CITY OF TALLAHASSEE
CITY COMMISSION AGENDA ITEM
ACTION REQUESTED ON: May 13, 2009
SUBJECT/TITLE: Litter Control Program
TARGET ISSUE: Environmental Policy and Energy Resources

STATEMENT OF ISSUE

The City of Tallahassee is known for its strong environmental stewardship and preservation of the community’s abundant natural resources. The increasing presence of litter on City streets and right-of-ways detracts from the beauty of the City and encroaches upon the environment. Uncollected litter flows into stormwater drainage systems, streams, and lakes. Litter can become a breeding ground for disease-causing insects and rodents and it can trap, poison, and choke animals. Research also shows that uncollected litter attracts more litter. The City Manager’s 2009 Resolutions include a goal to eradicate litter and reduce costs associated with litter abatement. These objectives can be addressed through ordinance changes/anti-litter programs. Initially, staff recommends focus on the implementation of programs that heighten awareness and educate the community on the existing litter laws, policies, and impacts of litter.
Florida Litter Law (§403.413, Fla.Stat.) and the Loads on Vehicles Law (§316.520, Fla.Stat.) provide regulatory and enforcement authorities to address the areas of focus. The State law is intended to establish minimum requirements and does not limit the authority of any state or local agency to enforce other laws, rules, or ordinances relating to litter or solid waste management. Should the awareness and education programs or current enforcement efforts fail to achieve the expected litter reduction targets, anti-littering efforts can be further strengthened through the development of an ordinance and increased fines. The purpose of this item is to provide the City Commission an overview of the proposed Litter Control Program. The goal of the program is to implement a long-term litter reduction strategy through increased education, heightened awareness, community involvement, and personal responsibility.

The Litter Control Program seeks broad involvement by collaborating with Leon County, Leon County Schools, local businesses, and Keep Tallahassee-Leon County Beautiful. The program brings accountability for education, awareness, and anti-litter procedures by assigning program oversight responsibilities to the Director of Environmental Policy and Energy Resources (EPER). Program effectiveness will be measured through key metrics and results frequently reported to the City Commission, City Manager and Executive Team for consideration.

RECOMMENDED ACTION

No action required at this time. This item is intended to generate discussion and receive feedback. The proposed Litter Control Program will be implemented with regular updates on program progress made to the City Commission, City Manager and the Executive Team.

FISCAL IMPACT

None. The recommended program will be completed within the existing budget and through the use of existing operating expenditures.

Cynthia S. Barber, Director, Environmental Policy & Energy Resources

Anita Favors Thompson, City Manager

For information, please contact: Ms. Cynthia S. Barber, Director – Environmental Policy and Energy Resources at 891-2476.

SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIAL/ISSUE ANALYSIS
HISTORY/FACTS

The City of Tallahassee is known for its strong environmental stewardship and preservation of the community’s abundant natural resources. The increasing presence of litter on City streets and right-of-ways detracts from the beauty of the City and encroaches upon the environment. The City Manager’s 2009 Resolutions include a goal to eradicate litter and reduce costs associated with litter abatement. Staff has developed the Litter Control Program to address three primary areas that contribute to litter in City streets and right-of-ways:

1. Motorists and pedestrians intentional and unintentional disposal of trash
2. Vehicles illegally transporting trash, garbage, and other items without tarpaulins (tarps) or improperly tarped
3. Overstuffed household garbage cans

Existing Florida Laws provide enforcement authority to address litter violations. Florida Litter Law (§403.413, Fla.Stat.) defines litter, identifies the penalties, identifies the illegal types of littering/dumping, and authorizes the local government to train and qualify those who enforce the provisions. The State law is intended to establish minimum requirements and does not limit the authority of any state or local agency to enforce other laws, rules, or ordinances relating to litter or solid waste management.

In summary, the Florida Litter Law states that unless otherwise authorized by law or permit, it is unlawful for any person to dump litter in any manner or amount. Examples of litter include garbage, rubbish, cans, bottles, containers, paper, tobacco products, tires, appliances, mechanical equipment or parts, building or construction materials, motor vehicle or motor vehicle parts, etc. The fine for violators of the Florida Litter Law is a $50 penalty per violation. The Florida Litter Law is attached as a reference.

Loads on vehicles (§316.520, Fla.Stat.) addresses litter originating from vehicles and requires tarpauline requirements for vehicles hauling waste. (1) A vehicle may not be driven or moved on any highway unless the vehicle is so constructed or loaded as to prevent any of its load from dropping, shifting, leaking, blowing, or otherwise escaping from, except that sand may be dropped only for the purpose of securing traction or water or other substance may be sprinkled on a roadway in cleaning or maintaining the roadway.
(2) It is the duty of every owner and driver, severally, of any vehicle hauling, upon any public road or highway open to the public, dirt, sand, lime rock, gravel, silica, or other similar aggregate or trash, garbage, any inanimate object or objects, or any similar material that could fall or blow from such vehicle, to prevent such materials from falling, blowing, or in any way escaping from such vehicle. Covering and securing the load with a close-fitting tarpaulin or other appropriate cover or a load securing device meeting the requirements of 49 C.F.R. s. 393.100 or a device designed to reasonably ensure that cargo will not shift upon or fall from the vehicle is required and shall constitute compliance with this section.

