Minutes:
Councillor Greensmith entered the meeting.
The Mayor invited Amy and Ella Meeks of Kids Against Plastic to present to Council on their work to increase awareness of the environmental impact of single use plastic and reduce its use.
Upon a notice of motion received in the name of Councillor Adams, a proposition was moved by Councillor Adams and seconded by Councillor Barnfather in the following terms:
“That this Council will become a “single-use plastic free” Council by phasing out the use of “single use plastic” (SUP) products such as bottles, cups, cutlery and drinking straws in council activities, where it is reasonable to do so, by April 2018 and to encourage our facilities’ users, local businesses and other local public agencies to do the same, by championing alternatives, such as reusable water bottles”
An amendment to the motion was moved by Councillor Payne and seconded by Councillor Hollingsworth in the following terms:
“Preamble to amendment
Since the beginning of the 20th century plastic has become the most commonly used material and modern life is unthinkable without it. Unfortunately, what makes it so useful, such as its durability, light weight and low cost, also makes it problematic when it comes to its end of life phase.
The world’s annual consumption of plastic materials has increased from around 5 million tonnes in the 1950s to nearly 300 million tonnes today.1 The amount of plastic waste generated annually in the UK is estimated to be nearly 5 million tonnes.2 Most families throw away about 40kg of plastic per year, which could otherwise be recycled.
According to recent scientific research, eight million metric tons of plastic waste makes its way into the world’s oceans each year.3 The same report predicts that the amount of plastic debris is likely to increase greatly over the next decade unless nations take strong measures to dispose of their litter responsibly.
The consequences of plastic pollution on
the marine environment are severe. Once in the ocean, plastic waste
injures and kills fish, seabirds and marine mammals. Marine plastic
pollution has impacted at least 267 species worldwide, including
86% of all sea turtle species, 44% of all seabird species and 43%
of all marine mammal species. The impacts include fatalities as a
result of ingestion, starvation, suffocation, infection, drowning,
and entanglement.4
Moreover, plastic is not inert and chemical additives,
some of them endocrine disruptors, can migrate into body tissue and
enter the food chain ultimately ending up on our plates.
The massive pollution of world oceans with plastic
debris has therefore emerged as a global challenge that requires
both global and local response. Gedling should be a showcase for
how to build a coherent strategy to optimize plastic waste
policy.
Residents, independent groups and organisations in the borough are
already taking direct action to prevent existing plastic litter and
use of single-use plastics. However the amount of litter is
increasing and clear action is needed to stop this pollution at
source.
Single-use plastics, or disposable plastics, are used only once before they are thrown away or recycled. These items are things like plastic bags, straws, coffee stirrers, soda and water bottles and most food packaging.
All Members of Council will no doubt be aware of the fantastic work that is being done by Amy and Ella Meek of Arnold, to raise awareness about the damaging global impact of plastics in our oceans. Amy, 14 and Ella, 12 founded the campaign Kids Against Plastics two years ago to promote a better understanding about the environmental effects of single-use plastics. As well as personally getting their hands dirty picking up litter from the country’s coastlines, Amy and Ella have been encouraging cafes to become ‘plastics clever’, including in their home town of Arnold.
Proposed amendment:
Gedling Borough Council therefore:
1. Thanks and congratulates Amy and Ella Meek for their amazing efforts to date to reduce single-use plastics.
2. Supports Amy and Ella in raising awareness of this important environmental issue across the borough and in encouraging local businesses and other partners to pledge their commitment to reduce single-use plastics
This Council will:
1. Declare Gedling Borough Council will become a ‘single-use plastic clever’ Council taking immediate steps to phase out the use of ‘single use plastics’ within all of the Council’s facilities where it is reasonable to do soand develop a robust strategy that encourages and enables the borough’s institutions, businesses and residents to adopt similar measures.
This will require changes in policy, strong leadership and championing from Gedling Borough Council around reducing our reliance on and use of single-use plastics (SUPs). Specifically:
· Phase out, with a view to ending all sales of SUP bottles in Gedling Borough Council buildings and phase out their use at all events hosted in Gedling Borough Council owned buildings, both public and private.
