Legislative Mandates to Shift Responsibility for End-of-Life Product Disposal
Legislators from nine states announced on February 1 that they would work together to introduce Extended Product Responsibility (EPR) packaging bills in their states (or similar legislation). EPR shifts responsibility for end-of-life product disposal from municipalities and consumers to manufacturers and brand owners. It alters economic incentives by legislative mandate to motivate industry financially to minimize (or ideally design) waste out of the system. It is seen as a tool in the pursuit of a circular economy where waste is eliminated, and resources reused.
First introduced in Sweden over twenty years ago, EPR programs to recycle and recover used packaging are now well-established in the EU and Canada. There are over one hundred EPR laws in the U.S. for products like paint, tires and electronics, which are particularly difficult for consumers to recycle. There have not yet, however, been packaging EPRs.
While state legislators from California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maryland, New Hampshire, New York, Oregon, Vermont and Washington are working together, their bills are different. Hawaii’s, for example, requires beverage manufacturers to meet minimum postconsumer recycled plastic content of 15% by 2025, 25% by 2030 and 50% by 2031. Maryland requires all single-use packaging and products to be at least 75% postconsumer content by 2027. Without uniformity, compliance can be difficult and costly, and progress uneven. A manufacturer, brand or retailer in one state may face higher compliance costs than a competitor across the state line. National companies could be subject to a patchwork of requirements, much like previous state sponsored efforts to regulate GMOs.
It may be difficult to strike an acceptable balance between the interests of and impact on government and policymakers, industry, retailers, consumers and environmental advocates. Product pricing could begin reflecting a “true cost” (including redesign, reuse, recycling, composting, and disposal) but keeping products affordable could therefore be challenging. Communication between state legislators and among stakeholders is vital.
The hope is that effects of EPR programs will go beyond waste management and encourage businesses to design out waste, holding prices in check by keeping products and materials in use. This is already happening in some of our business sectors even without EPR programs. Health and nutrition businesses working with Informa Markets are using innovative packaging with its end in mind – recyclable, compostable, and even edible. Informa has its own commitments as well: carbon neutral as a business by 2025, halving the waste generated by its products and events by 2025, becoming zero waste and net zero carbon by 2030 or earlier and, wherever it can, actively helping its partners, customers and wider markets achieve the same.
One of the ways Informa tries to help is by highlighting packaging innovation at Natural Product Expo and SupplySide events and through our NEXTY Awards. We offer tools like our Sustainable Packaging Kit to guide businesses as they formulate products, regulatory consulting with MarketReady Insights to help businesses make the ecological claims necessary to educate consumers about these investments, and events and conferences where businesses developing products for circular economies learn and lead.
These efforts toward EPRs are early and far from certain. But, regardless, it looks like 2021 may bring significant development in managing the life cycle and waste management of consumer products. Each of us is a stakeholder for these issues – make your voice heard.
