NYPSC Quarterly Newsletter – Autumn 2017

NYPSC Updates
On October 31st, Join us at the New York Textiles Summit in New York City
NYPSC Submits Memo Opposing Faulty Drug Take-Back Bill, Encourages Others to Follow Suit
Stewardship Bills for Paint, Solar Panels, and Alkaline Batteries Make Headway in 2017
NYPSC Board Shares Takeaways from the 2017 U.S. Product Stewardship Forum
NYPSC Supports Pharmaceuticals Stewardship Bill in Westchester County

New York State News
Children in Greenport, NY Create Logos for Businesses Participating in Plastic Source Reduction Pilot
New York Department of Conservation (NY DEC) Updates Drug Take-Back Locator

National Updates
National Briefing Document on Pesticide Stewardship Released
Illinois Governor Signs Amendments to Electronics Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) Laws
In Support of Laredo, Texas Plastic Bag Ban, Cotton Ginners and Cattle Ranchers File Amicus Brief
California to Hold Packaging Reform Workshop on October 10, 2017

Events, Webinars, & Conferences

What We’re Reading

 

NYPSC Updates

On October 31st, Join us at the New York Textiles Summit in New York City
On October 31, the New York Product Stewardship Council (NYPSC), NYSAR3’s Re-Clothe NY Coalition, the New York State Pollution Prevention Institute, and the Product Stewardship Institute will host the New York Textiles Summit at the Fashion Institute of Technology to discuss how the state – and the country – can increase textiles recovery to reduce waste, save governments money, and create recycling jobs. Expert speakers will discuss a range of key issues, including:

  • How companies can design clothing – with both natural and synthetic fibers – to be more repairable, reusable, and recyclable;
  • The role that retailers like Patagonia, Eileen Fisher, and H&M can play in taking back clothing and increasing recovery;
  • New, innovative technologies aimed at increasing recycled content in apparel;
  • Existing domestic and international markets for post-consumer textiles, and how we can grow those markets globally; and
  • New initiatives recyclers, researchers, retailers, and others are undertaking to overcome technical challenges in textiles reuse and recycling.

Register now to connect with stakeholders from across the supply chain on ways to drive innovation and overcome challenges in textiles production and recovery. Thank you to NYSAR3 for making the remote option possible, and to 2ReWear for sponsoring lunch. Thank you to SMART for additional support.

NYPSC Submits Memo Opposing Faulty Drug Take-Back Bill, Encourages Others to Follow Suit
NYPSC strongly supports the intent of legislation to reduce substance abuse and overdose deaths by decreasing unwanted prescription drugs stockpiled in the home. But we firmly believe that the impact of A.387-B (same as S.6750) will be negligible due to faults outlined in this opposition memo urging Governor Cuomo to veto the bill.

Join our effort to urge the Governor to veto A.387-B/S.6750 and pursue more effective legislative approaches that create truly effective drug collection! Please consider providing a letter of opposition to the Governor. You are welcome to borrow language from NYPSC’s opposition memo.

Stewardship Bills for Paint, Solar Panels, and Alkaline Batteries Make Headway in 2017
Several NY state bills which would require manufacturers to finance and manage the recycling of their products made important headway this year. A producer responsibility bill for alkaline batteries (A.6280) passed the Assembly, while bills for paint (S.881) and solar panels (S.2837) passed the Senate. Moreover, the paint bill gained enough co-sponsors in the Assembly to easily pass if the bill was allowed to reach the Floor.

NYPSC Board Shares Takeaways from the 2017 U.S. Product Stewardship Forum
On July 25th-26th, several NYPSC members headed to Boston for the 2017 U.S. Product Stewardship Forum, where they enjoyed two days of networking, soaking in insights from across the country, and deliberating ideas to heighten the product stewardship movement further.

At the Forum, the Product Stewardship Institute recognized leaders in the product stewardship movement. Andrew Radin, Chair of the NYPSC, received the “Thoughtful Motivator Award” for his tact while spearheading product stewardship in New York. Andrew identifies the NYPSC team and supporters, including NYSAR3, SWANA-NY, and the NY Association of Counties as the key to success.

