HomeMy WebLinkAbout2530 Polystyrene Foam ProductsORDINANCE NO. ~_g69
AN ORDINANCE OF THE CITY OF ASHLAND ADDING A NEW CHAPTER 9.20
TO THE MUNICIPAL CODE RELATIVE TO A BAN ON CERTAIN POLYSTYRENE
FOAM PRODUCTS.
THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF ASHLAND FINDS THAT:
The City of Ashland values the protection and preservation of our
natural environment, and the benefits of reducing the amount of
litter and municipal solid waste deposited in landfills.
The United Nations Environmental Programme diplomatic conference
in Montreal (Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the
Ozone Layer) acknowledged the threat of chlorofluorocarbons to the
earth's atmosphere and established international goals for the
phased reduction of the manufacture and use of specific
chlorofluorocarbon compounds. The City of Ashland supports
international and federal bans on all non-essential use of
chlorofluorocarbons. Responsible action to reduce
chlorofluorocarbon use and alert the public to the danger posed by
these substances should be undertaken at the local level.
In April 1988, the Foodservice and Packaging Institute, which
represents approximately 90 percent of food packaging
manufacturers, announced a voluntary program to phase out the use
of fully halogenated chlorofluorocarbons in the manufacture of
disposable foam plastic products for food service by the end of
1988.
The State of Oregon in 1985 enacted "opportunity to recycle laws"
(ORS 459.165 et. seq.) which are intended to encourage recycling
of municipal solid wastes. The City is committed to implementing
this law, and has an active curbside recycling collection program.
The Environmental Protection Agency has issued a national
municipal waste strategy calling for a 25 percent reduction in
solid waste by 1992. The strategy, titled The Solid Waste
Dilemma: An Agenda for Action, includes the promotion of
recycling.
In March of 1989, the Ashland City Council appointed a
subcommittee to study the impacts of polystyrene foam on the
Ashland landfill.
Readily disposable consumer plastic containers and wrappers (made
from polyethylene, polypropylene and polystyrene foam) used for
takeout foods are essentially not biodegradable and as litter do
not decompose over time into the natural environment.
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The use of readily disposable consumer plastic containers and
wrappers has increased annually and projections indicate a
significant growth in their use.
Recycling of readily disposable consumer plastic containers and
wrappers, including polystyrene foam products, has not been
intensively pursued by the plastics industry or major retail users
of these products.
10. The Council finds that this Ordinance will serve the public
interest by reducing the amount of non-biodegradable waste, as a
portion of any substitute packaging is expected to be composed of
biodegradable or recyclable material in whole or in part.
Polystyrene foam is highly durable, buoyant, and non-biodegradable
and therefore persists and detracts from the appearance of the
area longer than many other types of litter.
11. This ordinance will serve the public interest by reducing the
quantity of non-biodegradable waste in landfills serving Ashland,
as a portion of any substitute packaging will be composed of
products that are biodegradable or recyclable in whole or in part.
Polystyrene foam packaging takes up more space in landfills than
many other packaging materials, because of the comparatively low
density of polystyrene foam and its present popularity as a
packaging material. Siting and developing landfills is an
increasingly expensive undertaking, and these costs will place an
economic burden on the residents of Ashland. Maximizing the
operating life of landfill facilities therefore promotes the
public interest, and this interest will be served by reducing the
amount of polystyrene foam deposited in landfills.
12. The Council recognizes that other commonly used food packaging
materials are also non-biodegradable and contribute to litter and
landfill problems; nevertheless, the Council finds that it is
appropriate to regulate polystyrene foam food packaging while not
regulating other types of food packaging at this time for the
following reasons:
A. To minimize disruption in the food services industry, the
Council should avoid banning a wide range of packaging materials at
one time. It might be appropriate to ban other packaging materials in
the future, but an incremental approach to eliminating undesirable
packaging materials will cause less disruption and allow the City to
handle enforcement proceedings in more manageable stages.
B. Polystyrene foam is the least dense commonly used food
packaging material, and therefore is more wasteful of landfill space
than any other category of food packaging material. It is therefore
appropriate to start with polystyrene foam as the City begins to
address the issues of litter and inappropriate utilization of landfill
space.
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NOW THEREFORE, THE PEOPLE OF THE CITY OF ASHLAND DO ORDAIN AS FOLLOWS:
SECTION 1. A new Chapter 9.20 is hereby added to the Ashland
Municipal Code and shall read as follows:
"Chapter 9.20
Sections:
9.20.010
9.20.020
9.20.030
9.20.040
9.20.050
9.20.060
Polystyrene foam declared nuisance
Definition
Polystyrene foam banned--food packaging
Polystyrene foam task force formed
Enforcement
Exemptions
9.20.010 Polystyrene Foam Declared Nuisance. The disposal of
polystyrene foam products in public landfills and by indiscriminate
persons as litter, is hereby declared a public nuisance. The
manufacture of polystyrene foam of all types has been identified as a
major contributor to the depletion of the earth's ozone layer and thus
is a long-term menace to the public health.
9.20.020 Definitions. As used in this ordinance, the following terms
have the following meanings:
"Biodegradable" means material capable of being broken down by
micro-organisms into simple substances or basic elements.
