Massachusetts Town Votes Down Weak Measures to Protect Residents From Proposed Chemical Recycling Facility Following Opposition From Local Residents
"It was gratifying to see that everyone present wanted to protect Templeton and its residents in future from highly polluting industrial facilities, including those processing waste plastic," said Ivan Ussach, director of the Millers River Watershed Council, who read a statement summarizing recent reports exposing the poor environmental and economic performance of existing facilities that process waste plastic. "The discussion on the town hall floor was mostly over whether the proposed additions to the Town's zoning bylaw language helped or hindered that cause," Ussach added.
MILLERS RIVER WATERSHED COUNCIL, INC.
100 Main Street, Athol, MA 01331
5-15-24
Comments by Ivan Ussach, MRWC director, for Templeton Annual Town Meeting
RE Warrant item #8: proposed change to zoning bylaws to include “advanced recycling”
Good People of Templeton - My name is Ivan Ussach and I am the director of the Millers River Watershed Council or MRWC, based in Athol. Thank you for allowing me a few minutes to share the Watershed Council’s concerns about the so-called "Advanced Recycling" facilities that are the subject of warrant item #8 at tonight's Annual Town meeting. Since 1970, the Council’s goal and mission has been to promote and protect the health of the Millers River watershed, its many communities and their inhabitants, human and non-human. During my time since 2005, MRWC has conducted water monitoring with local volunteers on the Otter River, created a series of recreation Blue Trails on the Otter River, and more recently supported town efforts to address the threats from impaired or dysfunctional dams.
I have worked as an environmental analyst for 40 years, since receiving my Master of Public Health degree with a focus in Environmental Sciences. Much of my training was in Environmental Toxicology, the science of poisons and their affect on public health and the environment; and for several years I managed the hazardous waste produced daily from close to 100 bus and subway maintenance facilities operated by the NYC Transit Authority.
It is based on that experience, after reviewing the technical literature on plastics recycling, that I wish to bring serious public health and environmental concerns to your attention.
First off, and most importantly, I'd like to quote briefly from an April 2024 paper by the Center for Climate Integrity (climateintegrity.org) --hot off the press--called The Fraud of “Advanced Recycling”:
"Positioned as the plastics industry’s latest “solution” to the plastic waste crisis, so-called “advanced recycling” (or chemical recycling) is an industry catch-all term for a variety of processes—most commonly, pyrolysis and gasification—that are intended to break a polymer down into its basic chemical elements. Contrary to industry representations, advanced recycling is not “advanced”—it relies on decades-old technology that has never proven viable at scale. Further, it is not “recycling”— it does not meaningfully keep plastic in the production cycle and does not satisfy the definition of recycling as established by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and others.”
Supporting these claims, The October 2023 report Chemical Recycling: A Dangerous Deception, produced by Beyond Plastics and IPEN (the International Plastics Elimination Network), examined the plastic industry’s claims that chemical recycling, also known as “advanced recycling,” will play a significant role in reducing global plastic pollution.
The report examines the 11 chemical recycling facilities built in the United States as of September 2023, and exposes a long list of failures, toxic emissions, and dangerous operations. To date, several "recycling" plants have been shuttered, and there is little evidence to suggest that a single plant is operational at commercial scale. The report provides detailed case studies of each facility, and in the section called "KEY FINDINGS FROM THE CASE STUDIES," the report concludes: "FAILURE IS THE ONLY CONSTANT.”
Lastly, and again in brief due to time constraints: The proposed definitions for addition to the zoning bylaw suggest that all of the resulting products are usable--which is not the case. There is no mention of the hazardous waste generated by these operations. As just one example, one of the facilities that is now shut down—Regenyx in Tigard, Oregon—was creating 1 ton of hazardous waste for every 3 tons of plastic trash processed, and EPA considers the operation a “large quantity generator” of hazardous waste.
Good People of Templeton: Study up and be on your guard - do not fall prey to the lure of smooth PR and easy money: it is an illusion, and a dangerous one that will impair the health and wellbeing of your community. Vote no on Warrant Article 8 to amend the Zoning Bylaws as proposed. Thank you for your consideration.
