New York State targets 85% waste reduction by 2050 amid fears of petrochemical industry interference

04 Jul 2023 --- The US state of New York has set a goal of reducing its solid waste by 85% by 2050, which would make the state a national leader in waste prevention, reuse and recycling. But non-profit organization Just Zero has submitted concerns that the plans will treat waste as a valuable resource, which could prevent overall reduction. 

Just Zero says it “applauds” the New York Department of Environmental Conservation for proposing “an ambitious yet achievable waste plan that prioritizes waste reduction and public participation.” 

But the organization also worries that using terms like “circular economy” and “sustainable materials management” in the plan could lead to pervasive industry interference. 

Speaking to Packaging Insights, Kevin Budris, advocacy director at Just Zero, says these “buzz phrases” have been “so thoroughly co-opted by polluting industries that profit off single-use plastics and other waste that its use raises red flags.” 

“Terms like ‘circular economy’ don’t necessarily mean incineration or other dangerous practices like so-called ‘advanced recycling.’ There are plenty of organizations and companies working on real zero waste solutions that use the phrase ‘circular economy,’” he says. 

However, fossil fuel industries also employ such terms, which could mean that the state’s plans fall into polluting practices and hinder solid reduction goals. 

“There is nothing ‘circular’ about waste, single-use products or packaging. Waste cannot be sustainably managed but must be reduced and eliminated,” asserts Budris. 

An 85% reduction in solid waste by 2050 would make New York State a national leader in sustainability.New York’s plan
The Draft Solid Waste Management Plan incorporates legislative recommendations, including an extended producer responsibility for the packaging program and an improved food donation and food scraps recycling law. 

The New York State Legislature ended its 2023 legislative session earlier this month without passing any significant waste reduction or diversion reforms. 

“Whether New York can reach its goal of reducing waste by 85% will ultimately depend on whether the State Legislature takes action and creates bold, modern reuse, composting, recycling and waste prevention programs,” says Budris. 

“The legislature already missed opportunities to modernize New York’s bottle bill and to hold corporations accountable for their waste through the proposed Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act. Hopefully, this waste plan will help convince lawmakers to make real progress on reducing waste in New York.”

Reduction and opposition
Despite concerns over potential industry interference, Budris says New York’s draft solid waste plan incorporates many of the systems that can achieve the stated 85% waste reduction target. 

“States like New York can dramatically reduce their waste in a short amount of time if they ban all food waste and other organics from disposal,” he says.

This would also mean improving composting infrastructure, dramatically reducing single-use packaging through producer responsibility laws that mandate reduction and reuse, and implementing and modernizing container deposit programs. The central roadblock to such reforms will be from opposition from the petrochemical industries, he says. 

“Deep-pocketed industries that profit off waste are the biggest challenge in implementing the right systems to reduce waste. For example, while New York residents and environmental advocates were pushing lawmakers to pass the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act last month, the American Chemistry Council spent hundreds of thousands of dollars on lobbying efforts to stop the bill from passing.”

“The fossil fuel industry, plastic makers, and waste companies don’t want us to make real progress on reducing waste, and they’re happy to spend big to stop common-sense reforms that protect communities and our climate,” concludes Budris. 

By Louis Gore-Langton

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