February 23, 2017
By:
Walter G. Wright
Category:
Arkansas Environmental, Energy, and Water Law
Arkansas Environmental, Energy, and Water Law
Download PDF
The Product Stewardship Institute, Inc. (“PSI”) issued a January 2017 report titled:
Connecticut Extended Producer Responsibility Program Evaluation: Summary and Recommendations (“Report”)
The Report is described as summarizing a multi-faceted evaluation of four extended producer responsibility programs in Connecticut performed by PSI for the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection in 2015.
PSI’s Report evaluates what it characterizes as several key indicators of program performance including:
- Quantity of product collected
- How collected materials were managed
- Environmental impacts and benefits
- Consumer convenience
- Program costs and financial benefits
- Job creation
- Comparison to other states with similar programs
Data from the report is stated to be drawn primarily from surveys of municipal programs and producer responsibility organizations. The data was supplemented by PSI research.
PSI concludes in the Report that the data demonstrates the significant economic and environmental gains the extender producer responsibility programs have achieved in the State of Connecticut. The Report states that these programs:
- Diverted more than 26 million pounds of materials from waste
- Yielded a cumulative cost savings of more than 2.6 million per year to Connecticut municipalities
- Provided services worth another 6.7 million
The program was stated to have resulted in the creation of “more than 100 jobs and reduced greenhouse gas (CHG) emissions by more than 13 million kg of carbon equivalent.”
The components of the Report include topics such as:
- Electronics
- Mercury thermostats
- Paint
- Mattresses
Recommendations for increasing the effectiveness of the stewardship program in the state include:
- Evaluate stewardship program reporting requirement to ensure that critical data are obtained
- Encourage greater municipal reporting for all products
- Require stewardship programs to conduct education outreach
- Determine factors contributing to the high performance of EPR programs in others states
- Consider expanding entities covered by stewardship legislation
- Evaluate the extent to which electronic recovery rates are lower and more mature programs due to product lightweighting
A copy of the Report can be downloaded here.
The Between the Lines blog is made available by Mitchell, Williams, Selig, Gates & Woodyard, P.L.L.C. and the law firm publisher. The blog site is for educational purposes only, as well as to give general information and a general understanding of the law. This blog is not intended to provide specific legal advice. Use of this blog site does not create an attorney client relationship between you and Mitchell Williams or the blog site publisher. The Between the Lines blog site should not be used as a substitute for legal advice from a licensed professional attorney in your state.