· Phase out the use of other SUP products in Gedling Borough Council owned buildings starting with (but not limited to) ‘disposable’ cups, cutlery and drinking straws.
· Work with the Council’s Community Relations team and create policy in which single-use ‘disposable’ plastic cups are replaced at all borough events with reusable or deposit scheme cups. This will ultimately be a condition for obtaining the Council’s permission, as landowner, to hold large scale events on its land.
· Work with tenants in Gedling Borough Council offices and commercial properties to phase out SUP bottles, cups, cutlery and straws.
· Launch an annual plastic free challenge month in July 2018 and encourage, enable and aid all councillors, employees, residents, community groups, organisations and businesses in the borough to engage with it.
· Introduce a number of public drinking water fountains in the borough.
2.
Write to the Leader of
Nottinghamshire County Council requesting the County
Council’s support and positive action on the issues raised in
this motion.
3. Request the Chief Executive to investigate and report back to Members on the impact on Gedling Borough Council of the Chinese Government’s ban on imports of millions of tonnes of plastic waste, particularly given the fact British companies have shipped more than 1.5m tonnes of plastic waste to China since 2012.5
Amendment Proposed: Councillor Michael Payne
Amendment Seconded: Councillor Jenny Hollingsworth
Sources
1. Plastic
Pollution, Introduction, Claire Le Guern
Lytle
(http://plastic-pollution.org/)
2. The
Waste & Resources Action Programme. (www.wrap.org.uk)
3. J. Jambeck, “Plastic waste inputs from land into
the ocean.” (2015)
[ http://www.sciencemag.org/content/347/6223/768]
4. D.W. Laist, “Impacts of marine debris:
entanglement of marine life in marine debris including a
comprehensive list of species with entanglement and ingestion
records,” in Coe, J.M. Rogers, D.B. (eds), Marine Debris:
Sources, Impacts, and Solutions: Springer-Verlag, New York, (1997) 99-139.
5.
Chinese ban on
plastic waste imports could see UK pollution rise,
[https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2017/dec/07/chinese-ban-on-plastic-waste-imports-could-see-uk-pollution-rise]
The Guardian (7
December 2017)
And it was
RESOLVED:
That the Council:
1. thank and congratulate Amy and Ella Meek for their amazing efforts to date to reduce single-use plastics.
2. Support Amy and Ella in raising awareness of this important environmental issue across the borough and in encouraging local businesses and other partners to pledge their commitment to reduce single-use plastics
3. Will declare Gedling Borough Council will become a ‘single-use plastic clever’ Council taking immediate steps to phase out the use of ‘single use plastics’ within all of the Council’s facilities where it is reasonable to do soand develop a robust strategy that encourages and enables the borough’s institutions, businesses and residents to adopt similar measures.
This will require changes in policy, strong leadership and championing from Gedling Borough Council around reducing our reliance on and use of single-use plastics (SUPs). Specifically:
· Phase out, with a view to ending all sales of SUP bottles in Gedling Borough Council buildings and phase out their use at all events hosted in Gedling Borough Council owned buildings, both public and private.
· Phase out the use of other SUP products in Gedling Borough Council owned buildings starting with (but not limited to) ‘disposable’ cups, cutlery and drinking straws.
· Work with the Council’s Community Relations team and create policy in which single-use ‘disposable’ plastic cups are replaced at all borough events with reusable or deposit scheme cups. This will ultimately be a condition for obtaining the Council’s permission, as landowner, to hold large scale events on its land.
· Work with tenants in Gedling Borough Council offices and commercial properties to phase out SUP bottles, cups, cutlery and straws.
· Launch an annual plastic free challenge month in July 2018 and encourage, enable and aid all councillors, employees, residents, community groups, organisations and businesses in the borough to engage with it.
· Introduce a number of public drinking water fountains in the borough.
4.
Will write to the
Leader of Nottinghamshire County Council requesting the County
Council’s support and positive action on the issues raised in
this motion.
5. Will request the Chief Executive to investigate and report back to Members on the impact on Gedling Borough Council of the Chinese Government’s ban on imports of millions of tonnes of plastic waste, particularly given the fact British companies have shipped more than 1.5m tonnes of plastic waste to China since 2012.5