In an important development for the sustainability movement, Oregon and Colorado are implementing Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) laws that shift the responsibility for managing packaging waste to the manufacturer. The...more
CalRecycle, the agency overseeing California’s recycling and waste management programs, reports that Californians dispose of 1.2 million tons of textiles annually, accounting for 3% of landfilling. California Senate Bill (SB)...more
The National Waste & Recycling Association (“NWRA”) filed a Petition for Review (“Petition”) before the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit challenging a Final Action undertaken by the United...more
California has become the first state in the nation to pass an extended producer responsibility (EPR) law making producers of apparel and textiles responsible for the full lifecycle of those products....more
Does your company produce products or packaging that ultimately winds up in landfills? If so, are you aware that you may be defined as a “producer” under new state laws and required to comply with new regulations to reduce...more
Key Takeaways - What Happened? On May 21, 2024, Minnesota Governor Tim Walz signed the Packaging Waste and Cost Reduction Act (the Act). Minnesota is the fifth state to enact laws implementing packaging EPR rules,...more
On May 31, CalRecycle posted a Request for Proposal (RFP) for a Disposal Facility-Based Material Characterization Study pursuant to SB 54. SB 54 was signed into law by Governor Newsom in June 2022. Among other things, SB 54...more
Massachusetts residents and businesses dispose of enough trash yearly to fill up about 31 Fenway Parks. Despite decades of government policies to reduce waste, we continue throwing away about six million tons of waste each...more
The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (“NREL”) announced the publication of research titled: Paper and Cardboard in the United States: geographic, market, and energy assessment (“Analysis”) - The Paper was...more
A bill amending the Alabama Solid Wastes and Recyclable Materials Management Act by specifying when local approval of solid waste disposal permit modifications is necessary has passed both houses of the Alabama Legislature...more
What's Happening? The California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle) published proposed regulations to amend the Recycling and Disposal Reporting System (RDRS) to increase the specificity of waste...more
Just before the start of the year, the European Commission introduced a Proposal for a Regulation on Packaging and Packaging Waste (PPWR) which will repeal the existing Packaging and Packaging Waste Directive (PPWD) and...more
The United States District Court for the District of Texas (“Court”) addressed in an August 4th Opinion issues arising out of a solid waste storage and recycling facility/shingle pile in Dallas, Texas. See Marsha Jackson v....more
Governor Signs SB 619 Into Law - Local jurisdictions (cities, counties and special districts) that fail to adopt enforceable mechanisms to divert organic waste from landfills in accordance with SB 1383 regulations before...more
I undertook an Arkansas Environmental Federation webinar held by the organization’s Land and Sustainability Committee on May 20th titled: Solid and Hazardous Waste/Recycling Administrative/Judicial Developments: 2020-2021...more
Summary - The Pennsylvania legislature is close to enacting House Bill 1808. Already approved by the Pennsylvania House, the measure could benefit an emerging industry known as Advanced Recycling that diverts single-use...more
Even though Oregon is considered the third greenest state in the United States, and a national leader when it comes to recycling, Oregon’s waste-management programs are not actually recovering all of the state’s recyclable...more
CalRecycle Issues Guidance to Local Agencies The California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery released guidance for how a city, county or a regional agency responsible for meeting Integrated Waste Management...more
The American Forest & Paper Association (“AFPA”) released data for 2019 addressing national paper recycling rates. AFPA states that 66.2 percent of paper consumed in the United States was recovered for recycling in 2019. ...more
On May 2, 2020, New Jersey Governor Phil Murphy issued Executive Order 136 (EO 136) extending the timeframes required for persons involved in “soil and fill recycling services” to register and to submit A-901 license...more
The Arkansas Department of Energy and Environment – Division of Environmental Quality (“DEQ”) has issued a new edition (January 2020) of its quarterly newsletter. DEQ describes the newsletter as providing...more
CalRecycle Study Makes Recommendations to Local Agencies - The California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery released a draft report of cost impacts to local agencies to implement Senate Bill 1383 and reduce...more
WCA Waste Corporation (“WCA”) announced in a January 14th news release it acquired the Little Rock Division of Central Arkansas Recycling and Disposal Services, LLC (“CARDS”). WCA describes itself as a vertically...more
Changes to Proposed Regulations Could Impact Local Agencies that Collect or Generate Organic Waste - The California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery released its second set of revisions to the proposed...more
Earlier this summer the New York State Senate passed a bi-partisan bill (S. 942) to require the Department of Environmental Conservation’s (“DEC”) to adopt regulations governing the collection and disposition of solar panels...more