hall will start to reopen next week. c. Town meetings will be hosted remotely to/through August due to the pandemic. d. The Parks, Recreation, Open Space Plan is outdated, and a preliminary process has begun to draft another. 4. Approved minutes from May 7, 2020—moved by Mike; seconded by Lori. 5. Update on plans for using the CB Facebook page as part of NYS Invasive Species Awareness Week a. Conservation board members should log on to our FB page and pose questions and make comments 6. Update on research of compostable/biodegradable take out containers (Lori) a. Lori presented the compostable container ad hoc committee's research into the issue thus far(see attached:The Use and Disposal of Prepared Food Containers). 1 b. There is an increase in use of single-use containers through the delivery of pre-prepared food under the pandemic. c. Lori had a conversation with the recycling center: i. They area transfer station (to Ontario County);they do not recycle items there. ii. There is a process for tracking waste to Ontario Co. iii. In Tompkins County, compostable containers go to the landfill. d. Mike R. asked how this information should see daylight. e. Carolyn would like the Board to authorize the nascent compostable container committee to continue to gather more information and asserted that they will hold off on "publishing" anything until much more information is gathered. f. Mike R. asked that the ad hoc committee consider who the audience is when it comes time to draft a report. 7. Regular reports and updates a. Environmental Review Committee (Mike) i. With the pandemic there has been nothing to review. b. Scenic Resources Committee (Eva) i. Need a photo of the view from the corner of Snyder Hill and Pine Tree Rd at the right spot. Mike R. had taken a few, but they were off by 100 feet or so. c. Communications Committee (James) i. On New York State Invasive Species Awareness Week: 1. James emailed photos and text to Mike S.for posting on the Facebook page 2. He requested that other members take pictures, write up text, and send them to Lindsay or Mike S. d. Tompkins County EMC(Vladimir)—No report e. Six Mile Creek Volunteer Monitoring Program (James)—No report f. Cornell Botanic Gardens Natural Areas Program (James)—No report 8. Other Business a. Eva suggested that we all read the old Parks, Recreation, and Open Space plan in advance of the next meeting. 9. Review 2020 Work Goals/Discuss August Agenda a. Lindsay and Elizabeth put out game cameras on some bird boxes to see what was nesting. Nearly all of the photos they retrieved were of deer. 10. Adjourned at 7:08 pm Minutes drafted by Mike Roberts. 2 The Use and Disposal of Prepared Food Containers Issue: In our community we see restaurants and dining halls in shared living facilities shift to providing prepared food products to consumers in single use containers. Under these emerging conditions, we need to understand what actions can we take to maintain efforts that maximize diversion of waste from landfills. Response as of June 4, 2020: Sub-group formed: Lori Brewer (chair), Eva Hoffmann, Carolyn Lee Sub-group identified the following questions to initiate conversation with Tompkins County Department of Recycling and Materials Management. • What is currently done in Ithaca/Tompkins County with items in the recycling bins? • Who else does TCSW work with to process waste? Where does our waste go beyond the transfer station? • Is there tracking, accountability to ensure the intended endpoint is reached? This is to determine whether `recyclables' would be preferable to `compostables.' • What are the rules/regulations, etc. that govern the process? • How do `compostables' fit in the framework of GARBAGE vs. RECYCLING? • Are there rules/guidelines defining `compostables' — are they national, statewide, local? • Do our facilities (define geographic area) have means to process `compostables'? • What is the net environmental impact of"RECYCLABLE" vs. "COMPOSTABLE" products? • What are barriers to businesses sorting waste and making available appropriate bins? • What are the constraints and influences on what Tompkins County Solid Waste can recycle or compost? Chair sent questions and the issue statement to TC Dept R&MM Director Barbara Eckstrom beckstromtompkins-co.org. At her request Seth Dennis, Waste Reduction & Recycling Specialist, provided the following responses. The Director requested that if we wish to follow up we do so through her as she can identify the best staff member to respond. What is currently done in Ithaca/Tompkins County with items in the recycling bins? Once collected from the curb, the material is hauled to the Recycling and Solid Waste Center (RSWC). Tompkins County has a contract with Casella for the collection, and also to manage the daily operations at the RSWC. Materials are then transferred to Ontario County Recycling facility which is processed and sorted. 