Remember plastic is not so fantastic? Plastic Free July? Well we have an update for you! This week, a closer look into plastic packaging bills from across the United States. As time has gone on, there have been more and more studies about the harms of plastic in our world. With that, many states around the country have looked into passing legislation to decrease use of plastic and single use plastics.
Some Definitions to Help us Along
Polystyrene is a versatile plastic used to make a wide variety of consumer products. It is made by polymerizing styrene, and many companies utilize polystyrene to create much of the plastic packaging.
Expanded polystyrene (EPS), commonly referred to as Styrofoam, is a lightweight, rigid, closed cell insulation. "Styrofoam" is a trademarked term for closed-cell extruded polystyrene foam made for thermal insulation and craft applications. EPS foam is the correct term for any form of expanded polystyrene. Extruded polystyrene (XPS), is very similar to EPS, but is most commonly used as foam board insulation.
Thermoforming plastic is a method of creating plastic to a specific shape in a mold. Thermoforming is primarily used to manufacture of disposable cups, containers, lids, trays, and other products for storing food.
Void fill is a paper filler material, used to close up the free space in shipping boxes, locking products in place. A paper-based filler offers excellent physical properties in terms of absorbing shocks and protecting sensitive products, and is also more sustainable than plastic alternatives.
Microplastics are tiny plastic particles that result from both commercial product development and the breakdown of larger plastics. As a pollutant, microplastics can be harmful to the environment and animal (including humans) health.
Brief Overview
There is a lot of information out there about how wasteful plastic packaging is. With articles like How sustainability will drive growth in the packaging industry, How to Solve the Problem of Plastic Packaging, or Packaging Waste 101: The Problem, the issues posed by packaging is top of mind for many.
Human innovation is at the center of plastics. They were invented to create a packaging that was cheap, lightweight, durable, decay resistant, and moldable. Unfortunately, this innovation has come at a price we learn more and more about each year.
Because the of product design of plastic did not take into account the earth's ecosystems, it has proven to be detrimental to the environment. Plastic was designed to not be biodegradable, meaning, all plastic ever created is still part of our planet. The majority of plastic waste is disposed of (either sent to landfills or dumped into the environment). Some plastic breaks down to microplastics, but the plastic still remains. Recycling of plastic has also fallen short. Only 9 percent of the 9.2 billion tons of plastic that has been produced has been recycled properly.
Here is a chart showing plastic use by sector, with packaging topping the charts from Our World in Data.
Plastics are used for many things, but the most wasteful use is for packaging.
Deep Dive into a Few Bills
Over the last decade, 194 bills have been proposed related to expanded polystyrene, extruded polystyrene, plastic packaging, void fill, and thermoform plastic. To browse through these bills, check out the Stakeholder Page here or access it with Mobile Access Code: KVDDOY. Let's dive into some of the legislation.
When looking across the country, more than half of states have considered plastic packaging bills over the last few years. HB1902, a bill that passed in Virginia in 2021, “prohibits the dispensing by a food vendor of prepared food to a customer in a single-use expanded polystyrene food service container”. Although not many of these bills have passed across the country, more and more are being introduced.
A California bill, AB2026, would require an e-commerce shipper that ships purchased products in or into the state to reduce the total weight and number of units of single-use plastic shipping envelopes, cushioning, void fill, and expanded and extruded polystyrene, it uses to ship or transport the products. The bill was introduced March 2022, passed out of the Assembly with no Republicans voting yes, but failed to get through the Senate. Another bill in California, AB2784, would require thermoform plastic containers sold or imported by producers to be made from 25% postconsumer material, passed, but was ultimately vetoed. Last session California did pass AB793 requiring plastic beverage containers to have a minimum of 50% postconsumer recycled content.
Hawaii has also proposed quite a few bills related to this, 33 in fact! Last year, they passed HR47, a requesting the governor to endorse the new plastics economy global commitment and the office of planning and sustainable development to set targets to fulfill the new plastics economy global commitment. They also passed SB522 in 2019 which prohibits the purchase, sale, use, or distribution of plastic items (think utensils, straws, and polystyrene foam containers) by government agencies after July 1, 2021, and by businesses selling food and beverages by July 1, 2022. It also bans the distribution or sale of single-use plastic bags after July 1, 2023. Finally, this year Hawaii passed SR52 which requests the Governor endorse "The New Plastics Economy Global Commitment" for the the office of planning and sustainable development to set targets to fulfill this commitment. What is the New Plastics Economy Global Commitment you ask? This commitment was launched in 2018 and aims to "unite businesses, governments, and other organizations from around the world behind a common vision of circular economy for plastic, in which it never becomes waste or pollution."
Also this year, New Jersey passed a bill that establishes recycled content requirements for plastic containers, glass containers, paper carryout bags, reusable carryout bags made of plastic film, and plastic trash bags sold or offered for sale in the State. Meaning, manufacturers are now required to use recycled material when manufacturing new products. It also prohibits the sale of polystyrene loose fill packaging (packing peanuts).
Oregon passed a similar bill, The Plastic Pollution and Recycling Modernization Act, in 2021 which requires producers of paper, plastic, and other materials to fund new initiatives aimed at collecting and recycling more of materials they produced. Some examples of these initiatives are: paying for educational campaigns to help consumers better understand recycling, funds which help upgrade existing recycling facilities, and paying for things like trucks and new containers to help local governments expand their recycling offerings.
DC passed a bill in 2020 which prohibits the retail sale of polystyrene foam food packaging. It also prohibits the sale of loose fill packaging, commonly known as packing peanuts.
In 2019, Vermont passed S113 which:
- Bans single-use plastic carryout bags from stores and food service establishments and apply a fee of 10 cents to recyclable single-use bags
- Requires that food service establishments do not provide single-use plastic straws unless requested by customers
- Bans single-use plastic stirrers
- Bans the use of single-use expanded polystyrene food service ware
Back in 2016, Indiana passed HB1053. This bill prohibits a local government from imposing, adopting, or enforcing any ordinance or resolution to impose any prohibition, restriction, fee, or tax with respect to auxiliary containers. An auxiliary container is defined in the bill as a bag, box, cup, bottle, or similar container that is reusable or disposable; made of cloth, paper, plastic, extruded polystyrene, or a similar material; and designed for one time use or transporting merchandise or food from food or retail facilities. In 2020, South Dakota passed a similar bill.
Over the years we have seen more and more legislation being proposed aimed at addressing pieces of our plastic problem. I will be interested to see what legislative trends we see in this space in the upcoming year.
Cover Photo by Yevgen Buzuk on pexels
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