Committee postpones public hearing on ban to expand polystyrene rules to thermoformed plastics

The Energy, Environment and Sustainability Committee voted on June 3 to postpone a public hearing on a proposed local law that would expand Ulster County's disposable polystyrene ban to include thermoformed plastics.

Legislator Nolan, sponsor of the resolution to set a public hearing, and other committee members said they want more outreach and educational materials for restaurants, clarification about alternatives and pricing, and time to coordinate with county procurement and the Department of Health before holding a public hearing. "I think we definitely need the discussion of alternatives and pricing and things like that that would be part of the educational package," Nolan said.

Why it matters: expanding the county's restriction on polystyrene to thermoformed plastics would affect food-service vendors and potentially require transition periods. Committee members asked staff to prepare an outreach plan and a fact sheet listing vetted alternatives and noted a transition period would allow businesses to exhaust existing inventory.

Key points

- Procurement and outreach: staff said they are compiling a list of about 20 alternative products (plates, clamshells, straws) to distribute to restaurants and that there would be a transition period to allow businesses to use existing stock.

- Health inspections and notification: the Department of Health inspects hundreds of restaurants in the county; legislators asked whether the Department could help notify food-service establishments about the proposed change and public hearing.

- Industry concerns and sequencing: some committee members favored a piecemeal approach (addressing specific hard-to-recycle items first); others wanted a broader approach. Several members urged more time for stakeholder outreach and recommended linking the county proposal to statewide developments such as the Packaging Reduction and Infrastructure Act.

Ending

The committee voted to postpone the public hearing for one month to allow staff to expand outreach, assemble alternative-product options, and coordinate notification with the Department of Health; the hearing will be rescheduled after those steps.