TCE Blog
Melanie Scruggs, Houston Program Director
Early voting began Dec. 2nd and runs through Dec. 8th for the City of Houston runoff election on Saturday, Dec. 12th. Voters will decide our next Mayor, four of five At-Large Council Members and three out of eleven district-specific Council members who are in the runoff. There are other races on the ballot as well.
We helped put together a short environmental questionnaire for City Council runoff candidates with the help of our co-sponsors: NAACP Houston Branch, Texas Environmental Justice Advocacy Services (t.e.j.a.s.), Citizens Climate Lobby, Dr. Robert Bullard, Air Alliance Houston, Sierra Club Houston Regional Group, San Jacinto River Coalition and the League of Women Voters Houston. We especially thank Dr. Jacqueline Smith with the NAACP Houston Branch Climate and Environmental Justice Committee for her assistance with the questionnaire.
You can read candidates’ responses to the environmental questionnaire here or by clicking the button below.
Answers have been published as submitted including spelling or grammatical errors. Any responses that exceed the character limit of 1000 characters are ended with asterisks. Each of the 16 candidates was asked to respond to the following three questions:
In 2015, Houston expanded curbside recycling for all neighborhoods with city trash services. What specific policies or programs would you support to build on this progress and address illegal dumping, prevent new trash facilities from being located in low-income areas, and expand recycling, composting and education?
This December, the UN Climate Change Conference is meeting in Paris, France to achieve a universal agreement on global actions for all nations to address climate change. How will you lead Houston as a global city in addressing climate change?
Sylvester Turner: Energy-efficient technologies and energy conservation are major ways to reduce energy consumption and make Houston cleaner and greener. I am pleased with the city’s ongoing embrace of renewable energy – we are currently the top municipal purchaser of renewable power in the nation… Read More
Bill King: The science is clear that climate change is underway and that human activities are one of the primary drivers. The only question that still merits serious debate is this: given what we know, what do we do about the problem?… Read More
What local environmental and environmental justice issues are most important to you? What policies will you support to address these issues?
Please share this blog post to help educate your friends and co-workers about the runoff election with a reminder to always vote with the environment in mind. Your voice and your vote make a huge difference in this and every election!
These are responses recorded during interviews by Charles Kuffner, a local blogger for “Off the Kuff” and Chron.com. You can listen to the full interviews and check out Kuffner’s 2015 election page here.
Charles Kuffner: “One of the things Mayor Parker has done is to extend curbside recycling to all the neighborhoods and households that participate in the City of Houston’s Solid Waste program. There’s also been an exploration of a proposal called ‘One Bin For All,’ in which we throw everything in one bin, it would go to a plant for processing, the idea being to increase the amount of waste that is diverted away from landfills. It’s pioneer technology; it’s still kind of a work in progress. The City has a couple of bids for this under evaluation but it’s fairly clear that the next mayor is going to have to make the decision one way or the other on this. What’s your view of the ‘One Bin’ proposal?”
Adrian Garcia: “Well, I know that there’s a lot of concern as to whether or not this is going to be a viable option or not, so one, I look to study it and have people at the table to give me some perspective on it. But look, I was a big proponent for recycling. You’ve got to remember, in some of our early budget sessions at council I pointed to our trash cans around City Hall chambers, and I told the mayor, after a whole day of budgeting, look what’s in our trash bin. What was in there? Plastic bottles. Aluminum cans. I was pushing simply to have recycling receptacles in the City Hall chambers so we can demonstrate to our citizens the value and importance of recycling. I am a big advocate for not having to need future landfills, but I want to make sure that the approaches that we take are reasonable to ensure that we are accomplishing the ability to recycle and to prevent disproportionate growth in our landfill needs. I’m looking forward to sitting down with people. This is something I am actually very interested and passionate about, so I’ll take a look at it, and right now it looks like there is some concern about whether one bin approach is the right one.”
Bill King: “I really haven’t talked to anybody who thinks ‘One Bin for All’ will work. It’s sort of just one of those odd things where all the environmentalists are against it, the industry people are against it. I haven’t really found anybody that’s for it. And I also think that what may have made that work economically was if you had higher commodity prices, and we seem to be headed into some really low commodity prices. So, I frankly think it’s dead; I don’t think it’s going to be revived by anybody in the next administration… I think we need to encourage as much recycling as we can. It’s going to be a challenge if you’ve got low commodity prices. It’s just not nearly as economic if you don’t have that. And yet we’ve got land in every direction for hundreds of miles where you can carry this stuff off and dump it out there.”
Chris Bell: “I’d look at what we’ve learned and where it really stands. There’s a great deal of concern that the technology and the folks that are presently in the mix aren’t really in a position to accomplish what we want, and I think as mayor you have to go back and look and determine if we really are accomplishing what we set out to do, and if not, we probably have to go back to the drawing board to figure out how we can continue to move in that direction. I certainly thought it was a worthy goal, but we get letters here just about every day asking us to look at it very seriously because there’s a lot of folks who have looked at it very closely and just don’t believe the technology is really there to accomplish what we’re trying to do.”
Marty McVey: “Well, I’ve studied this issue and I think that it needs more study, quite frankly, because there is a contamination factor on the recycling. And if you have “One Bin for All” – I have not seen the solution to this that I’m satisfied with – if you’re putting all types of waste in one container then there is a contamination factor and I believe that is 20-30% waste factor in the recycling process, so if we have to clean it and we’ve got a waste factor that we can’t use, then I don’t know that’s it’s really a good thing. There’s not been enough studies on this issue. I think in the short term we need to separate and continue that process. I don’t want to get the city into a situation where we’re jumping to the thing that’s available to us. Quite frankly the proposal that I’ve seen from the City of Houston – at least one that was proposed to the city – it was pretty vague, it was pretty new. The company doesn’t have any real long term testing on this. I would be very hesitant to put the city in a situation where it’s not proven technology.”
