[The San Francisco Environment Commisssion
joins a growing list of cities, counties and public
bodies tired of paying for Coke's waste.
Some of the other resolution are posted on our
web site. For a Local Government Action Kit,
please contact GRRN. We will also
have kits available at the GRRN booth (#341)
at the NRC Congress in Cincinnati next week.]
COMMISSION ON THE ENVIRONMENT
CITY AND COUNTY OF SAN FRANCISCO
DRAFT Resolution No. 009-99-COE
September 21, 1999
CALLING ON COCA-COLA TO USE RECYCLED
PLASTIC IN ITS BOTTLES
WHEREAS, the City and County of San Francisco
has long promoted the use of reusable and
recycled products through its purchasing
practices, educational efforts, and policy
initiatives; and
WHEREAS, approximately 793,000 tons of solid
waste are currently being landfilled each year
by the community of San Francisco; and
WHEREAS, the cost of collecting and landfilling
those wastes are estimated at $100 million
annually; and
WHEREAS, the City and County of San Francisco
is charged with achieving the goals of
reducing, reusing and recycling 50% of all
solid waste by year 2000 and 75% by 2010; and,
WHEREAS, in 1989 the City and County of San
Francisco instituted residential curbside
collection and recycling of PET (polyethylene
terephthalate) plastic soda bottles; and,
WHEREAS, the City and County of San Francisco
recycles less than 2% of the 85 million pounds
of plastic used each year; and
WHEREAS, in 1992 plastics occupied more than
20% of landfill space nationwide, and that by
the year 2000 plastics will occupy more than a
quarter of landfill space nationwide; and
WHEREAS, in 1990 the Coca-Cola Company
voluntarily committed to using recycled PET in
their containers; and
WHEREAS, in 1995 the Coca-Cola Company reversed
itself and made the decision to stop using
recycled plastic bottles and consequently
increase its use of virgin, non-recycled PET
plastic, and moved away from the use of easily
recyclable glass, and aluminum for their
containers; and
WHEREAS, FDA-approved technology exists today
to incorporate recycled PET into new beverage
containers, and proven technology for
refillable plastic bottles also exists, and in
fact both of these processes are being done by
Coca-Cola itself in many countries throughout
the world; and
WHEREAS, the use of recycled PET in the
production of beverage containers would have an
enormous positive impact on the value of
recycled PET; now, therefore be it
RESOLVED, that the Commission on the
Environment urges the Board of Supervisors and
the Mayor of the City and County of San
Francisco to write a letter to the Coca-Cola
Company urging it to use recycled PET in their
bottles, thereby closing the recycling loop,
and thereby returning a measure of
profitability to the operations of our nation's
public and private recycling programs;
and, be it
FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Commission on the
Environment urges the Board of Supervisors and
the Mayor of the City and County of San
Francisco to call upon Coca-Cola to commit to
the introduction of refillable soda bottles
into the U.S. market, similar to those in use
by Coca-Cola in other countries, and to commit
to the sale of 5% of its packaged soft drinks
in such refillable containers in the U.S. by
year 2003; and, be it
FURTHER RESOLVED, that the Commission on the
Environment urges the Board of Supervisors and
the Mayor of the City and County of San
Francisco to work with Coca-Cola and with other
beverage manufacturers to successfully achieve
these goals.
I hereby verify that this resolution was
adopted by the Commission on the Environment at
its special regular meeting of September 21,
1999.
_______________________
Christopher Chow
Commission Secretary
VOTE:
Ayes: Commissioners Bingham, Bradford-Bell,
Evans, Hayes, and Shah.
Noes: None.
Absent: Commissioners Chang and Werbe.
COMMISSION ON THE ENVIRONMENT
Randall Hayes, President
Rebecca Evans
Shelley Bradford-Bell, Vice
The Rev. Sally G. Bingham
Robert K. Werbe
Patricia Chang
1540 Market Street, Suite 160
San Francisco, California 94102
Telephone (415) 554-6390
Fax (415) 554-6393
E-Mail: Environment@ ci.sf.ca.us
Web: www.ci.sf.ca.us/environment