‘Skip the Stuff’ coming to Wellesley Town Meeting

Given the widespread support across town for the “Skip the Stuff” initiative coming to Wellesley Annual Town Meeting next month, the town’s legislative body could almost “Skip the Vote.” This effort to do away with restaurants automatically giving customers single-use plastic utensils and condiment packages with take-out and delivery orders should be approved in a landslide.

For the sake of legality, Article 35 will go through the usual Town Meeting process, with sponsorship in this case by the Climate Action Committee, Select Board, and Board of Health.

The Advisory Committee, an appointed body that vets articles ahead of Town Meeting, also voted a favorable recommendation for the article, by a 13-0 count (with one recusal), at its March 5 meeting (see Wellesley Media recording for a brief discussion and vote at the 2-hour, 18-minute mark). Advisory’s Shawn Baker said at that meeting: “I thought the data that they provided was quite compelling to all of us, just how much waste is created by [single-use serviceware and condiment packets).” Among the big numbers shared: 58 million Americans order take-out each week and 561 billion disposable food items are used in the United States yearly, with few of them recycled and much of them not even recyclable.

We first caught wind of Wellesley’s “Skip the Stuff” campaign back as October, when it was mentioned at a Board of Health meeting. We’ve since seen the proponents behind the effort make seemingly countless presentations before town boards and committees (See them sway the Select Board on Dec. 3! Catch them captivate the Board of Health on Nov. 17! Watch them wow Advisory on Jan. 8!).

Earlier this month, I sat down with the grassroots Sustainable Wellesley group’s Lisa Gieger and Philippa Biggers to learn more about how the “Skip the Stuff” campaign started, where it stands, and what might be next.

They were encouraged in part to start pursuing this change in Wellesley by the Charles River Regional Chamber, and by Newton’s lead in passing a broad sustainability ordinance in 2023 that took effect in March of last year. The Newton ordinance passed by its City Council reads in part: “Food establishments are not allowed to automatically provide single use accessories (including in takeout orders) whether orders are placed online, via phone, or in person. Single use accessories may be provided only upon request of the consumer. Single use accessories may not be prepackaged in sets. Food establishments may have single use accessories available at self-service stations.”

A growing list of municipalities, states, and countries have adopted variations on such rules.

Gieger and Biggers said that getting town bodies to bring the article to Town Meeting, rather than going the citizen petition route, has helped to strengthen their case.

The motion under Wellesley’s Article 35, which would amend Article 34 of the Town’s General Bylaw, is lengthy. But the purpose is summed up succinctly enough: “The purpose of this Bylaw is to reduce single-use service ware and single-serving packaged condiments. For the health and welfare of our community and in accordance with the sustainability goals of Wellesley’s Climate Action Plan, this bylaw serves a public purpose to minimize the impact of single-use items on the environment by advancing solid waste reduction and reducing the carbon footprint of Wellesley’s businesses and residents.” If passed, the bylaw change would go into effect on Jan. 1.

Biggers initially raised the idea with Gieger last summer, and found a willing leader in that Gieger was already interested in working on the larger health issues related to plastics and microplastics. “I said I’ll help you with that Philippa,” Gieger said, with Biggers adding: “And now I help her!”

They say they truly didn’t know what they were getting into, but found their way after meeting later in the summer with Wellesley Sustainability Director Marybeth Martello, who was enthusiastic about “Skip the Stuff” as a fit with the town’s broader Climate Action Plan. She encouraged them to try to get buy-in from department leaders across town, including those organizations within the 3R (reduce, reuse, recycle) Working Group in town consisting of the Department of Public Works, Natural Resources Commission, and Climate Action Committee.

Biggers said they got buy-in immediately, and that made the possibility of bringing an article to Annual Town Meeting feasible even with a relatively short lead up. They’ve also received positive feedback from restaurants they’ve visited in Wellesley Square and Linden Square, as those businesses stand to save money by not handing out utensils and condiments willy-nilly. Smith & Wollensky told them that they don’t give out any plastic—after all, who’s going to bring part of a steak home and use a plastic knife on it?

What’s more, the major online ordering systems already have an option in their apps that makes it easy for restaurants to require opt in, and for patrons to choose if they want the stuff.

We reached out to a handful of restaurants ourselves to ask about “Skip the Stuff,” and did find that most are already doing this. Guy Neil, general manager at Alta Strada in Wellesley Square, said take-out cranked up during the pandemic and has remained popular. “In those last 5 years we have not included plasticware in any takeout orders. In addition to not including utensils, we very rarely get a request for them, We have probably only ordered a box of backups once in the last 5 years,” he said, noting that if the restaurant were open for lunch things might be different. Altra Strada also reduces waste by only giving customers a bag for leftover containers if they ask for one.

The goal of proponents is to help educate the public and encourage change at restaurants not already skipping the stuff, just as has happened with other behaviors, from using seatbelts to bringing reusable bags to the grocery store. “It’s just to get people to stop and think, ‘Do I actually need that? I’m going home…,'” said Gieger, who added that whenever she orders sushi via takeout she goes home and uses her own nicer wooden chopsticks and her own, better soy sauce.

Biggers said she wants it feel normal for people to bring a container from home with them when going out to eat so they can take any leftovers back in that. “I think we both feel ‘reuse’ is in the long haul better than trying to figure out how to recycle all these plastics… there are so many chemicals involved,” she said.

Film screening & discussion—Plastic People: The Hidden Crisis of Microplastics (March 27 in Needham)

While the bylaw change will bring possible fines, starting at $50, restaurants will get three warnings first. Neither the Health Department, which would enforce the rules, nor the proponents are looking for this to be a punitive change. The plan is to work with the restaurants and local retail organizations to support a smooth transition.

“Skip the Stuff,” along with bag bans and other actions taken to reduce plastic use, is just a start, said Biggers. They’d like to work on getting rid of styrofoam in town, for example, but it could make more sense to see if the state takes action rather than going the local bylaw route. That would be more efficient.

Both Biggers and Gieger have been educating themselves on all things plastic over the past year, including by taking a course at Bennington College led by a woman who started an outfit called Beyond Plastics.

As they go forward with “Skip the Stuff” and other such initiatives they’re hoping the general public will be just as enthusiastic to learn about ways to reduce waste and improve their health.