Steve Costello: “So before I get to the ‘One Bin for All’ I just want to give you a personal experience. Ever since I’ve had the 96 gallon green can, the amount of trash that I actually put in my black can is a third of what it used to be. So, it’s good to see that we’re actually successfully recycling. And yet, most people don’t know that half of the population lives in apartments, and yet, we do not have a recycling program for apartment complexes. We don’t have a recycling program for commercial and light industrial facilities. I would like to see us pursue that first and to see how beneficial we could be in recycling. The issue of ‘One Bin for All,’ since I’m a an engineer I am extremely fascinated by the science. But most municipalities don’t want to be on the front side of a bell curve. They’d much rather be on the back side of the bell curve with proven technology. There a lot of recyclers that believe that ‘One Bin for All’ will diminish the value of the recycling product because it becomes a dirty product. You hear both sides of the story. I am also concerned about whether or not we have a viable business that can build the facility on behalf of the city. The plan is that they build the facility, they take care of all the recycling, and the city just guarantees the volume of recycling or volume of trash to it. So I’ll be interested to see how that goes, but again, the science to it is still kind of pioneering and I would be surprised if the city went and did something like that.”
Sylvester Turner: “Well, I certainly will take a look at it. There’s a lot a question as to whether the technology is available to do what has been represented. I think there’s a strong desire for more recycling, to expand it beyond where it is, to have more trash and recycling bins. I think we certainly need that. On the residential side, multifamily side, commercial side. I think there’s probably universal agreement for that. I think Austin’s got to step up on that end. So I certainly want to see that happen. Now whether or not the ‘One Bin’ proposal is something that we should do, the jury is still out on that end.”
TCE Blog
Melanie Scruggs, Houston Program Director
The Texas legislative session was held earlier this year, and it was rough for the environment and local communities around the state who are struggling to ward off polluters. Legislators passed laws which stripped Texas cities of their power to protect residents, and citizens lost important opportunities to speak out against polluting facilities. One the regions most directly affected by these bad laws – and plagued with a score of bad votes from state elected officials – is the Rio Grande Valley.
HB 40 stripped local governments of their ability to limit things like drilling, noise, truck traffic and other oil and gas activities near neighborhoods, hospitals and schools within city limits. Local laws in South Texas cities like Edinburg, Brownsville and McAllen regarding well density, freshwater protection, pipeline construction, and even drilling near schools, could be wiped from the books if a company sues these cities.
SB 709 gutted the process for evidence-based hearings when the state is considering permits for polluting facilities. It will now be much harder to keep dangerous plants and hazardous dumps out of communities in the Rio Grande Valley.
Other laws limited the damages counties could recover from polluters even when those polluters cost residents millions of dollars, and reduced buffer zones around medical waste facilities.
Texas Campaign for the Environment traveled to the Rio Grande Valley for a week-long canvassing trip to hold statewide elected officials accountable for their votes on these bad laws, and to build relationships with some outstanding, local activists who are organizing there on these and other issues. More than 130 Valley residents in McAllen, Edinburg, Brownsville, Port Isabel and South Padre Island made contributions to TCE, including 85 members. Our supporters wrote more than 180 letters (in both English and Spanish) to these lawmakers:
State Senator Juan “Chuy” Hinojosa, who voted for HB 40 and SB 709
State Senator Eddie Lucio Jr., who co-authored the Senate version of HB 40 and voted for SB 709
State Representative Eddie Lucio III, who voted for HB 40 but against SB 709
State Representative Rene Oliveira, who co-authored HB 40 and voted for both HB 40 and SB 709
State Representative Terry Canales, who was one of the few House members to vote against HB 40 – and he voted absent on SB 709. His constituents mostly sent him thank-you letters.
Map of proposed polluting LNG export terminals in the Port of Brownsville near South Padre Island and Port Isabel. http://www.SaveRGVfromLNG.com
While local organizers in Edinburg and McAllen have been fighting to keep drilling away from neighborhoods, schools and hospitals, these same organizers are working double-duty to stop out-of-town companies that want to build five liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminals in the Port of Brownsville. The five LNG terminals could become the biggest polluters in Cameron County.
The proposed LNG sites would be built on precious coastal prairie and wetlands, endangering native wildlife and spewing toxic air pollution. Less than two miles from Port Isabel, the site would bring an unsightly industrial facility, flares and smokestacks to the Bahia Grande area that depends on tourism.
We met up with the local organizers with “Save RGV from LNG” and the Lower Rio Grande Valley Sierra Club to hold three workshops during the week on canvassing door-to-door, working with the media and planning an upcoming Climate March in McAllen. Quite frankly, we learned just as much from them as they did from us!
Despite having received almost zero statewide or national media attention, Save RGV from LNG and the local Sierra Club chapter have been able to generate a great deal of pressure for their campaign against LNG in the Port of Brownsville and the drilling issues in the McAllen area. Some recent victories on their campaign include getting local officials including the Point Isabel Independent School District to reject tax breaks for one of the LNG companies and convincing Port Isabel City Commission to vote in August to oppose the terminals. The City of Edinburg also recently rejected a permit for a company to drill on city-owned land, and the list of victories continues to grow.
Their passion and commitment to overcoming the tough challenges ahead made a deep impression on all of us. Another thing that struck us was the natural beauty of the Rio Grande Valley (especially if you, like our canvassers, enjoy braving the mosquitoes to camp in state parks) which is home to incredible bird and other wildlife diversity. There are over 500 species of birds in Bentsen Rio Grande Valley State Park alone. How would bringing more polluting industries to the Valley affect these crucial migration zones and the tourism that goes along with them?
