Ulster County committee amends disposable-polystyrene law language, postpones public hearing for more research

The Ulster County Legislature Energy, Environment and Sustainability Committee on Feb. 4 voted to amend proposed Local Law No. 10 of 02/2024 to replace the term "polypropylene" with "thermoform" in the county code article regulating disposable polystyrene foam. The committee then voted to postpone the public hearing so staff and stakeholders can provide additional technical information and outreach before the measure advances.

Committee members said the change stems from recycling-compatibility concerns: some rigid single-use containers commonly called “clamshells” are thermoformed and generally nonrecyclable. Legislator Nolan asked for a list from the Ulster County Resource Recovery Agency (UCRA) of the “most problematic items” and information on alternatives for affected food-service businesses. Nolan also requested that the committee complete SEQRA (environmental review) materials before holding the public hearing so the public has technical materials available during comment.

Director Ryder described thermoform plastics as “typically… rigid plastic” produced by molding over an item and noted that clamshell containers are commonly thermoform and often nonrecyclable. Ryder said the intent behind the earlier use of the word polypropylene was to target hard-to-recycle items; learning the industry term prompted the amendment.

Members debated enforcement and outreach. Several legislators recommended adding a county checklist to health-department inspections to document compliance, and to use county outreach and partnerships (for example, with the chamber of commerce) to provide businesses with alternatives. Deputy Executive Laval and Director Ryder cautioned that the health department’s active enforcement capacity is limited by staffing and the scope of state-prescribed program work, and recommended collaborative education plus targeted active enforcement when feasible.

Legislator Green moved to postpone action to allow the research and outreach discussed. The motion to postpone carried. Committee members agreed to return the item for further staff work, including UCRA and health-department input, SEQRA materials, and outreach plans for food-service businesses.

The committee recorded two formal actions on the item at this meeting: one to amend the proposed local law text and a second vote to postpone the public hearing to allow additional research and stakeholder outreach.

The item will return to committee after staff compiles the requested SEQRA materials, a list of problematic thermoform products and available substitutes, and enforcement/outreach proposals from Public Health and UCRA.