3 Who else does TCSW work with to process waste? Cayuga Compost for food scraps and yard waste, ReAct for electronics, Teets & Sons Scraps Metal Recycling, Casella at the RSWC. Where does our waste go beyond the transfer station? Listed update from 2019 Single Stream Recycling Casella Recycling Ontario 1879 Rte 5 Stanley,NY 14561 Organic Waste Cayuga Compost 3225 Agard Rd. Trumansburg,NY Fats, Oils, Grease (F.O.G.)Buffalo Biodiesel, Inc 225 Sawyer Ave,Tonawanda,NY 14150 Tires Geiter Done of WNY 300 Greene Street Buffalo,NY 14206 Bulky Items-Re-Use Finger Lakes Re-Use 2255 North Triphammer Road, Ithaca,NY Scrap metal Teets and Sons 738 Black Oak Rd Newfield,NY 14867 607-272-1908 Freon Containing Units R.E Michel 1110 Sullivan Street Elmira,NY 14901 Propane cylinders Cemco 130 York Street. Auburn,NY Fire Extinguishers Federal Safety Equipment 23 Kinney Street Candor,NY 13743 Lead acid batteries Interstate Battery 3312 State Route 352, Corning,NY Electronics React 225 Colonial Drive Horseheads,NY Textiles St. Pauly Textile Inc. 1067 Gateway Dr. Farmington,NY Fluorescent tubes HHW/Clean Harbors Cardboard(OCC) Solvay Paper RockTenn,53 Industrial Drive,Syracuse,NY Mixed Fiber Solvay Paper RockTenn,53 Industrial Drive,Syracuse,NY Kruger Kruger, 100 1 st Avenue, Quebec Canada Office Mix American Chumg Nam 221 River Street Hoboken,NJ 07030 Rolland Enterprise Inc. 3805 Avenue, Saint Augustine Levis Quebec Film Casella Recycling Ontario 3555 County Rd 49 Stanley,NY 14561 4 RePoly Recycling 357 Marshal Avenue St Louis,MO 63119 Rigid Plastic Plastimum 284,rue Pepin, Sherbrooke(Quebec) Canada Is there tracking, accountability to ensure the intended endpoint is reached? This is to determine whether `recyclables' would be preferable to `compostables.' Yes. All outbound material is weighed with a destination in which we received confirmation. What are the rules/regulations, etc that govern the process? Chapter 140 of the Tompkins County Code, Article 1. See link here: https.//ecode360.com/8412281 How do `compostables' fit in the framework of GARBAGE vs. RECYCLING? Tompkins county has an acceptable materials list for recycling, and also accepts organic material for composting. Organic material accepted is limited to yard waste, food scraps, paper towels and napkins which is processed into compost. Are there rules/guidelines defining `compostables' — are they national, statewide...? Yes, National, State By State, County, and municipalities. In our local program, the county follows guidelines from Cayuga Compost, the processing company that accepts Tompkins County food scraps and yard waste. Do our facilities (define geographic area) have means to process `compostables'? The Recycling and Solid Waste Center accepts food scraps (food scraps, paper towels, & napkins only) within the boundaries of Tompkins County. Cayuga Compost in Tompkins County processes this material. We don't accept take out containers, or compostable disposables. What is the net environmental impact of "RECYCLABLE" vs. "COMPOSTABLE" products? Tompkins County does not accept compostable products, or compostable disposables. There are many resources such as Bio-cycle (https://www.biocycle.net/), or Earth 911 (hops://earth911.com/) to name a few resources to help assist in answering this question. What are barriers to businesses sorting waste and making available appropriate bins? Some of the barriers that businesses have include confusion about what is recyclable and what is not, not having proper signage, not having the proper set up or containers for recycling, language barriers to name a few. Tompkins County Recycling and Materials Management works directly with businesses to assist with waste reduction and issues regarding waste handling in Tompkins County through the ReBusiness Partners Program. See details: htt s://rec tcletompkins.or_ /other-pro rams-and- services/rebusiness-partners/ 5 What are the constraints and influences on what Tompkins County Solid Waste can recycle or compost? Recycling is market driven, (in the means of available markets), location of materials, and end facilities, and funding. Tompkins County receives guidelines from our partners who process the material, Casella (recycling) and Cayuga Compost (food scraps). Shared above information with Conservation Board members at the monthly meeting on June 4 to gather additional input on next steps. 6