CalRecycle staff are busy developing implementation plans for the state’s EPR program and other new recycling laws. | Lowe Llaguno/Shutterstock
After California’s legislature passed a host of recycling and reuse-related bills, the state’s Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery is shifting into high gear to turn the mandates into reality.
A bill introduced in New York seeks to close loopholes in an existing right-to-repair electronics law. | Real Window/Shutterstock
The first U.S. state to pass a right-to-repair law covering electronics could also be the first state to amend such a law. Continue Reading
Extended producer responsibility is once again a hot topic in statehouses. | Rawf8/Shutterstock
The 2024 legislative season is already picking up speed, with more than 60 bills filed on recycling across the nation. Continue Reading
New Jersey became the first state to pass an extended producer responsibility law for electric vehicle batteries. | Mpohodzhay/Shutterstock
New Jersey is the first state to make producers responsible for electric vehicle batteries and other, similar propulsion batteries. Continue Reading
A handful of states have modernized their bottle bills in recent years, and pressure to enact programs in non-bottle-bill states appears to be growing, according to panelists on a recent webinar. | Monticello/Shutterstock
Deposit return systems are poised to take center legislative stage in the coming years, with strong potential benefits for the environment and economy, the Container Recycling Institute noted in a recent analysis and webinar. Continue Reading
The groups behind the database have already compiled a dataset that includes about 1,000 plastic reduction laws in the U.S. | DC Studio/Shutterstock
In order to tamp down on plastic pollution, several environmental groups have worked together to launch a global database for tracking plastic-related laws. It even covers the upcoming United Nations plastics agreement. Continue Reading
Of the nine states for which data is available, only two showed meaningful increases in their container redemption rates. | Poring Studio/Shutterstock
Most states with deposit return systems saw static or reduced bottle redemption rates in 2022, according to a deposit advocacy organization. Continue Reading
New Hampshire’s legislature passed a bill that prohibits larger generators of food scraps from sending the organic material to disposal, with some exceptions. | Wangkun Jia/Shutterstock
New Hampshire lawmakers slipped a food waste disposal ban into a state budget bill, which was signed into law in June. Continue Reading
A federal purchasing rule handed down last week directs agencies to buy sustainable products and avoid those that contain PFAS. | Petrmalinak/Shutterstock
The federal government has announced plans to further prioritize American-made sustainable products and services in its purchasing, including recycled content. Continue Reading
The bill’s passage follows years of efforts on the part of municipalities and industry groups. | Brandon Bourdages/Shutterstock
Riding the ongoing recycling policy wave, Vermont recently enacted a program nearly a decade in the making that’s designed to put producers in charge of handling household hazardous materials. Continue Reading