Lybrand issues ‘last plea’ to cut trash collection

 

BY PRU SOWERS

KONK LIFE STAFF WRITER

 

David Lybrand, who resigned recently from the Sustainability Advisory Board in protest of Key West city commissioners’ switch to twice a week trash collection, used his last moments of public attention to plead with commissioners not to follow through on their vote.

 

Lybrand, one of the founding members of the Sustainability Advisory Board, was awarded a recognition proclamation at the beginning of last Tuesday’s City Commission meeting, commending him for six years spent “working diligently to make Key West a truly sustainable community,” according to the proclamation.

 

“Through David’s efforts, Key West was the first south Florida community to develop a climate action plan, which was unanimously adopted by the city commission. David also championed the hiring of a sustainability coordinator to implement the objectives of this plan,” the proclamation stated.

 

Commissioner Teri Johnston, who appointed Lybrand to the advisory board and who was the only commissioner to object to the $53 million contract awarded to Waste Management that doubles the current once a week residential trash collection schedule, then came down off the dais to present the proclamation personally.

 

“The people who volunteer for this community give hundreds of hours upon hours of tireless energy to make this community better. This gentleman certainly is an example of that,” she said.

 

Lybrand, who accused city commissioners of “cronyism” in his resignation letter, has criticized the trash collection contract because of the negative impact he believes the return to twice a week trash collection will have on the city’s recycling rate. Last summer city commissioners cut residential collection to once a week in an effort to boost recycling efforts. Within one month, the residential recycling rate tripled from 7 percent to 22 percent. The entire state of Florida is under a mandate to increase town-wide recycling rates to 75 percent by 2020.

 

“I just want to make it clear we’ve got to not go back to two days a week pick-up,” Lybrand said in a brief comment after receiving the commendation. “That is a big step backwards.”

 

Other than Johnston, no other commissioner joined Lybrand on the floor for a photo of him receiving the proclamation. Immediately afterwards, however, the remaining commissioners left the dais to stand with the 2014 Key West High School baseball team for a commemorative photo of team members receiving a commendation for their winning season.

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