EPR Program Created by the Petroleum and Automotive industry Approved in Colorado

SEATTLE (Waste Advantage): The Lubricants Packaging Management Association (LPMA) powered by Interchange 360, announced that the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment (CDPHE) has officially approved its Individual Program Plan (IPP), making LPMA the first industry-led Producer Responsibility Organization (PRO) to secure approval under Colorado’s Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) law.

Colorado is the first state to give producers the choice to comply through independent programs rather than a single, one-size-fits-all PRO. LPMA’s approved IPP will manage petroleum- and automotive-related packaging, including oil and antifreeze containers, through a compliance model built by and for the lubricants industry.

“In my experience with EPR, it’s quite important that the focus is on results. The law shouldn’t prescribe how the results are met, but instead allow industry to be creative and innovative in developing a program that is highly accountable to the results,” said David Lawes, CEO of LPMA powered by Interchange 360. “Colorado’s EPR approach, allowing independent programs and providing producers with choices on how to comply, is best in the country. It sets the national benchmark for how producer responsibility can be done right.”

The approval underscores the value of independent, sector-specific compliance models. Lubricant packaging presents distinct challenges, including residual product and hazardous material handling, that general-purpose packaging programs, such as those serving all consumer packaging, are not equipped to address. LPMA’s model ensures compliance solutions that are safe, practical and effective.

LPMA is also active in other states with existing EPR laws, including California, Maine, Minnesota, Vermont and Oregon, and is preparing for additional rollouts as legislation expands nationwide. “Colorado’s approval shows what’s possible when regulators and industry collaborate,” explained Lawes. “By working together, producers can cost-efficiently address our unique packaging needs and develop circular solutions. This approval is a win for producers, for Colorado and for the future of EPR in the United States. Colorado has shown real leadership by giving producers choice and flexibility, and LPMA is ready to prove that industry-led programs deliver the best results through an efficient, science-based, and results-driven compliance pathway that also fosters innovation in recycling.”

Courtesy: www.wasteadvantagemag.com