We have seen over and over again, throughout our organizing, that these ordeals bring communities together and foster new relationships. In the Rio Grande Valley, residents certainly have a great deal worth protecting. We look forward to supporting organizers in the Valley as they empower themselves and their neighbors to fight pollution. It’s part of being a better connected movement for people and the environment in Texas, so that when next state legislative session rolls around, we’ll be ready.
Today is National Voter Registration Day, and what better day to make sure that you have done everything you need to participate in the election this November? We want to be sure you vote in every election because we know you care about the environment! Here are a few simple steps to make sure you are ready to cast your ballot:
Check to see if you are registered to vote at your current address here.
If you need to register, click here to request a postage-paid application that will be mailed to you. Your registration must be complete by Oct. 5 in order to vote in the upcoming election.
Put it on your calendar when and where you are going to the polls. Here’s the info:
Mayoral and City Council elections have a huge impact on our quality of life and the environment. If we have canvassed your neighborhood or called you on the phone recently, you know we are advocating for the next Mayor to support a comprehensive Zero Waste Plan for Houston that will expand recycling and composting options city-wide. Major cities in the U.S. including Los Angeles, New York and Chicago have set city-wide goals to divert 90% of waste from landfills and incinerators, and so can Houston! Click here to send a message to all the candidates for Houston Mayor and your City Council asking them to support Zero Waste!
TCE Blog
Melanie Scruggs, Houston Program Director
We were proud to support the 2015 Citizens Environmental Coalition (CEC) candidate forum for City of Houston at-large candidates co-sponsored by League of Women Voters Houston and 25 local environmental groups. Several of the questions asked by moderator Charles Kuffner related to issues that we work on, such as expanding recycling and composting city-wide. To provide a brief synopsis of the event, we transcribed the responses about Zero Waste below, and you can also watch the video to hear for yourself what the candidates had to say. After you’ve heard where candidates stand, please take a minute to email all candidates running for Mayor and City Council, asking them to support Zero Waste if they don’t already!
Kuffner: 10 cities in Texas have passed ordinances to restrict or forbid the use of single-use, plastic bags. Houston has not taken up such an ordinance yet. Would you support such an ordinance? (0:24:40 in the video)
David Robinson (At-large #2 candidate): “Absolutely, yes, I think a lot has been made so far in the discussion tonight about the importance of being able to collaborate with some of our congressional delegation. As an architect, I have been part of the group that goes to Austin to work with our legislators about things of importance to us, especially in the built environment. That is the category that I’ve dedicated my career to. The department of the committee of urban design for the local chapter of the American Institute of Architects is something that I’ve led for ten years. Specifically, when it comes to bags and other pollutants that find their way to the bayou, I know I’m committed. I think I would expand that host of things that we need to petition our legislators about to include. Having been a part of a city and a state where I come from, Boston, Massachusetts, that has very successfully applied a five cent tax or fee on returnables for recyclables, it has been a very effective thing for both cleaning up our cities and as well as providing some sort of revenue for the people that collect cans. I think there’s various ways we can tackle this in collaboration between the city and state legislature. I feel that I am the elected official now in a very excellent position to get some of these tough laws passed.”
Andrew Burks (At-large #2 candidate): “Well, I happen to think very differently on that. One thing is that I’ve noticed, other cities around the nation have begun to implement charging you something for the bag when you purchase something from their store. I also see a number of trash and debris on our roadsides and into our waterways. I’m not just going to focus on plastic bags. But the whole thing is we’re trashing up our community. We’re not keeping it beautiful. We have laws on the books but we do not adhere to those laws and our police do not enforce those laws. When I was in the military, you could not drop a cigarette on the ground and leave it there. You would have to bury that baby about four feet deep in the water if they saw that. But out here we just throw anything out the windows. Down these streets everyday I have to monitor in front of my home for trash as people pass by and they just throw it out of their cars and don’t care where it lands. So we have a bigger problem than just plastic bags, and I will tell you this, that I will work hard to keep Houston clean.”
Kuffner: As you know, the City of Houston has curbside recycling for all single family dwellings in the city, however a large number of people in Houston live in apartments. How would you like to see – what plan would you support for the city – to expand recycling to apartments? (0:38:00)
Doug Peterson (At-large #3 candidate): “Well, I think the point here is that all citizens in the City of Houston need to take part in recycling. We need to be able to move forward with a plan that will include apartment complexes of all types. If that means that is part of the overall cost of your rent and there is a central place where you put all your recycling in the same place to be picked up by the city, then so be it. I think that’s good. I think we really need to move past some of the ideas that have been out there besides this. The whole thing about one bin recycling is something that the current administration has been pushing quite a bit, and I think we need to reject that at this point, and just move forward and do everything we can to make sure that everybody participates. And we may need to have some incentives to do that, but we got to get moving on it.”
John LaRue (At-large #2 candidate): “I’ll echo Doug’s comments on One Bin. I think it’s a really bad idea. In general, privatization of municipal services is something that I oppose. I live in an apartment, so it kills me every time I have to throw an aluminum can in the trash can. When I lived in DC, it was so nice. We had one big can for recyclables and one big can for trash and it would be so much easier if we had that. I would agree. I would support any option including if there’s an additional fee that we would need to add on, or to build some kind of community drop off centers for cans. I know a lot of people, especially younger people who live in apartments and are much more eco-conscious and would be willing to drive a little bit even if it’s a mile down the road to recycle. Because sustainability is really important. We’ve only got this one planet and we really need to not trash it.”
