Landmark California Plastic Law’s Anniversary Brings Progress

California’s key recycling agency met the first deadline of the state’s landmark plastic regulation law a year after its passage, appointing an advisory board of 16 members on June 30.

The representatives are responsible for providing recommendations about implementing the Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act, which Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed into law on June 30, 2022.

The step shows that CalRecycle, which is the relevant regulatory agency, is beginning the rulemaking process to make the law work, said Dylan de Thomas, vice president of public policy and government affairs at The Recycling Partnership. “That will have a significant role in the law’s implementation.”

The measure, SB 54, is a “first-of-its-kind” program with tight deadlines and regulations to reduce plastic in the state, according to CalRecycle Director Rachel Machi Wagoner. It builds upon five other extended producer responsibility programs implemented over the past decade, as well as a ballot measure and prior versions of the bill.

The law went into effect on Jan. 1 of this year, meaning there’s been six months of implementation.

“What makes it strongest is it sets specific numerical targets,” Machi Wagoner said.

The law requires producers to ensure all packaging material sold, distributed, and imported in California is recyclable or compostable by 2032. Leading up to that date, there are certain benchmarks: at least 30% of all single-use plastic packaging must be recycled by 2028, 40% by 2030, and 65% by 2032.

These guidelines will contribute to reducing overall plastic material 10% by 2027, 20% by 2030, and 25% by 2032.

For next steps, producers by Jan. 1, 2024, must join a producer responsibility organization (PRO), which is a nonprofit group responsible for ensuring its members comply with the law. Those groups must then submit plans to CalRecycle outlining what their members will do to meet the plastic reduction targets.

More Work Ahead

Lawmakers are considering additional bills to complement the legislation, according to SB 54 sponsor Sen. Ben Allen (D). These include extended producer responsibility for areas such as electric vehicle batteries, textiles, aerosol paint, and solar panels.

Allen previously sponsored efforts regulating what kind of plastics can bear the recycling symbol. There are similar measures in the current legislative session to clarify how plastics are defined.

“There’s a lot of work happening now,” Allen said. “I’m pleased with the progress we’ve made so far.”

The act allocates $5 billion over 10 years toward cleaning up historic impacts from plastic pollution and production in California, paid for by plastic producers. About 60% of these funds directly target low-income, rural, or disadvantaged communities that have been disproportionately impacted by plastics.

But the efforts aren’t immune to pushback. Industry associations like the American Chemistry Council want chemical recycling—using heat or chemical reactions to break down plastics—to fall under the laws, according to environmental attorney and Just Zero Executive Director Kirstie Pecci.

Environmentalists are concerned about laws allowing chemical recycling. “Unless it’s very specific, what you end up with is just burning plastic and pretending to recycle,” Pecci said.

The American Chemistry Council expects further collaboration with CalRecycle and discussions about technologies like chemical recycling, according to its state affairs senior director Tim Shestek.

“Meeting the ambitious recycling mandates for plastics will require modernizing the entire waste collection, processing and recycling systems so more material can be recovered and used as materials to make new packaging,” Shestek wrote in a statement.

With the law still in its early stages of taking effect, it’s challenging to determine how its regulatory process impacts businesses.

Kris Quigley, state government affairs regional director at Plastics Industry Association, stressed the importance of working with politicians to reach the shared goal of reducing plastic and modernizing California’s recycling infrastructure.

“While we were not supportive of SB 54, legislators passed the measure as an alternative to a costly ballot fight and to offer flexibility for improving the law,” Quigley wrote in a statement.

Ripple Effects

As the most populous state in the country, California has a big market. That’s part of why the legislation is so monumental, according to Anja Brandon, US plastics policy associate director for Ocean Conservancy.

“We know and fully anticipate that the changes that need to be made to meet the needs of California will have this ripple effect across other states, hopefully across the country, and maybe even the world,” Brandon said.

Maine, Oregon, and Colorado have passed similar laws and are in the process of implementing them. An extended producer responsibility bill for packaging waste failed to pass the New York State Legislature last month.

Advocates are tinkering with model legislation nationwide.

“Every state is a laboratory for democracy,” Pecci said.

In California, legislators are excited about how SB 54 contributes to incentivizing investment in sustainable packaging, Allen said. Previously, companies working toward sustainable products would struggle to hear from distributors, retailers, and producers.

“They’re suddenly calling them back,” Allen said. “The big companies are now paying attention to them because they know they need to make changes in order to comply with SB 54.”

Another goal for the legislation is building a circular economy—a regenerative system where materials are recycled or recovered rather than thrown away.

CalRecycle held two public workshops last week where community members could learn about and provide feedback on the legislation’s requirements. Participants discussed topics like categorizing different variations of the same item, according to de Thomas.

A glass jar with a plastic label would be sorted separately from a glass jar without a plastic component.

“They’re putting the specifics on how the law will be implemented and all the various pieces of what it will mean,” de Thomas said.

There will be more workshops on its regulation in late July and throughout the rest of the year.