Westchester To Restrict Giving Out Single-Use Utensils, Condiments

WHITE PLAINS, NY — The Westchester County Board of Legislators passed, and the county executive signed, a law aimed at reducing the amount of plastics in the county’s garbage.

The new measure was signed into law Tuesday after being passed unanimously the day before.

The law states that no food service establishment shall give out single-use utensils or condiment packets to any customer unless they specifically request them.

Also, single-use plastic beverage stirrers or “splash sticks” are no longer permitted.

Lastly, when requested, single-use food-ware items or condiment packets must be provided individually and not in a package containing multiple items.

Westchester County Executive George Latimer said that the county is reducing what is being put into the waste stream.

“Through common-sense measures like this, or the myriad of programs undertaken by our county’s department of Environmental Facilities, Westchester Count is leading the way on reducing waste, and I am proud to sign this measure into law,” he said.

Legislator Erika Pierce, one of the main sponsors of the legislation, said it’s a common-sense law that will reduce waste and save our local businesses money, all while providing customers with what they need.

The single-use items “add to the plastic pollution crisis, litter our neighborhoods, rivers and ocean, add to overflowing landfills and fee incinerators,” she said.

“Local businesses pay for them; we pay to dispose of them,” Pierce said, “and those who live near the areas where they have been disposed of pay again.”

County officials said Westchester is increasing recycling and reducing waste. Revenue from the sale of recyclables totaled more than $7 million, which is an increase of more than 95 percent from 2020.

Over the past 20 years, the amount of residential solid waste disposed in Refuse Disposal District No. 1 in Westchester decreased by 21 percent, according to a county spokesperson.

After peaking at 495,659 tons in 2003, the amount of residential trash was reduced to 390,243 tons in 2021, a reduction of 105,416 tons.

Over the same period, Westchester’s population grew by about 6.8 percent, adding more than 64,000 residents. During that time span, the county consistently posted an annual recycling rate of at least 50 percent, far outpacing the national average of 32 percent.