York High School students propose town-wide plastics ban: ‘This is a human rights issue’

YORK, Maine — A group of York High School students is looking to ban the use and sale of plastics in retail stores and restaurants in town.

The York High School Eco Club has brought forth a proposed town ordinance which they hope will go before voters in November.

The ordinance would prohibit the distribution, sale and use of single-use plastic cutlery, stirring sticks, straws, cups and lids in retail stores, restaurants and municipal departments. It would also require food and beverage providers to create and promote a program incentivizing customers to bring their own cups. It would encourage businesses that rely on plasticware to switch to compostable alternatives.

Violations of the ordinance as proposed by the students would result first in a written warning. The following offense would result in a $250 fine, and subsequent offenses would be $500.

Students from the group met with the Selectboard in June about the proposal. A public hearing, where residents can weigh in on the proposal, is scheduled for July 24, according to Town Manager Peter Joseph.

The four students behind the initiative — Maxine Adelson, Lucy Patterson, Chloe Whitbread and Aidan Ring — make up the Eco Group’s plastic reduction task force. They have been working on reducing plastics in York since they became freshmen.

“Our goal is to reduce plastic within our community,” Adelson said.

They started by introducing reusable silverware in their school and said a town ordinance was the logical next step. They hope the proposed ordinance can pass and ultimately inspire statewide legislation.

“We’ve found that ordinances change behavior,” Whitbread said.

Selectboard members were receptive when the students came to their June 26 meeting, though they expressed concerns about how the proposed ordinance would impact businesses. Chair Todd Frederick said the board wants to hear feedback from voters before considering whether to place the ordinance on the November ballot.

“There’s going to be some challenges when we bring it up to public hearing,” Frederick said. “But I look forward to what the public has to say.”

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York students ready for the challenge

Adelson, Whitbread, Patterson and Ring said they are inspired to curb the use of plasticware, in part because of their upbringing in coastal Maine.

“Growing up here, going to the beach every single day, I saw how the pollution on the beach has affected me, people around me, animals,” Patterson said. “I wanted to do something to stop that.”

The students focused on implementing a plastic ban at York High School during their freshman year. They acquired a grant from the town for $800, which they used to purchase reusable metal cutlery.

Adelson said their proposals drew a lot of negative feedback from parents. That opposition, they said, only made them want to go before voters more with a town-wide ordinance. They said they are prepared to hear what members of the public have to say about their proposal.

“We have a lot of rebuttals and a lot of support and evidence to back us up,” Patterson said. “There’s always going to be people who are against it.”

In their meeting with the Selectboard, the students’ presentation included facts about the negative impact of plastics. They said 12 million tons of plastics enter the ocean each year and that chemicals in plastic contribute to health conditions like cancer. They also said the use of plastics has a disproportionately larger impact on BIPOC communities.

“This is a human rights issue,” Whitbread told the board.

The students said their ordinance would require businesses that sell drinks in single-use containers to create a program to incentivize people to bring their own cups. They said that could be done in more than one way, like with a 25-cent charge for single-use cups or a 25-cent discount for bringing their own cups.

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Selectboard: Ordinance may impact businesses

Selectboard members said their concerns were focused on the burden the ordinance would have on business owners, whether through cost or practicality.

Selectboard member Mike Estes encouraged the students to contact Hannaford since the supermarket retailer sells many plastic products that would be banned under the ordinance. He also questioned how the ordinance could be applied to businesses like Anthony’s, which sells self-serve coffee with single-use cups.

“I see a place like Anthony’s, where they probably sell a thousand cups of coffee a day,” Estes said.

Frederick said the ordinance should also consider exceptions like cafes in hospitals.

Selectboard member Robert Palmer said he had doubts about the practicality of applying the ban to condiments.

“I think that just may make it very difficult for people, for businesses, to facilitate having that work,” Palmer said.

The students say they are prepared to make compromises as they receive feedback.

“We’re open to making modifications if Selectboard members have, or other people, have suggestions that will make it more feasible,” Adelson said. “Modify it so that businesses feel that their perspectives are being included in our ordinance.”

Some business owners in York have already begun to shift away from plastics in favor of reusables. The York Harbor Inn and its Ship’s Cellar Pub have pretty much done away with plastics, according to owner Garry Dominguez. That began about five years ago, he said.

Dan Poulin, owner of the Fat Tomato in York Village, said he plans to meet with the students to learn more and give his thoughts on the ordinance. He said last week by phone the initiative is welcome.

“Young people wanting to change the world is an awesome thing, and I would never want to squash that energy,” Poulin said. “In the end, it’s going to be them who inherit this planet.”

Poulin said the challenge will be in the supply line where alternatives are not always available. He said souffle cups for takeout dipping sauce have no real alternative yet. Even the plastic tops of coffee cups are not easily replaced with compostable alternatives.

“The supply chain industry for the restaurant business has made some headway in creating some earth-friendly alternatives to plastics, but not on everything,” Poulin said. “Sometimes you have to wait for the industry to catch up.”

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Students optimistic York will support ordinance

The teenagers say they are optimistic because of past efforts made by York High School students in 2015 and 2019 to ban plastic bags and polystyrene foam food containers in town. Those bans led to statewide legislation.

They also know that passing the ordinance on their first try is important. Ring said they will be able to come back and regroup if their push this year is unsuccessful, but he believes it will be much harder a second time if it fails at the polls once.

“I think the chances are pretty good considering we (York High School students) passed polystyrene and bag bans in York,” Ring said. “I know it’s not going to pass by a huge amount, but I think we have a good chance.”

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: York students make push to ban single-use plastics in town