Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Encinitas goes beyond plastic straw ban

New rules allow only reusable or compostable cups, plates, bowls, trays, take-out boxes, stir sticks, lid plugs, and utensils

Encinitas Chick-fil-A. Expect only paper, wood, sugar-cane, or bamboo
Encinitas Chick-fil-A. Expect only paper, wood, sugar-cane, or bamboo

For every ten pieces of trash collected in 2023, eight were plastic, according to a report for this year's countywide volunteer beach and park cleanups sponsored by the San Diego chapters of Surfrider and Coastkeeper.

To tackle the scourge, Encinitas is taking steps to require restaurants and retailers to provide only compostable or reusable foodware.

The city's environmental commission last week proposed an amendment to strengthen the city's plastic ordinance passed in 2020, which bans the use and distribution of disposable styrofoam foodware and plastic straws. The current ordinance allows other single-use plastic items (knives, forks, plates) commonly used by food providers throughout the city.

From Surfrider and Coastkeeper



If the city council approves the changes, restaurants will have to transition to new materials for their cups, plates, bowls, trays, take-out boxes, stir sticks, lid plugs, straws, and utensils. For dine-in providers, only reusable foodware is allowed, with exceptions for single-use compostable straws, paper napkins, foil liners, and paper trays. Customers can bring their own reusable containers.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Take-out food providers won't be able to use traditional, recyclable or compostable plastic. Only natural fiber-based compostable materials such as paper, wood, sugar-cane or bamboo are allowed, as well as aluminum containers and foil.

As with the city's styrofoam ban, retailers will also have to make the switch. Foodware items for sale that don't contain food must be made of natural fiber-based compostable materials or aluminum — no traditional, compostable, or recyclable plastic.

The proposal will include outreach to city businesses to get feedback on products and the cost to restaurants and retailers. Commissioners said there's a confusing array of materials on the market, but more truly compostable and plastic-free products are becoming available

A staff report notes that when California's AB201, "The Better Composting Standards Act," takes effect, it will provide a legal definition for labeling items compostable. Until Jan 1, 2026, fiber-based compostable foodware must be certified by the Biodegradable Products Institute. After that, such items must have a “compostable” label as defined by AB 1201.

Several cities, including Carlsbad, require that foodware items must meet what the current waste hauler is capable of composting, and have a legal definition of the term “compostable."

Encinitas' waste hauler, EDCO, supports the proposal to divert more waste from the landfill and turn it into compost in their anaerobic digester.

"We need to get the plastics out because they're everywhere," said EDCO general manager Jim Ambroso. The change is a step in the right direction, but he acknowledged it will be a huge challenge, ensuring the ubiquitous material doesn't wind up in the wrong bin. "In the end we're still the ones who are going to get all this, and we'll still have to sort it out for awhile," he said. 

"Until everybody's doing it, and we get nothing but non-plastic materials being put in the green containers, we've still got a job to do."

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Trophy truck crushes four at Baja 1000

"Two other racers on quads died too,"
Encinitas Chick-fil-A. Expect only paper, wood, sugar-cane, or bamboo
Encinitas Chick-fil-A. Expect only paper, wood, sugar-cane, or bamboo

For every ten pieces of trash collected in 2023, eight were plastic, according to a report for this year's countywide volunteer beach and park cleanups sponsored by the San Diego chapters of Surfrider and Coastkeeper.

To tackle the scourge, Encinitas is taking steps to require restaurants and retailers to provide only compostable or reusable foodware.

The city's environmental commission last week proposed an amendment to strengthen the city's plastic ordinance passed in 2020, which bans the use and distribution of disposable styrofoam foodware and plastic straws. The current ordinance allows other single-use plastic items (knives, forks, plates) commonly used by food providers throughout the city.

From Surfrider and Coastkeeper



If the city council approves the changes, restaurants will have to transition to new materials for their cups, plates, bowls, trays, take-out boxes, stir sticks, lid plugs, straws, and utensils. For dine-in providers, only reusable foodware is allowed, with exceptions for single-use compostable straws, paper napkins, foil liners, and paper trays. Customers can bring their own reusable containers.

Sponsored
Sponsored

Take-out food providers won't be able to use traditional, recyclable or compostable plastic. Only natural fiber-based compostable materials such as paper, wood, sugar-cane or bamboo are allowed, as well as aluminum containers and foil.

As with the city's styrofoam ban, retailers will also have to make the switch. Foodware items for sale that don't contain food must be made of natural fiber-based compostable materials or aluminum — no traditional, compostable, or recyclable plastic.

The proposal will include outreach to city businesses to get feedback on products and the cost to restaurants and retailers. Commissioners said there's a confusing array of materials on the market, but more truly compostable and plastic-free products are becoming available

A staff report notes that when California's AB201, "The Better Composting Standards Act," takes effect, it will provide a legal definition for labeling items compostable. Until Jan 1, 2026, fiber-based compostable foodware must be certified by the Biodegradable Products Institute. After that, such items must have a “compostable” label as defined by AB 1201.

Several cities, including Carlsbad, require that foodware items must meet what the current waste hauler is capable of composting, and have a legal definition of the term “compostable."

Encinitas' waste hauler, EDCO, supports the proposal to divert more waste from the landfill and turn it into compost in their anaerobic digester.

"We need to get the plastics out because they're everywhere," said EDCO general manager Jim Ambroso. The change is a step in the right direction, but he acknowledged it will be a huge challenge, ensuring the ubiquitous material doesn't wind up in the wrong bin. "In the end we're still the ones who are going to get all this, and we'll still have to sort it out for awhile," he said. 

"Until everybody's doing it, and we get nothing but non-plastic materials being put in the green containers, we've still got a job to do."

Comments
Sponsored

The latest copy of the Reader

Please enjoy this clickable Reader flipbook. Linked text and ads are flash-highlighted in blue for your convenience. To enhance your viewing, please open full screen mode by clicking the icon on the far right of the black flipbook toolbar.

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Southern California Asks: 'What Is Vinivia?' Meet the New Creator-First Livestreaming App

Next Article

NORTH COUNTY’S BEST PERSONAL TRAINER: NICOLE HANSULT HELPING YOU FEEL STRONG, CONFIDENT, AND VIBRANT AT ANY AGE

Comments
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

This Week’s Reader This Week’s Reader