Dive Brief:
- Packaging stakeholders representing plastics, aluminum and flexibles dominated the list of supporters of a bill reintroduced in the U.S. House of Representatives that could establish U.S. EPA grants aimed at improving access to recycling “in underserved areas, including rural communities.”
- U.S. Representatives Mariannette Miller-Meeks, R-Iowa, and Mikie Sherrill, D-N.J., introduced the Recycling Infrastructure and Accessibility Act, or RIAA, this week, which focuses on recycling infrastructure for communities that lack more than one MRF within a 75-mile radius.
- Grants worth between $500,000 and $15 million could be awarded to states, local governments, tribes and public-private partnerships for projects that increase the number of transfer stations, expand curbside recycling programs or reduce costs for collecting and transporting recyclable materials.
Dive Insight:
RIAA was introduced in 2022 and reintroduced in 2023. The bill, along with the Recycling and Composting Accountability Act, ultimately passed the Senate but not the House. Those two bills were included in a broader federal budget bill in December that stalled, not making it into an eventual government funding deal. Together, these bills are again in play in the Senate under the bipartisan Strategies to Eliminate Waste and Accelerate Recycling Development, or the Steward Act, introduced in February.
The push for an EPA-established pilot program comes as the agency is shrinking, with the the White House foreseeing possible spending cuts of 65%. But lawmakers tout potential economic benefits from boosting infrastructure.
“With increased rural recycling, America can reduce its reliance on foreign countries by keeping more secondary aluminum and other infinitely recyclable products in the supply chain,” said Miller-Meeks, who chairs the Conservative Climate Caucus, in a statement.
Packaging groups spotlighted the potential to improve circular outcomes for their packaging designs and reclaim more material.
“As we aim to make our packaging more recyclable, reusable and compostable, we recognize that it isn’t just about designing the right packaging,” said Robert Scott, president of R&D, North America, at Kraft Heinz. “We must also focus on expanding recycling access to help divert more recyclables from the landfill.”
According to Kraft Heinz’ most recent ESG report, covering 2023, it considered 87% of its packaging to be recyclable, reusable or compostable. The company noted that the remaining portion of its portfolio is largely film and flexible materials that are valuable in food packaging but that are not well-managed by existing recycling infrastructure.
The Flexible Packaging Association believes RIAA could allow the EPA to explore ways to retrieve “critical feedstock.”
FPA CEO Dan Felton said Friday that one example of a positive outcome for flexible packaging could be public-private partnership work that supports store drop-offs.
Aluminum stakeholders Novelis, the Can Manufacturers Institute, the Aluminum Association and can maker Ball also registered their support.
John Campbell, vice president of government relations at Ball, called the legislation “a critical first step to improving recycling rates in the U.S. and capturing the approximately $1 billion worth of recyclable aluminum beverage packaging that ends up in landfills each year.”
CMI also highlighted in an email Friday that recycled cans serve as a domestic source of critical material, lessening reliance on imports and creating resilient supply chains.
Consumer products company SC Johnson sees promise. “I’m hopeful this bill will be an important catalyst for additional policies, like extended producer responsibility, to increase recycling rates and contribute to a circular economy,” said CEO Fisk Johnson in a statement.
Johnson testified before the Senate Committee on Environment & Public Works a year ago advocating for packaging EPR to be handled at the national level. “We need federal regulation to avoid over-regulation,” he said at the time, expressing urgency to get ahead of emerging state policies.
The Plastics Industry Association praised Steward and RIAA on Friday. “These legislative initiatives represent crucial progress toward achieving a circular economy, keeping valuable resources in use, fostering innovation, creating jobs, and bolstering the U.S. manufacturing sector,” CEO Matt Seaholm said in a statement.
Another packaging-related bill introduced in this Congress is the Democrat-backed Farewell to Foam Act. Federal labeling legislation could also yet be introduced this year.