Joe McElligott (At-large #2 candidate): “So that’s a really good question, and there isn’t a really good answer to that, to be honest. I mean, in my experience coming to this platform, I first joined because of finance, and then I first saw voting rights is a really big issue, and I still think it is. But to answer your question as far as environmental recycling, I have a video on our website, I won’t go into detail, but it basically explains how Sweden does their recycling. They actually import it. They create jobs. Can Houston do it? Possibly. I think there’s some things to look at that other cities are doing, what other countries are doing. It’s just not a one-size-fits-all answer.”
Kuffner: As you know the City has curbside recycling and it has a separate pickup for yard waste, but a significant amount of what goes into landfills is organic waste, stuff that maybe could be composted. Some cities like Austin have a separate pickup curbside for compost. Do you support the City of Houston pursuing a plan like that? (1:00:00)
Jack Christie (At-large #5 candidate): “Absolutely, I still believe in separate recycling. I embarrassed my high rise building into recycling and the different parts of it. When I was in a big house and the kids were small, I never bagged up recycling. It was always mulched and put it back in the garden and/or the ground. It’s common sense, understanding nature. What you take out it goes back in to recycle it. If you’re listening to money making disposal companies and chemical companies, it’s not going to work. A professor at Rice University, Hackerman, before he died, he wanted children to understand nature. He asked the Texas State Board of Education if we can get kids to understand nature. They said, you know what you just said? He said, yeah. It’s geology, it’s chemistry, biology, physiology, zoology, histology. Understanding how it all works. You do that, you’re going to recycle properly.”
Philippe Nassif (At-large #5 candidate): “I am a really big supporter of Zero Waste. The City of Houston is really, really behind not just in how we process recycling, the number of households. There was a question earlier about apartment complexes and I think that apartments should be required to at least have one bin available for people to recycle, and right now they are not. With regards to composting, I would love to see a city-wide composting plan put into place as all part of Zero Waste, and I would like to actually take it a step further and be sure that we’re educating people just on how to compost. I’ve had some relatively bad experiences trying to compost myself. I finally figured it out what all is involved. I think it’s really important to educate people on how to compost, how to recycle and to recycle better.”
TCE Blog
Melanie Scruggs, Houston Program Director
Houston has Mayoral and City Council elections coming up this November, and so far, there are no environmental groups endorsing candidates or raising money for local races. Unsurprisingly, the environment and climate change have taken a back seat in the public discourse, and voters have had little opportunity to contrast candidates’ positions on important issues like recycling. With upcoming candidate forums scheduled to discuss environmental issues, however, that will soon change.
Texas Campaign for the Environment does not endorse candidates and instead, we let our supporters know where to find information about who is running, what their public views on the environment are and general voting information. You can confirm that you are registered to vote (October 5th is the deadline to register for this upcoming election) here. Election Day is November 3rd.
We follow a local blog by Charles Kuffner, Off the Kuff, and his 2015 elections page. Kuffner has taken initiative to record interviews with candidates including a question about the “One Bin for All” boondoggle proposal. In case you missed it, in March of 2013, Mayor Parker announced she would spend a $1 million grant from Bloomberg Philanthropies to investigate the feasibility of abandoning our current two-bin recycling system (trash, recycling, plus a bag for yard waste) in order to experiment with a one-bin approach that is in the opposite direction recycling advocates like TCE, the National Recycling Coalition, environmentalists around the world and local environmental justice leaders agree major cities should be pursuing.
Despite the fact that in February of this year Houston finally completed the expansion of two-bin recycling to all neighborhoods, the debate of whether to eliminate it quietly continues, and the City of Houston is currently evaluating bids from at least one private company that wants a 20+ year contract to build a new facility called a dirty MRF (pronounced “murf”) where machines and people would sort through discards that we as citizens can and should recycle ourselves. Indications are that it is unlikely that such a contract will come up for a City Council vote, however, the proposal is still technically on the table.
So, candidates are faced with the question, do they support proven two and three-bin recycling in which major cities around the country, including Houston, are currently investing to maximize highest and best use of our discards on the path to zero waste? Or, is Houston willing to be an experiment for a company that claims to take individual responsibility out of the sustainability picture when it comes to recycling, and cannot point to a single facility anywhere that accomplishes their goal of 75%-95% recycling from a commingled trash stream?
Below are transcribed responses from Off the Kuff‘s interviews with candidates for two of the At-large City Council races. Houston has sixteen City Council members in total besides the Mayor, and five of them are elected city-wide. That means that in addition to voting for one council member that represents your district, numbered A-K, you get to vote for five council members “At-Large” to represent you and everyone in the city. The races for At-Large City Council positions #1 and #4 are two of the most contested races on the ballot since these are open seats, meaning the current council member is term limited and cannot seek re-election. Representing At-Large does not necessarily make these positions more important than district seats, but these officials do have a responsibility to represent everyone in the city, and they should certainly be strong proponents of policies that protect the environment. See what you think about their responses to Kuffner’s question, “Do you support ‘One Bin for All’ or should Houston continue what we are already doing?”
