HomeMy Public PortalAboutRecycling Commission -- 2020-01-30 Minutes nti ?1i'!
Brewster Recycling Commission
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January 30, 2020
Members present : Meg Morris, Joe Prevost, Peter Johnson, Debra Johnson , Brenda Locke, Patrick Ellis
Liaisons present : Mary Chaffee from the Select Board , Penny Holeman from the Board of Health and
Frank Bridges from the Finance Committee .
1 . Open Meeting , Chairman Morris opened the meeting at 3 : 00 .
2 . Public Comment . None
3 . Correspondence , None
4 . Minutes , Miss Johnson noted two typos . With those corrections, Mr. Johnson moved and Mr .
Prevost seconded a motion to approve the minutes from the December 2019 meeting . They were
approved unanimously .
5 . Educational Program .
A. The November Recycling Challenge did not render positive results . While this is
discouraging on the surface, ground was most likely lost due to the tightening of standards
for recyclables . While the weight of our recyclables has decreased, it should be noted that
our trash weights are also decreasing . Mr . Johnson asked why the weight of recycling is
going down . Ms . Morris responded that much of our packaging has been light-weighted
( meaning more aluminum and plastic containers) and Mr . Ellis added that more product is
now coming in cans instead of glass bottles . Consumers are purchasing cans instead of
bottles, plus manufacturers save money shipping cans instead of bottles .
Be The Drink Brewster Tap graphics continue . The pace of new pictures is being reduced during
the off season, and will be ramped up during the tourist season .
C. Ms . Morris quickly reviewed her latest two articles published in the Cape Codder, Mr.
Johnson said he enjoys reading her articles and hopes she can continue writing them while
the tourists are here . Ms . Morris said that the Editor asked that she include more tips .
D . There will be a brief article in an upcoming Cape Codder about the new PAYT bags . There is
recycled content in the bags, which we want to emphasize .
E . Dr . Chaffee spoke about the Drink Brewster Tap campaign . The Brewster Public Water
Access and Disposable Plastic Reduction Project ( so named for grant writing purposes ) is in
full swing . Dr . Chaffee went through the power point presentation which Ms . Morris will
present at the next select board meeting . It is very comprehensive . A committee of Paul
Anderson, Donna Kalinick, Peter Lombardi, Patrick Ellis, Mary Chaffee, and Meg Morris met
together and brainstormed on locations for outdoor water stations . They settled on seven
locations, and Mr. Johnson moved , and Mr . Prevost seconded and the committee
unanimously approved those seven locations . The Water Department will do the
installations with DPW assistance . Funding will be an issue, and Dr . Chaffee brought up a
number of grants from private companies as well as the state . We also discussed the
possibility of sponsorships by organizations and/or individuals . Mr. Bridges brought up that
perhaps a larger organization like Ocean Edge might want to put in their own water station .
Dr. Chaffee also had an assortment of water bottles for our input . We all voted on which
bottle we preferred . The Water Commissioners and this committee will review possibilities
again in the future .
6 . Swap Shop . Closed until late March/April, weather dependent . Mr. Prevost brought up that some
of the lights were not working, and Mr. Ellis said the DPW is aware of this .
7 . DPW/ Recycling Center. Mr. Ellis said that we can make money if we recycle newsprint as a
separate stream , as long as it is not contaminated . This will take education and monitoring, but will
be worth it in the long run . This would remove newsprint only from the commingle fiber container.
He also said that the DPW is again considering separating glass and taking it to Dennis for crushing .
While Brewster doesn't need the crushed glass, Orleans can use the glass that we don' t want .
Separating out the glass would greatly reduce the weight of our commingled (glass, plastic, metal )
container. The MADEP is moving towards forcing the local DPWs to recycle mattresses . Mr. Ellis
said he would like to make any changes incrementally . Mr . Ellis handed out statistics about Town
of Brewster Recycling trends .
8 . Any business that may legally come before the Committee, which the Chair may not have
reasonably anticipated . Dr Chaffee said there will be an upcoming Public Tree Hearing . The wood
can be used by those willing to gather it . Mr. Ellis said the DPW likes it when people take the cut
wood , so the DPW doesn' t have to clean it up .
9 . The next monthly meeting will be February 20, 2020 , Chairman Morris indicated that she would
like to keep the meetings on the third Thursday of the month if practical .
10 . The meeting was adjourned at 4 :40 p . m .