"Wazalishaji wa bidhaa za mwisho wa maisha (EPR) walipiga kura ya kuamua kuanzisha ""Malipo ya Utekelezaji wa Bidhaa ya Kuongeza"" (EPR) katika majimbo yao." EPR inabadilisha jukumu la kuondoa bidhaa za mwisho wa maisha kutoka kwa manispaa na watumiaji hadi kwa wazalishaji na wamiliki wa chapa. Inafanya mabadiliko ya kichocheo cha kiuchumi kwa amri ya kisheria kuhamasisha sekta ya kifedha kupunguza (au bora kubuni) taka nje ya mfumo. Ni kuonekana kama chombo katika kufuatilia uchumi mviringo ambapo taka ni kuondolewa, na rasilimali kutumika tena. Programu za EPR za kuchakata na kurudisha vifurushi vilivyotumika sasa zimeanzishwa katika EU na Canada. Kuna zaidi ya sheria 100 za EPR nchini Marekani kwa bidhaa kama rangi, tairi na vifaa vya elektroniki, ambayo ni vigumu hasa kwa watumiaji kuchakata. Hata hivyo, bado hakuna EPRs za ufungaji. Wanachama wa bunge la California, Colorado, Hawaii, Maryland, New Hampshire, New York, Oregon, Vermont na Washington wamekuwa wakifanya kazi pamoja, lakini sheria zao ni tofauti. Hawaii, kwa mfano, inahitaji watengenezaji wa vinywaji kufikia kiwango cha chini cha plastiki iliyotumiwa baada ya watumiaji ya 15% ifikapo 2025, 25% ifikapo 2030 na 50% ifikapo 2031. Maryland inahitaji vifurushi vyote vya matumizi moja kuwa na angalau 75% ya yaliyomo baada ya watumiaji ifikapo 2027. Bila usawa, kufuata inaweza kuwa vigumu na gharama kubwa, na maendeleo ni usawa. Mtengenezaji, mtengenezaji au muuzaji katika jimbo moja anaweza kukabiliwa na gharama za kufuata zaidi kuliko mshindani katika mstari wa jimbo. Kampuni za kitaifa zinaweza kuwa chini ya patchwork ya mahitaji, kama vile juhudi za awali za serikali zinazodhaminiwa kudhibiti GMO. Inaweza kuwa vigumu kupata usawa wa kukubalika kati ya maslahi na athari kwa serikali na watunga sera, viwanda, wauzaji, watumiaji na watetezi wa mazingira. Bei ya bidhaa inaweza kuanza kutafakari "gharama halisi" (ikiwa ni pamoja na kubuni upya, matumizi ya tena, kuchakata, composting, na kuondoa) lakini kuweka bidhaa nafuu kwa hivyo inaweza kuwa changamoto. Mawasiliano kati ya wabunge wa serikali na kati ya wadau ni muhimu. Matarajio ni kwamba athari za programu za EPR zitaenda zaidi ya usimamizi wa taka na kuhamasisha biashara kubuni taka, kuweka bei chini ya udhibiti kwa kuweka bidhaa na vifaa katika matumizi. Hii tayari inatokea katika baadhi ya sekta zetu za biashara hata bila programu za EPR. Biashara za afya na lishe zinazofanya kazi na Masoko ya Informa zinatumia ufungaji wa ubunifu kwa lengo lake - inayoweza kurejeshwa, kuyeyushwa, na hata kula. "Informa ina ahadi zake mwenyewe: ""Usafi wa kaboni kama biashara ifikapo 2025,"" ""Kupunguza nusu ya taka zinazozalishwa na bidhaa na matukio yake ifikapo 2025,"" ""Kuwa zero taka na zero kaboni safi ifikapo 2030 au mapema,"" na, popote inapoweza, kusaidia washirika wake, wateja na masoko pana kufikia sawa." Moja ya njia ambazo Informa inajaribu kusaidia ni kwa kuangazia uvumbuzi wa ufungaji katika maonyesho ya bidhaa za asili na matukio ya SupplySide na kupitia tuzo zetu za NEXTY. Tunatoa zana kama vile Kit yetu ya Ufungaji wa Uendelevu kuongoza biashara wakati wa kutengeneza bidhaa, ushauri wa udhibiti na MarketReady Insights kusaidia biashara kufanya madai ya ikolojia muhimu ili kuwaelimisha watumiaji juu ya uwekezaji huu, na hafla na mikutano ambapo biashara zinazoendeleza bidhaa kwa uchumi wa mviringo hujifunza na kuongoza. Jitihada hizi kuelekea EPRs ni mapema na mbali na uhakika. Lakini, bila kujali, inaonekana kama 2021 inaweza kuleta maendeleo makubwa katika usimamizi wa mzunguko wa maisha na usimamizi wa taka za bidhaa za watumiaji. Kila mmoja wetu ni mwathirika wa masuala haya <unk> fanya sauti yako isikike.