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HomeMy WebLinkAboutSWAG Meeting Summary 032719Draft Solid Waste Advisory Group Meeting Summary DATE: March 27, 2019 LOCATION: Solid Waste Administration Training Room ____________________________________________________________________________ MEMBERS PRESENT: County Commissioner Penny Rich, County Commissioner Mark Marcoplos, Chapel Hill Mayor Pam Hemminger, Chapel Hill Council Member Donna Bell, Carrboro Mayor Lydia Lavelle, Hillsborough Commissioner Matt Hughes, Carrboro Alderman Randee Haven-O’Donnell, Hillsborough Commissioner Mark Bell, UNC-Chapel Hill Representative Brad Ives MEMBERS ABSENT: UNC-Healthcare Representative Mel Hurston STAFF PRESENT: County Solid Waste Director, Robert Williams, County Manager Bonnie Hammersley, Chapel Hill Public Works Director Lance Norris, Hillsborough Public Works Director Ken Hines, Carrboro Public Works Director Joe Guckavan, County Solid Waste Staff: Cheryl Young, Evan Brown, Blair Pollock, Kristina Witosky, Wanda McCain, Chapel Hill Public Works Staff Wendy Simmons, UNC-Chapel Hill Solid Waste BJ Tipton ____________________________________________________________________________ Call to Order Approval of Meeting Summary October 29, 2018 meeting summary approved Introduction of New SWAG Members Orange County Commissioner Penny Rich returning member. Mark Marcoplos designated as chair of SWAG. Presentation – Tree Project, Michael Everhart Rich asks if this project would be promoted with homeowners also. Everhart replies yes. There is hope that the program will get large enough that residents will want to give their trees to the program. Marcoplos asks what is needed to evolve the project further. Everhart replies after the meeting with the UNC-CH Vice Chancellor, Anna Woo that will give guidance as where this is going. The first thing would be to solidify the skeleton at UNC-CH and then an operations piece with parties involved. Marcoplos asks if it’s useful to have centralized communication. You could keep Robert in your communications and it could be spread to the rest of us. M. Bell request contact with Hillsborough Boards. Director Updates/Presentation Commission for the Environment (CFE)– Bradley Saul Working on state of the environment report with plans to release in October/November and solid waste is a small part of that. We have been talking about trees and tree cover. Rich states that the reason for having a member of CFE here is as we talk about how to turn garbage into something that can be reused a way to look at what else we could be doing that we’re not doing now. Draft Haven-O’Donnell states that trees that are taken down are not representative of what would be in a mature forest. I would like to see the work is more unified. Hemminger states that can we concentrate on compost options and how we do something that individuals can participate in. Marcoplos states that thoughts on maintaining the connection. What would you like to see in the future with representation from CFE being connected with us. Lyvelle states that having someone at our quarterly meetings may be enough of an update for now. SWAG Priorities – Williams states that items completed are Interlocal Agreement, Rural Curbside Expansion, Develop/Implement Measuring and Tracking Methods. Items ongoing are Cooperative Operations with UNC and UNC Healthcare, and Permanent Northern Emergency Storm Debris Management Site and Assess Effectiveness and Compliance with RRMO. Items we need more information on is Residential Organics/Evaluate Non-Residential Programs/Evaluate Urban Curbside/Consider Options for Non-Municipal Operated Waste Collections Service and Effectiveness and Compliance with RRMO. Lavelle states that for Residential Organics/Evaluate Non-Residential Programs there has been talk over the years of how restaurants were getting rid of their organics but there was discussion of expanding pickup of organics for residents. Hammersly states that former Commissioner Jacobs was partly the creator of Evaluate of Non- Residential Programs and the issues of picking up non-residential customers at no cost. Pollock states that gradually some of the larger customers have been taken off the program and paying their own way. This year we have identified the next tier of large customers. Marcoplos states that an update of that can be given at the next meeting. Hemminger asks for information on digesters. Recycling Challenges – Processing Fees Williams states that it was recommended that solid waste programs increase to $142 for the upcoming budget. We are putting together a plan starting with recycling sort to see what’s in the recycling stream. Because of the China Sword which bans materials from the US there is no more revenue sharing. Ives asks if the processing cost of $125 will move if the recycling stream is cleaner. Williams states that that has been discussed. We don’t want to be lumped in with other customers bringing in material that isn’t cleaned. Norris asks if this is a long term down turn. Williams states that this may be a two or three year process. Solid Waste Master Plan – Williams states that we will do a plan that guides us for the next 20 years that will include land use, ordinance changes, partnerships with towns and processors. D. Bell asks what happens to the materials that will be removed from the recycling stream such as glass. Williams states that we are working on a pilot program to separate glass and build on that information. Interlocal Agreement Approval Celebrations – Williams states that each jurisdiction get a signed copy. Next Meeting – Doodle poll for June. Public Comment – None Meeting adjourned at: 7:40pm Name of Minute Taker Wanda McCain