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Recycling Regulations for Plastic Packaging in the United States

Chris Irby • May 26, 2022

A Look at Recycled Content Mandates and Extended Producer Responsibility in the United States

Plascene recycling facility processing PET/rPET plastic bottles

It's an idea that's slowly gaining traction. California and Washington have enacted recycled content mandates that stipulate a required percentage of post-consumer recycled material in plastic packaging. Meanwhile, Oregon has enacted Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) laws for plastic product manufacturers and New Jersey has proposed EPR legislation.

Note: The difference between recycled content mandates and EPR laws is basically a question of responsibility. A recycled content mandate says a manufacturer must use a certain percentage of recycled material in its product. An EPR law, on the other hand, makes the manufacturer responsible for the recycling, reuse, or disposal of its own products. Recycled content mandates and EPR laws are both intended to increase recycling and reduce landfill use.

California

In October 2020, California became the first state to require all plastic bottles to contain a specified amount of recycled plastic. The law, which went into effect in January of this year, requires plastic beverage bottles to contain an average of 15% recycled plastic. This amount will be raised to 25% in 2025 and should hit 50% by 2030.

"Real plastic recycling isn't finished when people take plastic bottles to recycling centers. It only happens when manufacturers convert the material from those bottles into new products. This is the first real plastic recycling law adopted in California--and it establishes a world-leading standard for minimum content. This new law represents an essential step toward achieving a circular economy."

- Mark Murray, Executive Director of Californians Against Waste

Washington

In December 2020, the Washington State Senate introduced Senate Bill (SB) 5022, which also set forth minimum recycled content requirements for plastic bottles. The bill, which was passed in February 2021, stipulates that plastic packaging sold in Washington must contain a minimum of 15% postconsumer recycled content beginning in July 2023. That amount will go up to 25% in January 2027 and reach 50% by January 2031. The bill also stated that beverage manufacturers (or their third-party representatives) were responsible for the cost of implementing, administering, and enforcing this law.

In January 2021, the Washington State Senate introduced another bill, SB 5219. This bill is very similar to SB 5022, but it removes the requirement of costs from the beverage manufacturers. This bill is currently still in committee.

Oregon

In August 2021, Oregon signed into law the Plastic Pollution and Recycling Modernization Act. Rather than setting any specific percentage requirements, this EPR law requires plastic packaging manufacturers to join producer responsibility organizations (PROs) that charge membership fees based on each manufacturer's environmental impact. The law will go into effect later this month.

Note: Maine actually signed its own EPR legislation into law in July 2021, a month before Oregon. However, Maine's efforts were focused on the recycling of paper, rather than plastic.

New Jersey

The New Jersey legislature is currently considering a recycled content regulation of its own. The focus of SB 2515 goes beyond plastic bottles and actually sets standards for glass containers, paper carryout bags, reusable plastic carryout bags, plastic trash bags, and plastic containers. The milestones of SB 2515 are as follows: