Another Voice: Plastics Recycling Bill Needs To Include Specific Targets
By Jennifer Congdon | March 10, 2022 | Buffalo News
Gov. Kathy Hochul included a proposal for “extended producer responsibility for packaging and paper” in her state budget proposal, but unfortunately there are serious flaws that must be cured by the Legislature.
EPR is a policy that requires companies to pay for waste disposal and recycling of their products. One of the most successful EPR policies for packaging in New York is the “bottle bill” that requires bottlers to take back their bottles and cans based on a deposit system. EPR for packaging is gaining in popularity and could be part of the solution to our growing packaging waste and plastics crisis, but only if it is designed correctly.
In theory, shifting costs from taxpayers to the companies encourages companies to use less packaging and choose items that are more recyclable. But EPR will only achieve these outcomes if the legislation includes specific reduction requirements and standards for recyclability, recycled content and elimination of toxic substances.
We can learn from the European Union, which has had an EPR directive for years and has seen no reduction in packaging waste during that time. Recycling has improved, but EU countries are now adding specific waste reduction targets to their EPR systems.
The plastics and packaging producers see the writing on the wall – the public is demanding solutions to the ubiquitous problem of plastic pollution. In a recent global survey by the market research company IPSOS, 75% of respondents said they want single-use plastics banned.
The producers know they have a big problem, and are now trying to co-opt EPR by throwing their support behind weak bills and seizing an opportunity to look like they’re doing something without doing much of anything. Many of the bills backed by the industry, including the governor’s proposal, put the polluters in the driver's seat and ask them to self-regulate. Can you imagine asking the tobacco industry to solve the smoking problem? Or asking fossil fuel companies to solve climate change? It won’t work.