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Author Archives: Marissa Heffernan

About Marissa Heffernan

Marissa HeffernanMarissa Heffernan started working for Resource Recycling in January 2022 after spending several years as a reporter at a daily newspaper in Southwest Washington. After developing a special focus on recycling policy, they are also the editor of the monthly newsletter Policy Now. Heffernan can be contacted at [email protected].

Maine tapping stakeholders to draft EPR rules

Published: January 6, 2023
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The Maine capitol building in Augusta.

Maine’s EPR draft rules will go to the Board of Environmental Protection to begin the formal rulemaking process in December 2023. | Yurii Prohonnyi/Shutterstock

Maine’s governor signed an extended producer responsibility law for packaging in 2021, and the state is now seeking stakeholder feedback to guide the rulemaking process. 

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Brands advance sustainability – but use more plastic overall

Published: January 3, 2023
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McDonald's drink cups and straws discarded on concrete.

WWF found that 34% of members’ plastic footprint was recycled, 9% incinerated, 43% landfilled and 15% mismanaged. | Kraft74/Shutterstock

In 2021, major brands increased their use of PCR and cut back on “problematic plastics,” but the amount of plastic they put on the market grew by over 5%, according to the World Wildlife Fund.

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Senate hearing digs into plastic pollution

Published: December 16, 2022
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Senate hearing room.

The Dec. 15 hearing by the U.S. Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works brought four panelists together to answer questions from legislators. | Katherine Welles/Shutterstock

During a two-hour hearing, U.S. senators questioned industry experts about chemicals in plastics, marine plastic pollution and extended producer responsibility. 

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Major MRF adds robots, in part to clean up plastics line

Published: December 13, 2022
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EverestLabs robots at work sorting material at the Sims Sunset Park MRF.

Two EverestLabs robots pick out material on the Sunset Park MRF’s last-chance line. | Courtesy of EverestLabs

Sims Municipal Recycling installed four EverestLabs robots in its New York City materials recovery facility and plans to add up to four more in 2023, bringing the facility into the AI age. 

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Stakeholders react as Global Plastics Treaty talks wrap up

Published: December 6, 2022
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Delgates celebrating work on the Global Plastics Treaty.

The meeting was the first to work on drafting the text of the Global Plastics Treaty, which is intended to be a legally binding document addressing plastic pollution across the value chain. | Courtesy of UNEP

Mixed reactions followed the first meeting on a Global Plastics Treaty, with some complaints about “industry interference.” 

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Another aggressive plastics bill lands in Congress

Published: December 6, 2022
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US Capitol building in Washington, D.C.

The new act is built on the Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act, which was introduced in the last two Congressional sessions but failed to move forward. | Rob Crandall/Shutterstock

A newly introduced bill in Congress is reviving parts of the Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act, with a focus on environmental justice. 

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Oregon redemption center brings AI counting to consumers

Published: December 6, 2022
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Behind the scenes at BottleDrop's collection location.

The latest drop-off center from the Oregon Beverage Recycling Cooperative uses AI to rapidly count and identify bottles and other containers. | Marissa Heffernan/Resource Recycling, Inc.

The busiest container redemption center in Oregon recently got an upgrade, delivering the Oregon Beverage Recycling Cooperative’s neural network technology to a consumer-facing location for the first time. 

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EU eyes higher recycled content requirements

Published: November 29, 2022
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EU flags outside the European Commission building in Brussels, Belgium.

The European Commission is expected to announce the revisions of the EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive the week of Nov. 28. | VanderWolf Images/Shutterstock

This story has been updated.

Online delivery packaging, takeaway cups and plastic drink bottles could see new targets for reuse and recycled content under proposals from the European Commission. 

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Dow, WM team up on curbside residential film project

Published: November 29, 2022
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Plastic bag filled with plastic bags for recycling.

Waste Management (WM) has committed to investing more than $800 million to enhance recycling infrastructure, including $56 million to upgrade three Pacific Northwest materials recovery facilities (MRFs). | Pavel Kubarkov/Shutterstock

Dow and Waste Management are partnering on a pilot program that will give some Chicago residents the option of recycling plastic films curbside. 

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