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Title: Sustainability News to Know

Thesis: The paper discusses an article on how Oregon and Maine manufactures are putting forth laws to hold producers accountable for the recycling process.

1. Introduction

1. The environment
2. Thesis statement

2. The Article

1. How packaging undergoes recycling
2. The banning of import packaging
3. The implementation of laws by the states to enhance recycling
4. Implementation of laws by Oregon and Maine to help in recycling

3. My Perspective

1. Environmentally friendly packaging
2. Oregon and Maine working with the government

4. Why People Should Care

1. To stop pollution

5. Conclusion
6. References

Sustainability News to Know

The paper discusses the article ‘Packaging Generates a lot of Waste – now Maine and Oregon want Manufacturers to foot the bill for getting rid of It’. It’s written by Jessica Heiges and Kate O’Neill. The article was posted on a website called ‘The Conversation’ on 8^th September 2021 at 2:26 pm SAST, and this is the direct link to the source;

Introduction

Taking care of the environment is very critical to the health of the planet, including people and animals. Therefore, when plastics pollute the environment and bring about climate change, the planet and all living in it are unsafe. Markedly, taking care of the environment mainly lies in the hands of the people responsible for the many plastics around the planet. These people are the producers of such plastics; therefore, it is only reasonable to help in the recycling process. Thus, this paper discusses an article on how Oregon and Maine manufactures are putting forth laws to hold producers accountable for the recycling process.

The Article

The article is about how packaging generates a lot of waste and how Oregon and Maine manufacturers want to eliminate it. Moreover, the authors point out how the packaging accounts for 85% of solid waste, and only 53% of it ends up in recycling bins while 25% of the materials collected go through recycling, whereas the rest ends up in landfills (Heiges & O’Neill, 2021). Before 2018, the United States used to export most of its recyclable materials to China. However, China banned the importation of scrap, and as a result, some of the states in the United States came up with laws to control the waste. These laws targeted the manufacturers of hard-to-manage goods such as mattresses and electronic wastes. The manufacturers were to control how these products go into the recycling process after their use.

Equally, Maine and Oregon manufactures have come up with laws that make consumer packaging manufacturers such as cardboard, plastic wrap, and food containers responsible for recycling these products. The laws are purposed to be in effect by mid-2024 and mid-2025 for Maine and Oregon, respectively (Heiges & O’Neill, 2021). Additionally, these laws to be implemented by Oregon and Maine manufacturers are advantageous as they shift the weight of recycling from consumers and the local government, and instead, to the producers of these waste materials. Moreover, the laws that the two manufacturers are implementing are part of the Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), which is a strategy to reduce the impact of products on the environment by making producers accountable and responsible for the product’s whole life cycle. The expected end game of this strategy is that the producers shall feel the impact of recycling their products and search for alternative and safer recycling methods.

Moreover, there is no clear indication of the effectiveness and an assured success of the EPR strategy. However, a mattress company in Connecticut experienced increased rates of recycling from 8.7% to 63.5 % (Heiges & O’Neill, 2021). Additionally, the authors of the article argue that for this strategy to be fully effective, there must be some observation and regulation of how producers are following the set laws. The primary reason for this is because producers hold power over the economy and how it works; therefore, they can undermine this law.

My Perspective

In my perspective, I think that holding the producers accountable is not the only way that can solve recycling problems. Manufacturers and policymakers should put laws that also inhibit the producers from making packages with materials that degrade the environment. Similarly, the manufacturers, Oregon and Maine, should work hand in hand with the government to ensure that the implemented laws are followed.

Why People Should Care

Furthermore, people should care about recycling because it reduces pollution. By reducing global warming and climate change, people have better chances of living longer on earth and protecting the planet for future generations.

Conclusion

To conclude, the banning of recyclable wastes brought forth the making of laws by both the local state governments and manufacturers such as Oregon and Maine. The use of the ERP strategy as a tool to make producers reconsider their packaging methods is both brilliant and ingenious. Additionally, shifting the recycling load from consumers and governments to producers is also an effective method to control pollution. Moreover, there are other ways that local governments and manufacturers such as Oregon and Maine can make producers make the recycling rates increase.