Lane Lewis, Candidate for City Council At-Large #1 “I recycle a lot. I fill it up every 2 weeks and roll it out to the street. My understanding is that Mayor Parker is very dedicated to this one bin, one stream and I can tell you that I personally find it much more convenient than to have to sift and sort the way we used to. So, if it works and if it’s financially feasible, I’m for it.” Read full response
Chris Oliver, Candidate for City Council At-Large #1
“I like what we’re currently doing. I like putting out a green bin and a black bin. I think it’s a wonderful idea to do so. Now, this one bin for all concept, if it’s proven to be more efficient and more economically feasible I think we should take a look at that, but I currently like the way we’re doing it now. I think as a matter of convenience, it’s wonderful. I like the idea of my wife telling me, ‘don’t put your plastic water bottle in the trash, put it in the green bin.’ I like it. So I think it’s something we should hang on to personally.” Read full response
Tom McCasland, Candidate for City Council At-Large #1 “I want to see our recycling rate go up. I think that’s something that everyone can agree on. I’ve talked with folks on both sides of this issue. It is not something that I feel like I have enough information on to say I am solidly for one side or the other. I’ll dig into the details. It needs to be economically feasible. We do need to worry about whether there’s a proven technology here especially when we’re spending taxpayer money. The one thing we can agree on is as a city, we need to be increasing our recycling rate.” Read full response
Jenifer Pool, Candidate for City Council At-Large #1 “I am a proponent of single-stream [one bin]. I’ve seen some of the proposals. I’m a bit reticent about some of it because we are part of the process where you’re learning to make mistakes and to make things better. I would not be in favor of putting a lot of money – I’m talking about $100’s of millions of dollars – to a system that isn’t quite proven yet. That we will be the test case.” Read full response
Amanda Edwards, Candidate for City Council At-Large #4 “I think we need to be sure that we’re using a policy that’s the most effective in terms of accomplishing the goal of making sure people are recycling. I think we have to look at the number of people that would be recycling with the existing program versus if you have a one bin. If you have an increase in terms of people who are willing to recycle which is part of the objective, I think we need to look at that closely because again there are always detractors who prefer one method over another and certainly you have to weigh those.” Read full response
Matt Murphy, Candidate for City Council At-Large #4 “Well, you know, if I trusted the city government to live up to the promises that it has not lived up to in the past, then I would say that it would be a great idea. It’s something that we should investigate and see if it’s something that’s viable and that could work for our system. What I do trust is when I go out to my green bin and my black bin, that the green bin fills up so much faster than my black bin does, and I’m a citizen, and so in reality I trust the citizens to know what’s recyclable, what’s not and that’s being done.” Read full response
Laurie Robinson, Candidate for City Council At-Large #4 “Considering I am a regulatory compliance person I like efficiencies and effectiveness. I think we need to understand the contract we get with the new supplier that’s providing this technology. We need to make sure it works. So I would like to see under the contract is a performance period to see if the technology actually really works and give the city the opportunity to get out of this technology if it doesn’t really work.” Read full response
Jonathan Hansen, Candidate for City Council At-Large #4 “I don’t have a very strong opinion on the issue. My betting principles would be what is the most sufficient? That’s really all I can say. What is the most efficient? What is the problem? What is the most efficient solution to this problem? That’s what we should pursue.” Read full response
What candidates should be saying
One of the major problems with the Bloomberg proposal from the very beginning was that it locked the City into evaluating a pair of false alternatives while failing to consider the proven three-bin solution that most major cities in the U.S., including cities in Texas, are currently pursuing. In fact, the City of Houston has already been investing for years in a three-bin system by expanding separate recycling and yard waste collection. Now that more citizens have access to these curbside programs, we are well on our way to a Zero Waste solution similar to what San Antonio, Dallas and Austin are implementing now. By keeping discards separated, a three-bin solution ensures high quality materials can be recycled into the economy.
In a matter of months, the City of San Antonio is going to be completing its three-bin curbside program for 346,000 households that includes a trash bin in sizes small, medium or large, a large recycling bin and a large compost bin for food scraps and organic waste. San Antonio’s pay rate structure for this solid waste program incentivizes recycling and composting. Their three-bin approach is part of a pathway to zero waste plan passed in 2013 with the goal of diverting 60% diversion of waste from landfills by 2025.
Candidates for City Council should reject the notion that Houston has only two options: we can maintain the status quo or we can try this other ‘one-bin’ thing. This is a false choice. Instead, we need to be looking at technologies like three-bins that work and that have broad public support in the environmental and recycling community. We also need to look at the big picture, considering the waste problem and its solutions holistically, and not just in single-family homes, either.
Here are questions that candidates should be discussing:
What would the benefits be, in terms of diverting waste from landfills, enhancing quality of life and creating jobs in sustainable industries, for a three-bin solid waste program that offers the recycling program we have now in addition to new food-waste collection services? What would that cost and how would we pay for it? If San Antonio can do it, so can Houston.
How are we going to measure and improve recycling rates for the 40% of Houston residents who live in apartments and have private trash services, but rarely have convenient opportunities or incentives to recycle? Austin has passed a universal recycling ordinance to require recycling city-wide; meanwhile San Antonio has expanded its recycling services to cover multi-family. We could implement similar programs, including using existing tax incentives provided to apartment landowners to create recycling incentives as well.
Other cities in Texas have passed long-term plans to reduce waste, to support state government policies aimed at waste reduction, and to grow local economies in reuse and re-manufacture, including composting. Now that Houston has a general plan that may one day include a sustainability plan, shouldn’t the city have a long-term solid waste or Zero Waste Plan, as other cities in Texas and around the world are implementing? A zero waste plan would set a goal of achieving 90% of waste diverted from landfills and incinerators in coming decades through recycling, composting, education, waste reduction efforts. It would establish a framework for working with the Texas legislature to promote recycling policies and tighter landfill rules so we can grow this important part of our green economy.
It would be more than a tragic mistake to abandon the progress that has been made in finally expanding curbside recycling to all neighborhoods only to waste tax dollars into a system that recycling advocates agree would fail to meet its expectations. Let’s thank Mayor Parker for expanding recycling during her term, and let’s press forward with responsible solutions to conserve resources and keep our city clean and healthy for all.
