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SalemRecycles Committee
Meeting Minutes
April 2, 2013
Attending: Erin Huggard, Julie Rose, Lynn Murray, Nancy Gilberg, Susan Yochelson, Penny Neal, Tony Keck
Guest: John Tomasz, DPS Director; Willian LeGault, Councilor
7 pm meeting called to order by chair Erin Huggard.
March meeting minutes approved.
New Business:
- John Tomasz, new DPS Director, was introduced to the committee. Erin summarized the committee events and goals, and the education projects undertaken. John summarized his experience with organic programs including the successful curbside compost pickup service in Hamilton-Wenham. He suggested Salem consider a pilot program with careful consideration being given to the route. John also expressed an interest in the development of a collection program for fluorescent light tubes/bulbs and other lighting bulbs in the city. A willingness to work with the committee was expressed and an open invitation for the committee to share ideas with him was encouraged.
- The group email transition using Google Group was discussed. The point was made that emails intended for limited recipients on the committee should be sent using ordinary email rather than the group email. The group email sends all emails to everyone, which may not be the intention of the sender if trying to communicate with another member only. Janis is the coordinator for the group email and should be contacted if any email addresses are corrected or changed.
- Update of the Bottle Bill was presented with some materials provided by Julie. Nancy also provided an update of the information about the bill. A discussion ensued regarding the position the committee would take on the bill. The committee is supporting the bottle bill for purposes of reducing the volume of bottles consumers discard. The bill proposes the expansion of the types of bottles that would be subject to a return deposit including water, juice and sport drink bottles. The discussion focused on the position the committee will take and how to convey that to assist with the bill’s passage.
Old/Recurring Business:
- A brief joint meeting with the Beautification/Clean Salem/Green Salem Committee was held. The May 4th event, which has been held on the Common, has been moved to Leslie’s Retreat Park on Commercial Street. Several notices have been circulated and posted for the event naming the location as the Common and all were asked to work to get the information about the relocation out. Joint flyers and web notices were to be developed and then disbursed among the community to ensure a good turnout. A discussion of the entertainment was held. There will be more than one group performing. The committee will limit the materials to be collected at the park to plastic bags, clothing swap, and household items that Goodwill can use. The MBTA Recycling event will be held the same day at the
Salem Train Station. Many other items can be dropped at that collection site including metal, textiles and plastics.
- Debrief of the March 9th Volunteer Recruitment Event was held. Several people attended and signed up to receive information and requests for help from the committee.
- Debrief of the March 16 Book Swap was held. The extra volunteers were a great help to the success of the event. A very good public turnout was realized. A discussion regarding books that may be discarded end of school year at Salem State was initiated.
The TechnoTrashCan project was present at the swap with one collection “can”. Another “can”will be placed at the Salem Library.
A discussion about the setup of the areas for the next swap addressed some placement ideas to make the sorting of items being dropped off by the public easier, such as using two tables to provide an area to drop off with another table behind it, and not within the reach of the public, to sort the books for placement in the various sections around the room. There were some people that were taking large amounts of books, leaving less for others to take. Consideration to placing a limit on the amount that any one person can take was discussed. A two-bag limit per person was the result for those arriving before noon.
- Green Salem Business Challenge event and survey was the next item covered. The release of the survey was set for April 10th. Members are encouraged to spread the word about the survey and try to entice local businesses to participate.
- The 5th Anniversary of the committee was recognized. The committee began its work in 2008 and members planned a gathering in mid April to celebrate. An email will be circulated for the potluck.
- The Living Green Fair date has been set for May 18th. Julie will be coordinating the event. Those interested in working with her should let her know. It was suggested to set up a “Reuse Boutique” to show people many new uses for items prior to/as an alternative to disposal.
- FaceBook Update: Nancy has been doing great things with the FB page and is always looking for any contributions. The number of Likes has increased since last meeting to over 620. Members were encouraged to make additional contacts and ask them to Like the FB page.
MTBA flyer for the May 4th event is up on the page.
- Solid Waste and Recycling Contract Update: Julie announced that all three contracts were approved by the City Council. The Mandatory Recycling ordinance vote was delayed by the Council, citing issues with fines assessed on landlords for the non-compliance of tenants. The issue raised focuses on penalties being assessed on owners for the deeds of their tenants. It is a non-issue because landlords are already brought into situations where their tenants are not obeying laws, i.e. noise issues, etc. Members were encouraged to contact councilors to express support for the ordinance and offer some educational information about the intention of the ordinance, which is primarily to educate the public to increase the overall tonnage of recycling, thus saving the city and its residents significant expense. By its nature, a mandatory ordinance must carry a penalty for non-compliance. The ordinance provides many opportunities to rectify a non-compliant situation before any financial
penalties would apply. Members need to also seek the assistance with others in the community to notify the city councilors of their support for this ordinance.
Meeting adjourned at 8:15 pm. Next meeting will be held Tuesday April 30th to better prepare for the May 4th event.
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