From a health and safety standpoint, Potashner said, “I haven’t seen anything (indicating) that plastics perform better than other materials.” In fact, he said, “some of published studies show that the virus actually sticks to plastic longer than other materials.”
Recology had pledged $1 million to support a November state ballot initiative requiring producers of single-use plastic packaging, among other measures, to make their products “reusable, recyclable or compostable” by 2030.
Given the economic carnage of the coronavirus, that ballot initiative has been pushed back to November 2022, Potashner said.
Because the deadlines in the measure don’t kick in until 2030, he pointed out, “there’s not a real practical change” in delaying it for two years.
Potashner acknowledged “any momentum we were making from a policy standpoint seems to be set back.”
The cost of oil, driven to historic lows by the pandemic, is also hurting Recology, which sells recycled plastics to manufacturers. Rock-bottom petroleum prices are making it cheaper for companies to buy “virgin” — brand new — rather than recycled material.
In ways global and local, the virus has been tough on the environment. Richard James of Inverness, who curates the blog Coastodian.org, has collected seven tons of refuse, on his back and in his kayak, from Tomales Bay to Point Reyes.
Lately, he’s been picking up a plethora of gloves and masks, from area roadways and beaches. The self-described “plastic and trash warrior” has had to expand his repertoire to discarded personal protective equipment.
Zero Waste Sonoma, the county’s agency in charge of waste management, had some tough calls to make in the wake of the county’s March 18 public health emergency shutdown. What would it do with its household hazardous waste program?
There was talk of completely shutting it down. After all, the workers who took the hazardous waste — paint, batteries, car fluids, cleaners — did their jobs in hazmat suits. With such a premium on personal protective equipment, was this service essential?
The answer was yes. “It was not something we took lightly,” said Courtney Scott, who manages that department for the agency. To help prevent illegal dumping and ensure safe disposal options, the decision was made to make the service available, at the county’s central landfill, just north of Petaluma on Mecham Road two days a week: Thursday and Friday.
In a normal week before the pandemic, 120 residents use that drop-off. In late March, on the first day it was available during the shutdown, four people showed up. But that number steadily grew, until it exceeded the pre-pandemic average. At one point in late April, workers at the site helped over 180 residents in one day. After that, the agency had to add a third day — Saturday.
What’s going on here?
Stuck at home with spare time on their hands, “people are cleaning out their garages,” said Leslie Lukacs, executive director of Zero Waste Sonoma. “They’re doing projects they haven’t had time to get to before. And we’re seeing it at our facility.”
In normal times, the agency schedules pickups of hazardous household waste all over the county. Almost all of them have been canceled until further notice. That means if you live in Healdsburg and you’ve got some old turpentine and fertilizer you need to get rid of, you have to drive it south to the central landfill.