Lane Lewis, Candidate for City Council At-Large #1 “I recycle a lot. I fill it up every 2 weeks and roll it out to the street. My understanding is that Mayor Parker is very dedicated to this one bin, one stream and I can tell you that I personally find it much more convenient than to have to sift and sort the way we used to. So, if it works and if it’s financially feasible, I’m for it.”
Chris Oliver, Candidate for City Council At-Large #1
“I like what we’re currently doing. I like putting out a green bin and a black bin. I think it’s a wonderful idea to do so. Now, this one bin for all concept, if it’s proven to be more efficient and more economically feasible I think we should take a look at that, but I currently like the way we’re doing it now. I think as a matter of convenience, it’s wonderful. I like the idea of my wife telling me, ‘don’t put your plastic water bottle in the trash, put it in the green bin.’ I like it. So I think it’s something we should hang on to personally.”
Tom McCasland, Candidate for City Council At-Large #1 “I want to see our recycling rate go up. I think that’s something that everyone can agree on. I’ve talked with folks on both sides of this issue. It is not something that I feel like I have enough information on to say I am solidly for one side or the other. I’ll dig into the details. It needs to be economically feasible. We do need to worry about whether there’s a proven technology here especially when we’re spending taxpayer money. The one thing we can agree on is as a city, we need to be increasing our recycling rate. I’m glad for the significant steps forward this current administration has made on this. It’s worth asking the questions you’re asking. I’ll certainly be paying attention to the details there. I don’t know enough and have read in the paper but have yet to see enough information that would convince me that a single-stream [one bin] recycling plan is the right plan for the city.”
Jenifer Pool, Candidate for City Council At-Large #1 “I am a proponent of single-stream [one bin]. I’ve seen some of the proposals. I’m a bit reticent about some of it because we are part of the process where you’re learning to make mistakes and to make things better. I would not be in favor of putting a lot of money – I’m talking about $100’s of millions of dollars – to a system that isn’t quite proven yet. That we will be the test case. Now, Houston’s been the test case on a lot of stuff and we’ve proven our ability to be creative and make things work. That’s part of the beauty and power of our city. We make things happen. I think single-stream will work – we can’t keep filling in holes in the ground. We can’t keep building mountains of trash. Long-term it’s not sustainable. I could envision one day in the distant future people going back to our landfills and harvesting what was in there by mining it. We need to do that now. We need to be recycling as much as possible. But I’m a believer that people have the freedom of their own choice, and as we see not everyone is going to choose to recycle. Not everyone is going to take the time to sort out the different products in the current recycling system. That being the case we need to find a way of reclaiming what can be reclaimed from the recycling and from the single-stream [one-bin] and I think that’s the best way to go. I think we should take it a little slower. We’ve got proposals out there. As a city that’s got to be here for a while, we can take smaller steps, the idea that we go from what we’ve been doing to a single-stream recycling where everything goes in as recycle, I think we’re going to run the risk of having garbage on our streets because a plant broke down, or we’ve got mountains of trash waiting to be recycled at plants that aren’t operating. One of my clients is in that business. They’re expanding their location to do so. So I’ve been really close to the issue and I’m not talking about this in a void. It’s important to know from the standpoint of that person who’s going to do the recycling, the company that’s going to do it, what they deem is the reality. Everybody wants a contract everybody wants to make money from the government but I think we need to be real careful about how we move forward.”
Amanda Edwards, Candidate for City Council At-Large #4 “I think we need to be sure that we’re using a policy that’s the most effective in terms of accomplishing the goal of making sure people are recycling. I think we have to look at the number of people that would be recycling with the existing program versus if you have a one bin. If you have an increase in terms of people who are willing to recycle which is part of the objective, I think we need to look at that closely because again there are always detractors who prefer one method over another and certainly you have to weigh those. But ultimately the goal is what is most effective, in terms of getting people to actually participate in recycling. I think it’s important for us to respect our environment. It’s a critical need. But looking at whether that’s the most effective way of doing it is to me the primary determinant on whether or not we should alter our program or go with the existing program.”
Matt Murphy, Candidate for City Council At-Large #4 “Well, you know, if I trusted the city government to live up to the promises that it has not lived up to in the past, then I would say that it would be a great idea. It’s something that we should investigate and see if it’s something that’s viable and that could work for our system. What I do trust is when I go out to my green bin and my black bin, that the green bin fills up so much faster than my black bin does, and I’m a citizen, and so in reality I trust the citizens to know what’s recyclable, what’s not and that’s being done. That’s ultimately where I think the trust should lead. In that situation, that’s what I’m going to keep doing and so far that’s been very successful in the City of Houston. Now that’s fully implemented, and all of us have the bins, it took us several years even after it was installed to for us to get the bins. Now, like I said, my green bin fills up so much faster and I ultimately think when it comes down to it, we need to evaluate all the sources both publicly and privately. We could probably reduce our sanitation services just by looking at private issues, like Waste Management. I think Waste Management could probably do something cheaper than us if we give them the option to bid on it and figure out the situation and find those private ways to reduce our spending when it comes to waste management.”
Laurie Robinson, Candidate for City Council At-Large #4 “Considering I am a regulatory compliance person I like efficiencies and effectiveness. I think we need to understand the contract we get with the new supplier that’s providing this technology. We need to make sure it works. So I would like to see under the contract is a performance period to see if the technology actually really works and give the city the opportunity to get out of this technology if it doesn’t really work. Or give them time to fix the technology, that’s the first thing. I wouldn’t like to see a process that works right now, the two-bin solution, be stricken down and have a new technology that doesn’t work put in place and then nothing works. So I would like to have a pilot program or beta test to make sure that it actually works before we make the decision to switch over. But, I believe in recycling and I just had to put the garbage bin back into the garage and put the recycling bin back in the garage before I got here!”
