EPR is gaining in California - Report from PPI

[Gary Liss <gary@garyliss.com>]

Apologies for Cross-postings

From: "Bill Sheehan" <bill@productpolicy.org>
Date: Thu, 19 Apr 2007 09:34:19 -0400

Momentum for bringing extended producer responsibility
(EPR) to California is increasing.  The movement is being led
by local governments facing an increasing number of landfill
bans on hazardous products.  It has only been 11 months since
local governments in Northern California came together to
form the California Product Stewardship Council (CPSC) with
the intention of creating a statewide organization.  Product
Policy Institute is assisting the development of CPSC, which
is modeled on the successful Northwest Product Stewardship
Council.

A major breakthrough happened last month when the board
of the Regional Council of Rural Counties voted to adopt a
strong EPR resolution.  That?s significant because RCRC
represents 30 counties (more than half of California?s
58 counties) and they include some of the more conservative
parts of the state. These counties understand that they don?t
have the resources to effectively manage the flood of hazardous
products and that requiring them to enforce landfill bans on
hazardous products is an unfunded mandate.  At the same time,
the board of a waste management authority representing
22 counties within RCRC (ESJPA) voted to participate in CPSC. 

Here?s some other recent developments:

     -- The state waste agency (CIWMB) adopted a strategic
     directive with the strongest language yet in the U.S.
     supporting EPR.  It directs the agency to ?foster cradle-to-
     cradle producer responsibility?? that results ?in producer-
     financed and producer-managed systems for product
     discards.? (Feb 2007)

     -- The first local EPR Implementation Plan was adopted 
     by Sonoma County (Feb 2007) -- following a half dozen 
     local EPR resolutions and ordinances adopted in the last
     year.

     -- CPSC launched its new web site at
     http://caproductstewardship.org (March 2007).  Links to
     all of the above items can be found there.

*********************************
Bill Sheehan, Director
Product Policy Institute
PO Box 48433
Athens, GA 30604 USA
Tel:  1+706-613-0710
Email: bill@productpolicy.org
Web: www.ProductPolicy.org
*********************************

Gary Liss       
916-652-7850    
Fax: 916-652-0485
www.garyliss.com