New York’s Extended Producer Responsibility Bill Needs a Redo, Leaving 纸 Out
的 New York Daily 新闻 recently ran an editorial on Albany’s proposed extended producer responsibility (EPR) bill. We agree with the editorial, and its headline statement to New York lawmakers: “Recycle This Legislative Language."
Albany must revise a proposed bill on EPR, keeping paper out of it. This proposed bill would be a devastating blow to the paper and paper-based packaging industry in New York, which employs approximately 28,000 people with family-sustaining jobs.
EPR is a solution for harder to recycle products and hazardous materials, not paper.
纸 has a consistently high recycling rate, meeting or exceeding 63 percent for over a decade.
U.S. packaging and pulp producers are also committed to investing more than $4.1 billion in manufacturing infrastructure, from 2019-2023, to continue the best use of recovered fiber in our products.
Albany’s EPR scheme is a regressive solution in search of a problem. EPR fees paid by producers would reduce capital available to support further investments in paper recycling.
So please, toss this bill into the recycle bin. It needs a redo.