State Sen. Jason Barickman | senatorbarickman.com
State Sen. Jason Barickman | senatorbarickman.com
State Sen. Jason Barickman (R-Bloomington) recently questioned a bill that would treat compostable foodware from the state fair differently than as if it were disposed of through standard curbside residential pickup.
Barickman questioned the bill during a debate on the Senate floor on Feb. 25.
"The concern here is that if compostable foodware is sent to a landfill it will not degrade as intended," Barickman said. "The definition of recyclable foodware has a standard of what is commonly accepted in the local curbside residential pickup. Why that definition?"
State Sen. Julie Morrison (D-Highwood) answered that the definition was the standard that all recyclers already use.
Barickman also questioned why foodware from the state fair was exempt from the definition.
"This was at the request of the Dept. of Agriculture," Morrison answered. "They felt that this would be too onerous of a burden for some of the smaller vendors that come in for just once a year to sell their food. Hopefully, this is something we will be able to add next year, but I think it’s important to start small and chip away at the bigger issue."
Barickman seemed to disagree with the classification.
"The state fair is an extension of the state and it seems like you’re telling the industries to do yourself what you think the state should do," Barickman said. "Why the discrepancy?"
"This is permissive," Morrison answered. "This gives a five percent preference. This does not have a mandate for these other agencies. But when we are looking at open lands, looking at our natural parks, I think it’s incumbent on us to actually practice what we preach and not continue to provide littering materials."
Barickman encouraged his fellow Senators to vote no on the legislation.
The bill passed the Senate with 32 Yes votes and 13 No votes. The 13 senators who did not vote on the bill included both Republicans and Democrats.
The bill had several Senate committee and floor amendments while it was in the Senate. It now goes to the House for a vote.
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