New York Packaging Reduction Bill Faces Ticking Clock
Arlene Karidis | June 8, 2023 | Waste360
New York’s long-debated and many-times-revised Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act is the center focus again, with days left to move to the Senate and Assembly before the legislative session ends.
Formally known as A5322/S4246, the bill has several provisions:
Companies would have to halve single-use plastic and packaging incrementally over 12 years.
Producers would pay to collect and manage what they still produce once it’s spent, with the funds invested in New York’s recycling and reuse system.
Several toxic chemicals would be banned from packaging, including PFAS, phthalates, bisphenols, and heavy metals.
What is known as chemical recycling would not be recognized as recycling.
Proponents say the legislation would address an out-of-control waste problem while providing economic payoffs.
It would chip away at the roughly 6.8 million tons of packaging waste produced each year in New York—40 percent of the total waste stream. And it would save taxpayers an estimated $250 million per year, they contend.
“Our municipalities are drowning in waste, and it’s costing our taxpayers and municipalities hundreds of millions of dollars that can be better spent on teachers, on firefighters, on social workers,” said Senator Pete Harckham at a June 5 press conference. Harckham, who co-sponsored the bill with Assemblymember Deborah Glick, pointed out that the staggering amount of packaging and single-use plastic, along with the associated toxins, methane and carbon emissions created by “our whole waste system” are primary shared concerns among “dozens” of stakeholders he’s engaged with.
He outlined some topline changes in the updated legislation, intended to provide compromise and/or leeway.
One is a shift from multiple producer responsibility organizations to one initially. But to leave the door open for others later.
The bill also would now ensure protections for existing waste management contracts. “It’s not fair to penalize folks who’ve made significant investments based on their current contract,” Harckham said.
A third adjustment is around the definition of recycling. “We put in flexibility that allows the legislature to revisit [terms] every three years as the technology and materials change.”
Businesses can embrace this [legislation] and plan over time, said Judith Enck, president of Beyond Plastics and former Environmental Protection Agency administrator. She pointed out the decade-plus window provided to hit 50% packaging waste reduction and that producers would have until 2050 to ensure their packaging is 75 percent recyclable.
“This is a real problem with a real solution,” Enck said.