"Chlorofluorocarbons" are the family of substances containing
carbon, fluorine and chlorine.
"Customer" means any person purchasing food or beverages from a
restaurant or retail food vendor.
4. "Food Vendor" means any restaurant or retail food vendor.
e
"Non-profit food provider" means a recognized tax exempt
organization which provides food as a part of its services.
"Person" means any natural person, firm, corporation, partnership,
or other organization or group however organized.
7. "PSF" means polystyrene foam.
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Be
"Recycled" describes a type of material that is separated from the
solid waste stream and utilized as a raw material in the
manufacture of a new product or new economic use.
"Restaurant" means any establishment located within the City of
Ashland selling prepared food to be eaten by customers.
Restaurant includes a sidewalk food vendor.
10. "Retail Food Vendor", "Vendor" means any store, shop, sales outlet
or other establishment, including a grocery store or a
delicatessen, located within the City of Ashland, which sells
prepared food.
11. "Reuse" means the process by which a product is reclaimed or
reprocessed into another useful product.
9.20.030 Polystyrene foam banned--food packaging.
Effective January 1, 1990, no restaurant, retail food vendor or
non-profit food provider shall serve food, and after March 31,
1990 no food packager shall package meat, eggs, bakery products or
other food in polystyrene foam (PSF) containers, manufactured with
chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) which do not reduce the potential for
ozone depletion by more than 95 percent, compared to the ozone
depletion potential of CFC-12 (dychlorodifluorothane). Compounds
banned include: CFC-11, CFC-12, CFC-113, CFC-114, CFC-115, Halon-
1211, Halon-1301 and Halon-2402. Food vendors may be required to
furnish a written statement from the manufacturer or supplier of
polystyrene foam products used by that food vendor, indicating
that the chemical compounds used in the manufacture of the
vendor's polystyrene foam products meet the provisions of this
Ordinance.
Effective January 1, 1991, no restaurant food packager, non-profit
food provider or other person shall serve, sell, give away,
deliver or provide in anyway food in any polystyrene foam (PSF)
products, nor sell polystyrene foam (PSF) products intended for
use as disposable food containers, unless such person has
developed a method for recycling said PSF packaging used on-site.
In no case, after January 1, 1991 however, shall such PSF
packaging be used for carry-out service, nor shall such packaging
leave the premises of the vendor or provider.
9.20.040 Polystyrene foam task force formed. The Mayor, with
confirmation by the City Council, shall appoint five (5) persons to
work with local recycling awareness groups to actively promote the
following:
Support and monitor recycling projects, including research and
demonstration projects, in order to increase the percentage of
disposable plastics products which are recycled and/or decrease
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the amount of municipal solid waste deposited in landfills. The
task force may recommend to City Council methods and specific
goals, in terms of quality and quantity, for reduction of
disposable plastic products in landfills and in the litter stream.
Work toward the total elimination of polystyrene foam and other
disposable plastic products as a way to reduce litter and reduce
the amount of solid wastes deposited in landfills is a long term
community goal. To these ends, the task force is requested to
consider the following aspects in their recommendations:
a. Public Education and Promotion
b. Alternative Product Recycling/Energy Conversion
c. Financial Assistance
d. Alternative Products Research (e.g., photo degradable and
biodegradable additives, etc.)
9.20.050 Enforcement. The City Attorney, upon determination that a
violation of this Ordinance has occurred, shall issue a written notice
of the violation by certified mail to the vendor or food packager
which will specify the violation and appropriate penalty.
Violations of this Ordinance shall be deemed an infraction, and shall
be punishable as set forth in Section 1.08.020 of the Municipal Code.
The vendor or food packager shall, upon receipt of a notice of
violation, pay to the City the stated penalty, or appeal the finding
of a violation to the Ashland Municipal Court by requesting a hearing
within 15 days of receipt of the notice.
9.20.060 Exemptions. The City Council, or its appointee, may exempt
a food vendor, food packager or non-profit food provider from the
requirements of this Ordinance for a one year period, upon a showing
by the applicant that the conditions of this Ordinance would cause
undue hardship. The phrase "undue hardship" shall be construed to
include but not be limited to:
Situations where there are no acceptable alternatives to PSF
packaging for reasons which are unique to the vendor, packager or
provider;
Situations where compliance with the requirements of this
Ordinance would deprive a person of a legally protected right. If
a request for exemption is based upon a claim that a legally
protected right would be denied if compliance were required and
such request for exemption is denied, review of the denial shall
only be by writ of review as provided for in ORS 34.010 to 34.100,
and not otherwise.
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SECTION 2. Severability. If any part or provision of this Ordinance
or the application thereof to any person or circumstance is held
invalid, the remainder of the Ordinance, including the application of
such part or provision to other persons or circumstances, shall not be
affected thereby and shall continue in full force and affect. To this
end, provisions of this Ordinance are severable.
The foregoing Ordinance was first read by title only in accordance
with Article X, Section 2(C) of the City Charter on the /~"~day of
~~¢f~ , 1989, and duly PASSED and ADOPTED this ~-~-~ day of
~e~,}.~¥ 1989.
Nan E. F~anklin
City Recorder
SIGNED and APPROVED this ~--~/~day of ~~,~L~' , 1989.
Catherine M. Golden
Mayor
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