California Bills That Ban Single-use Plastics Are Not Approved

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The California legislature recessed for the year, without approving the bills that would have banned single-use plastic bags. Both the bills- Senate Bill 54 (SB 54) and Assembly Bill 1080 (AB 1080)- will now be considered on January 6, 2020 when the legislature reconvenes.

The two bills had sought to eliminate as much as 75% of single-use plastic containers by 2030, thus laying the foundation for a new recycling initiative. The bills were aimed at boosting the efforts of recycling industry, which collects only a fraction of the materials collected. As per estimates, approximately 30 million tons of plastic is discarded every year by the U.S. alone. Also, the worldwide plastic production is expected to triple from its current level by 2050.

Several organizations including the Grocery Manufacturers Association, Athens Services and the California Refuse Recycling Council had submitted letters opposing the bills. Concerns were being raised over the authority granted to CalRecycle in overseeing compliance and also over the lack of minute details as to how the bill would be administered.

Meantime, the Plastics Industry Association reaffirmed its opposition to the bills, stating that there were some fundamental flaws in the bill, which would prevent it from getting implemented.

The authors of the bill had managed to garner support of the Grocery Manufacturers Association and Dow Chemical which initially had opposed the bill. Several other large players including American Chemistry Council, Procter & Gamble and Walmart too had withdrawn their opposition towards the end.