Concerns over contaminated PPE littering are prompting the city to actively confront the issue.

By Alberto Gilman

The Somerville City Council gathered Thursday, May 14 for their regular weekly meeting. All 11 members were in attendance remotely.

On the agenda for the night, item eight of 46, ordered by City Councilor At-Large Kristen Strezo, was discussed due to health concerns for Somerville residents.

The order calls for the creation of citywide posted signage to remind residents of the penalties and public health risks associated with COVID-19. There has been a reported increase of littered used masks, gloves and wipes. The Department of Communications would take charge in its formation.

According to Strezo, residents have reported the increase in litter. She personally has counted five to ten instances of personal protective equipment litter around the city. Typically, on walkways and public areas.

No fine enforcement is being pushed for but the increase of litter is a cause for concern.

“The PPE gloves can be bright colors like yellow or purple,” Strezo said. “Some parents and grandparents I’ve heard from are afraid that the children are going to pick up the gloves and think it’s a balloon, putting the discarded gloves into their mouths.”

Strezo added that the litter poses a threat to city employees who conduct cleaning and disposing of this material. Furthermore, the risk of spreading can be increased if materials not collected prior to rain forecasts drain into the city water system.

Ward 4 Counselor Jesse Clingan offered additional comments on Strezo’s order. “I did put an order in last week asking the DPW to put designated receptacles out,” Clingan said. His hope is that this order can encourage more diligence in disposing of these materials.

Commenting further, Strezo added that discussing with the DPW that most of these materials discarded can be mostly discovered around grocery stores and parking lots.

Councilor At-Large William A. White Jr. added that communication can be sent out to shopping locations to install or highlight receptacles to help resolve this issue.

In the city of Somerville there are 20 main food retailer locations for residents. 20 parks and recreation locations are also located in the area. These do not include outside and secondary distributors and areas of recreation, both in Somerville and the surrounding areas of residence.

According to Council President Matt McLaughlin, 17 people in the city of Somerville have died from the disease since the initial outbreak of COVID-19.

The item was approved and referred to the Public Health and Public Safety Committee with Ward 4 Councilor Katjana Ballantyne signing on to the order.