LIVE UPDATES: City Council Recap: Feb. 21, 2017

Notes: The proposed amended plan would modify the implementation schedule to prioritize food waste compost, multi-family recycling and construction bulk waste pick-up, and would put plans for single-stream recycling on hold until further study is completed and more regional support is gathered. A single-stream material recovery facility, staff said, would cost the city around $3.8 million and wouldn’t likely receive enough volume from Fayetteville alone to justify the cost.

“At this time, the Administration does not support prioritizing single stream recycling or mandating recycling or disposal bans,” stated Brian Pugh, the city’s waste reduction coordinator, in a Feb. 10 memo to Mayor Jordan.

The changes would reduce the city’s diversion goal from 80 percent to a “more attainable” 40 percent by 2027, but would still double the rate in Fayetteville which is currently at about 18-20 percent.

Alderwoman Marsh said Tuesday she’s disappointed to see how much lower the diversion goal became after single-stream recycling was removed. She said single-stream would be more inclusive and would be safer for city employees who must deal with weather and traffic conditions to collect recyclables.

Alderman Long said he’s proud of the city’s current recycling efforts and is excited to adopt a plan that would double the diversion rate.

Most residents who spoke in December were against single-stream. Many cited statistics from other cities that have adopted single-stream which have high rates of contamination (which means lower rates of actual recycled material after it’s collected).

Mitch Kessler from Kessler Consulting said cities that use older sorting facilities do indeed have high contamination rates, but said a state-of-the-art facility generally sees only a 15 percent rate of contamination.

A representative from Ripple Glass in Kansas City, the company that currently buys Fayetteville’s recycled glass, said the company’s experience with single-stream has been poor, and leads to high rates of contamination. Kessler in December responded and said a high-quality sorting machine will meet Ripple’s required contamination standards, but the representative tonight said she couldn’t guarantee that claim.

Residents who spoke tonight expressed both support and objection to single-stream.

Alderwoman Gray said she is also disappointed to see single-stream being set aside. She said she’s still happy to adopt a plan that doubles diversion, but would like to see Fayetteville be more of a leader when it comes to recycling. Gray said she hopes single-stream will eventually be adopted once more regional support is gathered.

Alderwoman Bunch said she’s comfortable with the current proposal as long as single-stream is left on the table for future consideration.

Alderman Kinion said he thinks the proposal is a good compromise, mainly because it takes the city to a new level without eliminating the possibility of any new programs in the future. He said single-stream is just a small part of the master plan considerations, and taking the step to adopt the overall plan is the most important business at hand.

Don Marr, chief of staff, said it’s important the council make a decision quickly. He said over 400 new homes are about to come online as new trash and recycling customers which means new trucks need to be purchased and new employees hired, and that cannot be done without some direction from the council on which of the programs will be adopted.

Marr reiterated staff’s earlier statements that without regional cooperation, single-stream simply isn’t financially feasible.

The amendment to modify the implementation schedule passed 8-0.

Alderman Petty, who sponsored the city’s original 2013 plan to increase diversion, said the only thing he’s disappointed about is that the discussion has been so divisive and has been mostly limited to whether or not the city should move to single-stream recycling. Petty said the adoption of the master plan – whether amended or not – is a huge step, one that’s much larger than any other city in the state has ever taken.

“Tonight is a big win,” Petty said.

During the final vote, the amended plan passed 8-0.

Notes: The “extra work” was a final presentation to the council that wasn’t included in the original contract. Staff said it was an oversight to not include the presentation in the contract.

Alderman Long said he thinks $11,000 to travel to Fayetteville and present the findings of the master plan is excessive. He said he thinks the city is being taken advantage of and that he can’t support the resolution.

Aldermen Petty and La Tour said they were also surprised by the amount, but said paying the bill is the right thing to do.

Long was the only council member to vote against the resolution.

Notes: Don Marr said while Fayetteville’s laws do allow homeowners to cut down trees on their own properties, this law would adversely affect the city’s tree preservation ordinances and streamside protection ordinance by allowing developers to cut trees in sensitive areas before homes are even built.

John La Tour voted against. He said he doesn’t think the council should pass resolutions that ask other lawmakers to make specific decisions.