The California Integrated Waste Management Board is required to publish the annual recycling rate for all RPPCs and PET RPPCs. If the rate for all RPPCs is greater than 25% (55% for PET containers), companies are considered in compliance. Dropping below 25% triggers a number of requirements for packagers using nonexempt containers. The proposed legislation would remove from the recyling rate calculations products that are currently exempted—including food, cosmetics, and beverages.
The Alliance claims that containers of these products are, in fact, being recycled and that removing them from the calculation would cause the recycling rate to dip below 25%. The Board would then be required to conduct yearly certifications on hundreds of companies around the United States, with questionable environmental benefits. The entire program is “flawed, outdated, and overly burdensome on business,” said the Alliance.
