Litter Committee Minutes
April 28, 2003

We had an interesting, fun, and productive meeting Monday night, even though only three members, Liz Brady, Ed Murtagh, and Sally Gagne were able to be present. Here’s what we covered.

Ed’s Easy System for Holding Trash Removal Events, surely the most useful item we discussed! It outlines a division of suggested responsibilities between, mainly, the Section Trash Coordinator and one or two members of our Litter Committee. The Steward can rely almost entirely on these people for a trash removal event. The suggested duties are presented at the end of these notes

The Draft of a Letter to the Owner of the Kemp Mill Shopping Center was presented by Ed. It requests that the problem of stray trash, which blows from the parking lot into the Park, be addressed. As a solution, it suggests a chain link fence.

The Litter Clean-Up south of New Hampshire:

Analysis. We collected at least 40 bags of trash, plus an ancient movie projector, baby car seat, and a grocery cart, which turned out to be genuinely useful for moving trash. David Woodward, President of the local CA, might join us in a future trash effort. Much of the trash comes “unfairly” from Long Branch and/or Takoma Branch tributaries.

The litter poles worked fine, but can be awkward to hold while also carrying a trash bag. It helps to have a second person carry the trash bag. The 12′ length seemed unnecessarily long in many portions of the creek. Also, the longer poles are more difficult to transport. The 12′ poles work best in the wider portions of the creek. The 6′ length was excellent for reaching under shrubbery and down steep hills in most cases.

Improvements for another time:

  • Find someone who wants to help, but who can’t get around easily to pick up litter, to sit at a table and direct late-comers, to provide out-reach to people passing by asking what we were doing, networking with residents, and answering questions about FOSC. In the long run, this is the most important job on these events.
  • Acquire a wagon or wheelbarrow so we spend less time hauling trash to a central point
  • Do more to separate types of recyclable trash as we collect it
  • In advance, request the county’s trash collection service or park maintenance service to pick up bags left at strategic street corners. Lauren had asked for this, but was told it wasn’t possible. A local resident or FOSC member should ask again.
  • Flyers: In printing the flyer, at least one member’s computer needed a wider right margin. We could get around this by mailing some flyers to some next time.
  • Flyers could be distributed to libraries, the Co-op, etc.

Insurance: We’re presently not covered, and Sally will bring this up to the Board.

Grant to COG: There is no word about the possible EPA litter/stormwater grant.

We’ll hold Sept. 13 as the date for Sweep-the-Creek.

Trips: Few of us can get to the recycling center on weekdays for the talks they offer. Ed has learned of alternative options for those members interested in learning more about solid waste management in the County. Ed notes that the Recyle Center offers an excellent self-guided tour during the workday. He also recommended as an alternative stopping by at any time at The Oaks landfill, a 500 acre site near Laytonsville. The Oaks landfill is no longer active, and the County has turned the area into a recreation site that now supports a wide range of wildlife and hiking trails for access. Ed also recommends registering for the County’s Division of Solid Waste’s “Behind the Scenes (BTS)” training program. Recently, Ed completed the BTS training, which included excellent tours of the transfer station at Gude Dr., the Dickerson Resource Recovery Facility in Dickerson, the compost facility in Dickerson, and the Recycle Center at Gude Drive. Wee write-up of the BTS training below

Items to request in the next general newsletter: old card table, old wagon, and wheelbarrow.

Miscellaneous Facts from Ed’s Evening Workshops

Ed has attended several two-hour evening workshops at the county facilities for recycling, landfills and incinerating, composting, etc. He described these entertainingly. Miscellaneous facts that came out:

  • Some experts in the Division of Solid Waste felt a bottle deposit law would have little effect, though they didn’t elaborate. They noted that Maryland has an overall better recylce rate than the states with Bottle Deposit laws.
  • Unused cleaning supplies (those labelled as poisonous, handle with caution, etc.) should be disposed of as hazardous waste at the County’s Household Hazard waste drop off sites. If pool chlorine, for example, mixes with soft drinks containing carbon dioxide, there is a violent fire, which would be dangerous in a trash truck Removing household hazardous waste from your household waste is also one simple way to improve the environment
  • The county incinerator, known as the Resource Recovery Facility (RRF), can produce up to 60 megawatts of electricity (enough power for 20,000 houses!) The ash is treated with lime, any remaining iron is removed with magnets, and the county pays to have it landfilled in southern Virginia (there are currently no active landfills in Mont. Co.) The ash takes up only 10% of the volume of the unburned trash. The ash is also regularly monitored to ensure that it is not hazardous. All the fumes and ash that go to the exhaust stack are filtered and treated to minimize air pollution. The environmental impact of RRF is comparable to that of a natural gas-fired power plant with up-to-date pollution control technology.
  • Crushed plastic and crushed cans can now be handled easily in the newly renovated Recyle Center, unlike in the past. Disposable batteries can be placed with regular trash. Rechargeable batteries have toxic materials and must be handled separately. No caps, please on plastic bottles. Do not include plastic bags in recycle boxes or with yard waste!
  • The County now collects/separates old computers, textiles, scrap metal, tires (from households only), and many other products at the Gude Drive Transfer Station for recycling. Mont. Co. doesn’t send computers, batteries, etc to China, we handle them ourselves!

Subjects for the next meeting, date not yet set:

  • Form a subgroup to suggest how to stop litter (apt dwellers, liquor drinkers, more trash barrels, anti-litter campaign)
  • Review draft flyer for apartment dwellers
  • Future clean up efforts and the possibility of joint efforts with other organizations (civic, scouts, etc.) as a means of outreach on the subject.
  • Begin planning for the Sweep-the-Creek Cleanup in September.
  • COG grant
  • Discuss sometime: Locations that need “No Dumping” signs; problem of outdated “No Dumping” signs

Submitted by

Sally Gagne

April 29, 2003

Ed’s Easy Sytem for Holding Trash Removal Events!

Assigning a Litter Coordinator for each section is an important step in addressing the problem in Sligo Crek Park. This document outlines to potential Section Litter Coordinators what responsibilities they will have and what support they can expect! to receive from FOSC. It should be considered a starting point for discussions, not a concrete set of expectations.

The Sligo Steward

  • Assists on clean-up day
  • E-mails Flyers to Section members

The Section Trash Coordinator

  • Becomes familiar with trash problems in the Section
  • Plans clean up activities
  • Responds to requests for information related to trash in the Section.
  • Posts/Removes Work Day Flyers in appropriate locations, as per FOSC policies
  • Obtains optional snacks/refreshments, water for cleaning and drinking, paper cubs (to be reimbursed)
  • Manages Clean-up Event Day
  • Ensures trash is removed after the event by notifying the park maintenance manager.

The FOSC Trash Committee

  • Prepares flyers (both for electronic distribution and with tear-offs for posting)
  • Sends out e-mail to work group/litter group interest members, using FOSC database
  • Provides Work Day Kit – tools, gloves, bags, boots if available, first-aid kit, table, administrative supplies including sign-up sheets.
  • Provides a committee member to assist managing the workday event
  • Notifies local scouts, schools, civic groups. Different members would be in charge of these three groups, which would be helpful for non-litter events also. Newspaper publicity information would be sent to Ann Hoffnar.

(In sections where no Coordinator has yet come forward, it is expected someone will emerge from among workers attending an early trash event.)

Description of Montgomery County Division of Solid Waste “Behind the Scenes” Visit

The Montgomery County Division of Solid Waste Services provides a free comprehensive training in all aspects of solid waste management called _Behind the Scenes,_ (solidwaste.dpwt.com/bts/index.shtml ) The course includes 6 two-hour classes and a Saturday site visit to Dickerson, Maryland. The classes are lead by various experts in the subject of solid waste management. Solid waste management practices have greatly changed since I grew up (garbage dumps). Today_s the solid waste practices in Montgomery County include engineered solutions and sustainable best practices that include a state-of-the-art recycling center, a resource recovery facility that recovers ferrous metals and generates electricity from county waste, a compost facility that takes yard waste that was previously landfilled and turns it into a profitable product, a household hazardous waste program that diverts hazardous waste from our trash stream, engineered landfills that protect the environment and generate _green_ electricity, and much, much more. I was very impressed with the knowledgeable people in the County_s solid waste program and their efforts in for implementing sustainable solid waste practices. I recommend this course for anyone interested in making a difference environmentally in Montgomery County.