CITY COUNCIL RECAP
January 12, 2021, 6PM
EXCERPTS (Eco-related Items only)
Hydrogen Presentation:.
INFO WILL BE ADDED on this presentation which was not originally on the agenda, as presentation materials were difficult to view.
Appointments:
Councilmember Devine nominated Waste expert JENNIFER PINKERTON to Glendale’s newly formed Sustainability Commission! Jennifer works with Los Angeles Sanitation and advises on recycling, organic waste recycling, zero-waste strategies and food rescue. She manages areas such as: LA City Facilities Recycling Program, Environmentally Preferable Purchasing (EPP), Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), general waste prevention, and food rescue. Jennifer is also a long-time member of the GEC Steering Committee, and we have relied heavily on her expertise in the waste field to inform our policy requests and comments over the years.
Councilmember Brotman nominated City Planning & Transportation expert ALEK BARTROSOUF to the Sustainability Commission! Alek is the Mobility Deputy for Council District 11. He received a Master’s degree in Urban Planning from UC Los Angeles and a Bachelor’s degree in Psychology from UC Santa Cruz. Prior to joining the CD 11 team, Alek was a Planning Associate at the Southern California Association of Governments. He worked on the Go Human campaign, working directly with local cities to implement demonstration projects and growing support for active transportation improvements. Alek has also served on the City of Glendale’s Transportation and Parking Commission. His focus has been street safety, particularly for vulnerable users. Alek enjoys volunteering at the community gardens he started in Glendale. Now over ten years ago his community garden was the first in the state to use reclaimed water. He also founded the Coalition for a Green Glendale, a community group raising awareness to environmental issues at the local level, and he helped get the city to adopt Glendale’s plastic bag ordinance and Greener Glendale Plan. Last, {but not least!), Alek his the Glendale Environmental Coalition’s newest Steering Member!
Council Comments:
Councilmember Devine reported on the recent Southern CA Association of Governments regional council meeting, which LA Mayor Garcetti also attended. The Mayor is recruiting cities to a program called Cities Race to Zero. She noted that the idea is that real change, real problem solving, happens at the local level. There are over 210 mayors in the United States that are part of this coalition. Their objective is to rally leadership in support for a healthy, resilient, zero carbon transition that deals with climate change, future threats, decent jobs and unlocks inclusive, sustainable growth. Ms. Devine asked for a second (which was given by Brotman) to ask OUR mayor and our future mayors to join this Cities Race To Zero Coalition. Glendale will have representation and be in on the discussion as to what is happening in the realm of climate change and sustainability.
Public Comment:
GEC member Jack Walworth called, representing the Scholl Canyon Coalition for Landfill Alternatives. regarding the Scholl Canyon Landfill. He commended the city on closure plans, but asked about what plans the city has to reduce waste and what plans are in place for future waste disposal. He mentioned that the coalition is eager to hear about the steps beyond the landfill closure and efforts to create an open space preserve to replace it. He challenged the city to lead the way on zero-waste initiatives.
Public Comment:
Item 8a. Management Services, re: Polystyrene and Single-Use Plastic Ban –
1. Motion providing direction to staff to prepare an ordinance prohibiting the use of polystyrene and single-use plastic products in all City facilities, City-managed concessions, City-sponsored events, and City-permitted events that serve prepared food.
Glendale’s Sustainability Director David Jones presented the report, originally requested by Councilmember Brotman, which described the pervasive effects of Single Use Plastics and Polystyrene in our waste stream and environment, and shared staff’s recommended policy for implementing a ban of Polystyrene and Single Use Plastic within city facilities and for city events. Of note – the cost difference will be minimal, as most items required as replacements have very little cost increase, and those that do (such as marine degradable vs. plastic straws) will be provided only upon request. Policy Recommendation summary from the report:
Mr. Jones discussed an extensive outreach campaign to affected vendors and a second step that could be taken, once things normalize for the restaurant industry, to broaden this ordinance as follows:
The alternatives presented were as follows:
Councilmember Devine noted her enthusiastic support of this item, and that she had made the point that she has been wanting waste reduction efforts such as this for over a year now.
GEC Steering Member Elise Kalfayan called in with a comment from GEC strongly supporting the proposed ordnance, Alternative 2. She noted, “This ordinance will demonstrate the city’s leadership in addressing the plastic waste crisis and all its evils, and will build support for further action.” She concluded by urging council to pass a city-wide ban when the pandemic emergency has resolved and noted GEC’s concurrence with staff’s recommendation for a robust outreach program and looking ahead to an expanded scope for this ordinance (post Covid emergency) that would include city-wide food and beverage providers. She thanked council for moving quickly on the Sustainability Commission appointments and congratulated Councilmembers Devine and Brotman on their very well-qualified nominations.
Councilmember Brotman thanked staff for bringing this report back and expressed his support. He highlighted several points made in GEC’s comment letter. and asked that staff will consider them: (1) we need to have a compost facility in place to TAKE the compostable food ware, (2) that the focus be on moving toward REUSABLE systems (3) The city should publish a list of acceptable or approved products and several other points in that letter.
Mr. Brotman noted he spoke with Gary Gero, head of Sustainability for the County of LA who advised him that The Board of Supervisors is working on an ordinance for food delivery apps that would make plastic utensils and accessories on request only. Mr. Brotman suggested Mr. Garcia should get the language of that ordinance when it is released so that we can follow suit.
Councilmember Kassakhian expressed strong support for the item and commended the city for the approach that they try this first before asking residents to do so.
BAN Single Use Plastics Co-Founder / President Cheryl Auger called to support the ordinance and commend the city for taking the Single-Use Plastics issue seriously. She noted the pervasiveness of micro plastics and their associated health risks, and that most plastic types never get recycled. She mentioned that UCLA implemented a ban on all single use plastics on their campus, noting this could be a model for Glendale school campuses and echoed awareness of the LA City “Foodware Upon Request” ordinance that was introduced today which council member Brotman discussed. She noted the connection between Green House Gas emissions and plastics production (10% of global GHG emissions) and the intense water usage (22 gallons of water to create one bottle) required in plastics manufacturing.
Councilmemberr Najarian asked if foil/aluminum is part of this ordinance. (Mr. Jones said no.) He suggested there should be an exemption clause to accommodate unforeseen shortages for appropriate materials such as could be needed for Senior Meals. He suggested there be an exemption clause for emergency situations. Brotman noted that this came up in staff discussions and that Meals on Wheels and Seniors programs are currently exempt because of the Covid emergency. Devine suggested a clause to include an emergency carve out for senior meals if needed. Najarian suggested “In the event of an unforeseen shortage, the city may choose, in the best interest of the seniors, that an otherwise banned product may be used.”
Councilmember Devine moved the motion approving Item 8A – Alternative two with the direction to staff to include an exemption for emergencies involving senior meal services. The item was seconded by Councilmember Brotman. Approved Unanimously!
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