§ 189-69. Legislative intent.

This Legislature hereby finds and determines that the County of Suffolk purchases a wide variety of goods for use by County employees in discharging their duties, from office supplies to electronics, tools and construction materials, to name a few. This Legislature further finds and determines that because the County requires tremendous variety in the goods it utilizes, it contracts with a number of vendors to meet its many needs. This Legislature finds that the County also buys a large quantity of goods throughout the year, which requires vendors to package and send orders to each County department regularly. This Legislature determines that many types of packaging materials are comprised of plastic, styrofoam or other nonbiodegradable substances. This Legislature also finds that the County of Suffolk has been a leader in environmental protection for decades, preserving land and stemming pollution in County waters. This Legislature further finds that the County should take a leading role in ensuring that additional nonbiodegradable materials do not clog local landfills. This Legislature also determines that requiring County vendors in future purchasing contracts to use biodegradable packaging materials will substantially reduce the County's nonbiodegradable waste and provide regional leadership in protecting the environment of Long Island. Therefore, the purpose of this article is to require vendors of goods to the County to utilize biodegradable materials when shipping goods to the County.