The Raleigh City Council met today and agreed to send the current ordinance banning the new installation and replacements of garbage disposers to a committee for further review. At this point, the ban is not a done deal.

Jerry Ryder, president of In-Sink-Erator, first addressed the council and stated that research by both his company and by many skeptical municipalities has shown no statistical correlation between sewer line fats/oils/grease (FOG) and disposer use. He also stated that he knows of no other municipalities that ban disposers.

During the meeting Mayor Meeker thankfully clarified the $25,000 fine rumor by stating that this fine is “our standard fine for doing something horrible like putting radioactive waste in the sewer.” The city manager responded by saying that a violation of the ordinance will be treated as a violation and (non-specific) fines would follow for non-compliance.

Here is a rundown of some of the councilors’ points:

• Councilor Isley stated that Raleigh is becoming a city of “you can’t do this, you can’t
  do that.” He also questioned the health of our aging sewer system and cited that of the 48 sewer accidents last year, only a quarter of them came from residential-only sewer lines.
• Councilor West publicly stated support of the motion to committee.
• Councilor Crowder stated that this ban is the only logical next step toward healthy water. He then presented Councilor Isley with a composting kit. (He did not address that fats are not appropriate in composting operations)
• Councilor McFarlane addressed the failure of communication of the ordinance to affected nearby municipalities.
• Councilor Baldwin stated that during the original discussion, which only lasted 4:10, she had a “gut feeling” that they were moving too hastily. She now confirms her feelings and wants further review along with better education about using the system.
• Councilor Koopman stated that “we are at war” with soldiers living in less than ideal conditions and it is “our duty” to “suck it up once in a while”. (Koopman defeated Jesse Taliaferro in the recent election.)

A speaker from the NC Division of Water Quality Dean Naujoks, of the Neuse River Foundation, spoke of the need for better water quality and the health problems caused by sewage spills. While he offered no evidence linking garbage disposers to fat/oil/grease accumulation in sewers, he did remind the council of the dangers to old people, women, and children. He then added:

You know, when we say that we’re opposed to bans on garbage disposals I think what people are really saying, maybe they don’t understand it, but what they’re really saying is that they are comfortable with fish kills, algae blooms, pollution in our drinking water supplies closing our shellfish grounds, and that it’s OK for millions of people to get sick every single year.