Litter in the Tallahassee area impacts many aspects of the community, including public health and safety, environmental and wildlife protection, commerce, and the City’s image and budgets. Some specific examples are:

• Stormwater and Wastewater systems impacts:
  • During FY 2007 and 2008 the City spent an average of $325,000 annually on street sweeping to help control litter impacts on the stormwater system.
  • During the storms that occurred in Tallahassee March 27 to April 3 litter accumulated in sewer pump stations and contributed to blockages and sewer overflows.
• City of Tallahassee quality of life impacts:
  • Research suggests that litter - intentional or unintentional pollution resulting from consumer waste products being carelessly handled or improperly disposed - attracts more litter. A clean community, by contrast, discourages littering and raises local living standards and quality of life.
  • Litter detracts from the appearance of the community, and can impact economic development and tourism.
• Litter abatement can be labor intensive and costly:

Multiple City departments are involved in the abatement of litter. The following sections provides an overview of current City departmental responsibilities related to litter:

PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT

Street Sweeping Program – includes sweeping of City streets and parking lots to help prevent debris from entering the City’s stormwater system and to maintain compliance with the City’s National Pollutant Discharge Elimination Systems permit. During FY 2008 Streets and Drainage (S&D) swept over 5,000 curb miles at a cost of $312,116.

Adopt-a-Street Program – currently addresses approximately 82 street segments (of 95 available) that are adopted by local groups/businesses. Four of these segments are actively maintained for litter control. S&D staff does not actively pursue/manage participation by the individual groups due to staffing and time limitations. S&D estimates that approximately 20 - 25 hours/month would be required to actively administrate the program.

Right-of-Way (ROW) – Maintenance performs litter control, maintenance and mowing on 10,662 acres of ROW along major roads (such as Canopy Roads and major thoroughfares) and in neighborhoods (by request). FY2008 costs totaled $982,000, which represents a blended cost of several activities required to maintain a right-of-way: mowing and litter operations, blind corner clearing, special events, special requests for service, brush trimming along the edge of the right-of-way, and sidewalk and curb edging (costs for specific activities can not be separated out).

The Public Works Department will benefit from a litter control program that will improve education about litter, reduce instances of litter, identify new partners for reducing litter, and formalize the Adopt-a-Street procedures with a full-time management plan.

POLICE DEPARTMENT

The City of Tallahassee Police Department enforces the Florida Litter Law and has issued anywhere from 12 to 22 moving violations, per year, in fiscal year 2004 to fiscal year 2008. In FY2004-08, over 75% of these annual violations were related to Florida’s Tarp Law. The Police Department will benefit from a litter program that will improve education about litter, reduce instances of litter, and define responsibility of the community so that determinations of intent are supportable and enforceable. Increased enforcement of litter violations could impact the department’s workload.

PARKS, RECREATION & NEIGHBORHOOD AFFAIRS

Department of Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Affairs (PRNA): PRNA will assist in organizing a neighborhood cleanup and will provide garbage bags and pickup sticks as requested. Any city registered Neighborhood Association can participate in this program as long as there are at least 10 volunteers that will participate in the cleanup. Neighborhood Services staff will coordinate with City's Solid Waste Services staff, who will grant one amnesty day annually for a neighborhood clean up, picking up all types of items normally excluded from collection, including white goods (major appliances), old tires, etc. All items placed on the right-of-way will be picked up during the neighborhood cleanup.

PRNA also has a program with Keep Tallahassee-Leon County Beautiful (KTLCB). When a group contacts KTLCB to request a clean-up project, KTLCB contacts the Volunteers in the Parks program to determine an appropriate park assignment for clean-up activities. PRNS has also recently launched an “Adopt-a-Park” program that documents a long-running unofficial program with neighborhood and homeowners association.

Lastly, within PRNA, Code Enforcement Officers inspect property issues that affect our environment, health, safety, and property values to enhance the quality of life of citizens. They respond to complaints, and issue notices to allow corrections to be made within 30 days of notice, and finally, citations for violations of minor/major health/safety violations. This may include litter, illegal dumps, etc.

The PRNA will benefit from a litter program that will improve education about litter and reduce instances of litter.

ISSUES AND PROGRAM RECOMMENDATIONS

Keep America Beautiful, Inc. is the nation's largest volunteer-based community action and education organization. With a network of nearly 1,000 affiliate and participating organizations, KAB forms public-private partnerships and programs that engage individuals to take greater responsibility for improving their community's environment through litter reduction, waste reduction/recycling, and beautification. According to Keep America Beautiful, there are four primary reasons that people litter:

• No sense of ownership, even though areas such as parks and beaches are public property
• Believe someone else has responsibility or will pick up after them
• Already accumulated litter tends to establish that litter is tolerated in the area
• Littering is convenient

Staff believes that each of these areas can be mitigated with a program that includes effective education, heightened awareness, and continued enforcement. The objectives of the Litter Control Program proposed here are: to meet or surpass State of Florida requirements, to help minimize future increases in solid waste collection fees, to avoid possible litter control fees, and to promote the importance of a clean community to the public through outreach and education. Therefore, EPER is proposing a Litter Control Program with the following elements:

TARP IT UP – The City will partner with Leon County Solid Waste to educate drivers on the need to use tarps or truck covers for loads brought to the landfill and rural waste collection centers. The program will communicate a consistent message, certified letters will be delivered to local commercial truck companies, and signage will be established at waste collection centers to explain state law.

YOUR NAME GOT DROPPED – The City will collaborate with Leon County, Leon County Schools and local businesses to focus on the elimination of litter originating from fast food restaurants, convenience stores, bars/nightclubs, corner stores, and similar establishments. Goals include: developing an active partnership with merchants to market the litter control program; creating partnerships with merchants to sponsor curbside clean-ups in the vicinity of their establishments; implementing a schedule of litter-focused events throughout the year in conjunction with environmentally focused events such as Earth Day; and working with the Mary Brogan Museum to develop a creative and interactive exhibit related to litter/waste (i.e. impact of individual actions; waste to energy; etc.).

BUSINESSES/GENERAL PUBLIC – The program will include education and community involvement components to increase signage notifying the public that littering is illegal and the penalty for violations, and to educate retailers and the public regarding source reduction and packaging options. The focus will be on source reduction as well as litter abatement/clean-ups. Participating establishments will display signage to indicate support/participation in the program and co-sponsor educational and awareness initiatives.

SCHOOLS – The program will partner with school “Green Teams” to develop an intense education program for informing students of the impact of litter on the environment, to create community responsibility and pride among students encouraging taking care of the areas near their schools and the restaurants and merchants that they frequent, and to develop and implement in-school environmental awareness programs targeted at students at the elementary, middle and high school levels. The details of student age characteristics and educational activities are in the attached document

COMMUNITY FORUMS – The primary outreach component of Your Name Got Dropped will be City and partner led community meetings that will target businesses, schools and the public in specific locations, for example at major intersections where litter is a problem. Working with the Chamber of Commerce, EPER staff will choose an intersection and coordinate with nearby schools, neighborhood associations, chain and locally owned businesses, and area merchant associations to conduct litter education events.

PAPER OR PLASTIC – I’LL TAKE NEITHER! – This program element creates partnerships with businesses to encourage the use of reusable shopping bags and discourage bagging single items or small purchase that can be carried without the use of a bag. The Downtown Market has been used as a pilot to test the receptiveness to reusable bags through bag provision, agreements to track usage, and follow up surveys to evaluate frequency of use and avoided plastic bag use. The reduced use of plastic bags will translate to less plastic bag litter.

ONE IS GREATER THAN 100 – This program element creates partnerships with businesses to encourage the use of reusable cups and mugs. The Downtown luncheon businesses will be used as a pilot to test the receptiveness to reusable cups/mugs through container provision, agreements to track usage, and follow up surveys to evaluate frequency of use and avoided disposable drink cups/mugs. The reduced use of disposable drink cups/mugs will translate to less litter.

DON’T OVERSTUFF – This program element works on internal training of Solid Waste and Code Enforcement to identify, track, and follow up with businesses and residences that on a recurring basis have containers that are not sufficient for the amount of garbage generated. Garbage that is blown or escapes during roll-off creates unsightly areas and additional work crew time that can be corrected once identified. Right-sizing containers, evaluating frequency of pick up, expanding recycling opportunities are all tools in the toolbox for Don’t Overstuff.

INTERNAL CITY EDUCATION – This program element works on internal training with law enforcement to enhance education and awareness for implementation and increased enforcement of existing state provisions.

ADOPT-A-STREET ADMINISTRATION – EPER recommends formalizing a partnership with Keep Tallahassee Leon County Beautiful (KTLCB) to coordinate the City’s Adopt-a-Street program. Currently there are approximately 82 street segments (of 95 available) that are adopted by local groups/businesses but only 4 segments are adequately maintained for litter control. During these economic times, staffing and time limitations have become an issue, and the City estimates that approximately 20 - 25 hours/month is required to actively administrate the program.

The City of Tallahassee, through an inter-local agreement, will continue to provide signage, supplies for volunteer organizations, and offer financial support to KTLCB to administer the Adopt-a-Street program. KTLCB will be supporting the City by preventing debris from entering the City’s stormwater and wastewater system, which will help maintain compliance with the City’s NPDES permit and will improve the effectiveness of ROW mowing activities.

CHARITABLE CONTRIBUTIONS

N/A

OPTIONS

No action required at this time. This item is intended to generate discussion and receive feedback. The proposed Litter Control Program will be implemented with regular updates on program progress made to the City Commission, City Manager and the Executive Team.

ATTACHMENTS/REFERENCES

Attachment I – Florida Litter Law (§403.413, Fla.Stat.)
Attachment II – Loads on Vehicles Law (§316.520, Fla. Stat.)
Attachment III – Litter Control Program Overview Document
Attachment IV – School Age Characteristics and Educational Activities