Legislative Report
Paper Recycling Is a Success Story – Lawmakers Should Recognize Its Accomplishments BY TERRY WEBBER
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to sustainability. And we are further iven the central importance of bolstering America’s recycling success strong and efficient recycling by pledging $5 billion in manufacsystems to our collective sustainturing infrastructure investments by ability endeavors, recycling is rightfully at 2024. These funds—totaling nearly the forefront of our national conversation about climate change and waste reduction. $2.5 million per day in sustainability investments—will improve the paper As policymakers consider proposals to industry’s capacity to use recycled fibers promote a more circular economy and in our products by approximately 8 sustainable future, it is critical that they million tons, a roughly 25% increase recognize the paper industry’s sustained over 2020 levels. recycling infrastructure investments and America’s paper recycling industry is public education programs and their thriving and poised to grow even more significant contributions to the tremenefficient in the years ahead. dous achievements of our national paper However, lawmakers in some states recycling system. have proposed legislation known as Thanks to these initiatives, the “extended producer responsibility,” or overall recycling rate for paper has met EPR, which could imperil this progress. or exceeded 63% every year since 2009. EPR policies essentially shift the costs This robust rate has allowed the U.S. to reach a significant milestone: Today, more of recycling responsibilities to the manufacturers and distributors of products than 50 million tons of paper is recovin an effort to boost recycling rates for ered annually for recycling—totaling difficult-to-recycle materials and their more than 1 billion tons over the past end markets. EPR policies must be caretwo decades. fully designed to consider the disparate Much of this success is due to the recycling systems and needs of different widespread availability of recycling materials. EPR could undermine paper programs. The 2021 American Forest & recycling by shifting investments away Paper Association Access to Recycling Study from industry infrastructure to cover found that 94% of American households new regulatory costs. have access to paper and paperboard Colorado is the most recent state recycling through either curbside or to pass an EPR scheme. The law does drop-off programs. These community recycling programs make it easy to recycle not account for the paper industry’s significant investments in manufacpaper products. Thanks in part to the turing capacity, utilizing recovered paper industry’s efforts, 14 million more paper, and its commitment to recycling. people have access to curbside recycling More paper by weight gets recycled programs today than in 2014. from municipal waste streams each These significant achievements highyear than aluminum, glass, steel, and light the paper industry’s commitment
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BOXSCORE July/August 2022
plastic combined. Nationally, the recycling rate of cardboard—the paper material most likely to be impacted by EPR policies—is more than 91%. Last year, the paper recycling rate climbed to an impressive 68%, on par with the highest rate previously achieved. These already robust recycling rates are unlikely to be improved by new regulations. EPR policies could also impose additional economic costs on consumers at a time of financial hardship and record inflation. Such policies amount to what is essentially a regressive tax that could hurt low-income households the most. In some states where EPR has already passed, studies estimate that monthly costs have increased for families of four between $32 and $59. Lawmakers should carefully craft legislation to recognize our industry’s leadership and not hinder continued investment in recycling. The message is loud and clear: Paper recycling is widely accessible and highly successful, and paper products already play a critical role in our collective sustainability efforts. It is important that we support a regulatory environment that recognizes and facilitates these accomplishments rather than hindering them. Terry Webber is vice president of industry affairs at the American Forest & Paper Association.