Forum Highlights

  • Scott Cassel, PSI’s chief executive officer, made a strong case for producers having a unique responsibility for reducing resource consumption and greenhouse gases.
  • John Coyne, Executive Chair at the Canadian Stewardship Services Alliance, delivered a powerful keynote speech, encourages us all to learn from each other, take an active role to help shape future frameworks, and constantly challenge the status quo.
  • Allen Langdon, Managing Director, RecycleBC, and Joachim Quoden, Managing Director, Extended Producer Responsibility Alliance, emphasized the urgent need to invest in an archaic U.S. recycling system to better compete for secondary materials in the global marketplace.
  • Kristine Kalaijian, Director, Environmental Compliance and Sustainability, Philips, outlined specific examples of her company’s circular economy efforts.
  • Rob Klee, Commissioner of the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, explained why he thinks EPR for packaging is the best way to reach high rates of recycling.
  • Cynthia Dunn, a senior California state agency official, discussed why CalRecycle is stepping forward to explore an array of policy options to increase packaging recycling rates, including EPR.
  • Alejandro Alves, Chief of Staff for Massachusetts Senator John Keenan, discussed the politics behind the passage of the state’s first-in-the-nation statewide drug take-back law requiring pharmaceutical companies to collect medication for safe disposal.
  • Anne Gobi, Co-Chair, Joint Committee on Natural Resources and Agriculture, Massachusetts State Legislature, provided insight into how to pass effective legislation.

Missed the Forum? You can still purchase the session recordings.

NYPSC Supports Pharmaceuticals Stewardship Bill in Westchester County
In February, Rockland County became the first local government on the U.S. East Coast to pass drug stewardship legislation. In April, Westchester County introduced its own bill to require the safe disposal of unwanted medications through a program funded and managed by drug companies. NYPSC has submitted a letter of support for Westchester County’s bill.

 

New York State News

Children in Greenport, NY Create Logos for Businesses Participating in Plastic Source Reduction Pilot
Local schoolteachers in Greenport, NY held a contest for their students to design a promotional decal for businesses participating in the Product Stewardship Institute’s Trash Free Waters project, which seeks to reduce disposable plastics use in Long Island eateries. The participating businesses have placed the logo on their store windows to promote their efforts. The school held a ceremony to honor the students on June 23rd, where the kids presented printed decals to the participating business owners.

New York Department of Conservation (NY DEC) Updates Drug Take-Back Locator
Earlier this year, NY DEC offered to cover the costs of drug collection boxes for two years for any pharmacy interested in launching a drug take-back program. NY DEC is regularly updating its comprehensive statewide map of collection locations. Pharmacies and law enforcement agencies interested in adding their drug collection site to the map should contact DEC at Rx.Takeback@dec.ny.gov.

 

National Updates

National Briefing Document on Pesticide Stewardship Released
The newly released Pesticide Stewardship Briefing Document outlines the problems with leftover pesticides, goals for pesticide stewardship, barriers to achieving those goals, and potential solutions for safe management. The briefing document will serve as a basis for future discussions on pesticide stewardship in the U.S.

Illinois Governor Signs Amendments to Electronics Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) Laws
Illinois Governor Bruce Rauner has signed two electronics recycling bills, SB 1417 and HB 1955, which amend and ultimately replace the state’s Electronic Products Recycling and Reuse Act beginning in 2019. The Illinois Product Stewardship Council collaborated with various stakeholders to ensure the bills would provide a more sustainable program based on a convenience standard approach that includes year-round collection instead of a performance-based goal that limits the quantity of electronics collected and paid for by manufacturers.

In Support of Laredo, Texas Plastic Bag Ban, Cotton Ginners and Cattle Ranchers File Amicus Brief
The Supreme Court of Texas is reviewing a Court of Appeals decision that determined a 1993 solid waste statute preempts the City of Laredo’s plastic bag ban. Plastic bag litter threatens Texas’s largest industries by contaminating cotton fields and harming (sometimes lethally) cows that ingest them. To protect their industries, the Texas Cotton Ginners’ Association and a cattle rancher have jointly filed an amicus brief in support of Laredo’s plastic bag ban. The outcome of this case will determine whether local governments across Texas retain the authority to regulate plastic bags and protect economic interests on their own turf.

California to Hold Packaging Reform Workshop on October 10, 2017
On October 10th, the California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle) will hold a packaging reform workshop to gather public input on mandatory policies to improve packaging recycling in the state. The workgroup is considering extended producer responsibility, recycled content requirements, and other policy approaches. Last month, CalRecycle solicited stakeholder input to determine which packaging types should be prioritized and considered for which policies.

 

Events, Webinars, and Conferences

  • FREE Webinar: Outreach + Education Strategies to Improve Battery, Thermostat, + Phone Book Stewardship | Product Stewardship Institute | October 12, 2017 2pm-3pm ET | Register
  • 2017 New York Textiles Summit | New York Product Stewardship Council, Re-Clothe NY Coalition, New York State Pollution Prevention Institute, and Product Stewardship Institute| Fashion Institute of Technology, New York, NY | October 31, 2017 | Register

 

What We’re Reading