Jonathan Hansen, Candidate for City Council At-Large #4 “I don’t have a very strong opinion on the issue. My betting principles would be what is the most sufficient? That’s really all I can say. What is the most efficient? What is the problem? What is the most efficient solution to this problem? That’s what we should pursue.”
The July 11 Composting Seminar was a major success! Entitled “Learn to Compost! Morning Seminar,” the information session was held at an eco-friendly store/restaurant called A Movable Feastand was sponsored by Texas Campaign for the Environment Fund. There were about thirty attendees, most of whom were seasoned composters over the age of 50. The session was also headed by three keynote speakers including Jared McNabb, founder of the vermicomposting company called The Mighty Worm, John Ferguson of Nature’s Way Resources and composting enthusiast Daniela Ochoa Gonzalez of Solurso Sustainable Urban Solutions.
My role throughout the seminar was to take notes on the studies and statistics presented while also acting as a co-host alongside Texas Campaign for the Environment Program Director Melanie Scruggs. Each speaker spoke for about thirty minutes each on their designated fields of composting expertise.
Jared McNabb enlightened the audience about vermicomposting (the composting technique involving the addition of various types of worms, especially red wigglers) and his business experience in working alongside institutions, parks and hospitals while using nitrogen rich methods to restore their landscapes. His presentation also shed light on how important the recycling of food and trash waste can be to the growth of the Houston metropolitan area. Jared emphasized the significance of reusing wastes to help cultivate other forms of compost. His key takeaway points were to 1) Take what you need, 2) Compost! Compost! Compost! and 3) Return it to the earth. This young composter’s spirit was the highlight of his presentation and his unwavering willingness to answer even the most complex questions proved that he has a deep passion for composting and preserving the condition of our environment.
From left to right: Mike Eck, Melanie Scruggs, Jared McNabb, John Ferguson and Daniela Ochoa.
John Ferguson was the second speaker and his oration explored the market barriers for composters. Mr. Ferguson’s presentation touched on different perspectives and allowed attendees to take a quick glimpse into some of the regulations and policies that hinder the progress of education about the importance of composting. Some of the more controversial barriers include, but are not limited to, the lack of clarity within Texas Commission for Environmental Quality (TCEQ) regulation interpretations, bad operators and unregulated products, the lack of collection services by waste companies and the immense deficiency of education/knowledge about the general benefits of composting. Ferguson’s teachings broadened my views on composting from the public administration/environmental policy perspective. With so many lawmakers pushing against the implementation of policies that could potentially encourage the method of composting as opposed to chemical fertilizing, the possibility of introducing it as a waste alternative such as recycling would seem to be more feasible. Mr. Ferguson’s talk was filled with jaw-dropping statistics, memorable photos and well-founded opinions. It also focused attention to the true views of our state’s regulatory bodies, which have great potential to encourage the composting sector.
The final speaker was compost enthusiast Daniela Ochoa Gonzalez. Gonzalez concentrated on the need of composting training in elementary schools throughout Houston. With a presentation coined “Hope Beyond Hype for School Composting,” she also broke down the school hierarchy in which composting could be adequately received within the education system. The hierarchy starts with leadership and branches into student participation, custodians, teachers and administrative staff and, finally, parents. Gonzalez emphasized that the full hierarchy must be respected and executed in order to successfully conquer the stigma of rejecting the idea of composting in the school system. After discussing each point of the hierarchy, Gonzalez also urged the compost seminar attendees to research and support an organization called the Urban School Food Alliance. The Urban School Food Alliance uses purchasing power and the ability to negotiate with vendors to bring compostable and biodegradable materials to cafeterias and school lunches; therefore, when it is time for the “trash” to be disposed of, the waste will be more useful than harmful.
Each speaker presented valuable and important information within each of their sessions. Not only did I learn a great deal about composting, but I also internalized a few ideals of my own when it comes to the implementation of governmental policies. In my opinion, there seems to be a great deal of uncertainty and fear around composting from the policy perspective. For our lawmakers, perhaps, fear of the unknown and fear of the potential financial and environmental effects of composting may raise more than a few eyebrows. Instead of the Texas legislature and local policy makers opening their minds to a positive environmental alternative, there is a response to maintain regulations the way they know how and continue throwing food waste into landfills. With the steady increase in landfills across Houston, composting may be the best bet that ensures our city’s prosperity, preservation and well-being in the years to come.
Esmesha Campbell is a staff writer for Fashion Bomb Daily, MPA Candidate through Texas Southern University in the Barbara Jordan-Mickey Leland School of Public Affairs, and summer intern at Texas Campaign for the Environment.
HOUSTON – Concerned consumers held signs and chanted outside a Family Dollar on Lawndale Street Wednesday urging the store and others like it to stop selling products, they say are riddled with toxic chemicals.
“This is one of them. This is a plastic mat that you place inside of your tub so that you don’t slip, and these contain phthalates above the level of concern that people should be aware of, phthalates that are known to be hormone disrupters,” said Deyadira Trevino of Texas Environmental Justice Advocacy Services.
A study released in February indicated chain dollar stores like Family Dollar, Dollar General, Dollar Tree and 99-Cents Only are selling products made of chemicals known to cause cancer, diabetes and other serious illnesses.
Protesters are upset the stores haven’t taken the products off the shelves, and customers agree.
“Find what is best for the community,” said Shaka.
The report said 81 percent of the products tested contain at least one chemical above levels of concern. It also says retailers like Walmart and Target have set standards that limit these chemicals in their products but dollar stores do not.
“We know Target and Walmart have already pulled out products that are unsafe for us, so we know that if they have done it, then 99-Cents Only and Family Dollar can do the same thing,” said Trevino.
Houston Chronicle op-ed
Melanie Scruggs, Texas Campaign for the Environment
There is an old joke about the man in a flooding house who prays for rescue. As the water rises, firefighters come by in a rowboat and offer to help him out. He says, “No, no, I’m waiting for God to rescue me.” A while later, the water is higher and a motorboat comes. He tells them, “No, no, I’m waiting for God to rescue me.” Finally, the water is up to his roof and a helicopter offers help. “No, no, I’m waiting for God to rescue me,” the man says. The water keeps rising however, and the man drowns.
In heaven now, the man asks God, “Why didn’t you rescue me?”
“What are you talking about?” God asks. “I sent two boats and a helicopter!”
This joke is not only appropriate in light of the historic rain and flooding we have seen in Houston lately, but in light of another man of prayer’s recent statements on a likely contributor to this exceptional weather: Pope Francis’ encyclical on climate change. The man in the joke thought his solution would come miraculously, but it came instead from conscientious neighbors working for the common good. Many Texans seem to believe that we will be magically delivered from the consequences we are already facing as a result of our unrestrained consumption and waste – record droughts, record floods and more violent tropical storms. In truth, it is the leadership of thousands of activists working in our community that offers real hope for our future.
Pope Francis’ encyclical is important, but it is only the latest statement from a faith leader urging action on climate change. Jewish, Muslim, Buddhist, Hindu and Protestant leaders – including the Southern Baptist Convention – have said that climate change is a moral issue, and failure to act to mitigate it is a moral failing. Somehow, however, Texas politicians – usually not too shy about mixing religion into their politics – have not gotten the message. Some climate change denialists with whom I have spoken in Austin have even suggested that God would not allow climate change to destroy our wasteful way of life!
The notion that God will bail us out of the consequences of our own bad decisions is not one taken seriously by any religion I am familiar with, and as a pastor’s daughter, I am confident that I never learned that one in Sunday school. Instead, the Bible and many scriptures from other faiths are full of stories of otherwise decent, even holy people making selfish decisions they repeatedly have been warned against and facing inevitable consequences as judgment. They can be forgiven, they can be healed, and they can repent and take instead a different path. But as long as they persist in their destructive behavior, there is a price to be paid.
Those of us working to build a more sustainable and just society across Texas are leading the way, however, to avert disaster and save lives. We are working to put Houston on a path to zero waste by advocating a long-term plan to expand recycling and composting programs all over the city. We are lobbying to defend our renewable energy portfolio standards. We are educating and protecting communities that live closest to polluting facilities. We need to be doing even more, and collaborating more. Some of needed changes may be uncomfortable, but doing the right thing often is. Many Texas politicians, however, would rather pretend as though the problem does not exist than make any changes necessary to address it.
Flooding and miraculous rescues, it turns out, are no joke. A climate warming out of control is one where floods, droughts, powerful storms and other costs to human life and civilization become increasingly unavoidable. We would do well to heed Pope Francis’ pleas, and be the people piloting the figurative rescue boats and helicopters, not those refusing help when we need it most.
Scruggs is Houston program director for Texas Campaign for the Environment.
HOUSTON – Folks upset with Walgreen’s about chemicals in its products are protesting at the corner of sad and toxic.
Not exactly, but in Houston protesters with the Texas Campaign for the Environment called for safer chemical policies outside the Walgreen’s at the corner of Westheimer and Weslayan.
“Independent chemical testing has shown that Walgreen’s products like school supplies and dog toys contain lead, and arsenic, formaldehyde, chemicals that we really shouldn’t be bringing into our homes with our children and pets,” said Melanie Scruggs.
Some dressed in hazmat suits and facemasks chanting their demands.
“These chemicals have got to go! Hey, hey, ho, ho! These chemicals have got to go,” they shouted from the sidewalk.
Walgreen’s does have a line of products called Ology, which is said to be free of harmful chemicals, and says they’re working with vendors to ensure the quality and safety of the products they offer for sale.
You know how the saying goes, what doesn’t kill you, makes you stronger.
Early voting began Dec. 2nd and runs through Dec. 8th for the City of Houston runoff election on Saturday, Dec. 12th. Voters will decide our next Mayor, four of five At-Large Council Members and three out of eleven district-specific Council members who are in the runoff. There are other races on the ballot as well.
Their passion and commitment to overcoming the tough challenges ahead made a deep impression on all of us. Another thing that struck us was the natural beauty of the Rio Grande Valley (especially if you, like our canvassers, enjoy braving the mosquitoes to camp in state parks) which is home to incredible bird and other wildlife diversity. There are over 500 species of birds in 
TCE Blog
Lane Lewis, Candidate for City Council At-Large #1
Tom McCasland, Candidate for City Council At-Large #1
Jenifer Pool, Candidate for City Council At-Large #1
Amanda Edwards, Candidate for City Council At-Large #4
Matt Murphy, Candidate for City Council At-Large #4
Laurie Robinson, Candidate for City Council At-Large #4
Jonathan Hansen, Candidate for City Council At-Large #4
The July 11 Composting Seminar was a major success! Entitled “Learn to Compost! Morning Seminar,” the information session was held at an eco-friendly store/restaurant called 
Esmesha Campbell is a staff writer for Fashion Bomb Daily, MPA Candidate through Texas Southern University in the Barbara Jordan-Mickey Leland School of Public Affairs, and summer intern at Texas Campaign for the Environment.
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