California Governor signs package of legislation to boost recycling

California Governor Gavin Newsom in October signed a package of legislation designed to raise consumer awareness and industry accountability around packaging and recycling issues.

Newsom said the bills will combat plastic pollution and advance a more sustainable and renewable economy.

Among the measures signed is SB 343 by Sen. Ben Allen (D-Santa Monica), which requires products to meet benchmarks in order to be advertised or labeled as recyclable, helping consumers to clearly identify which products are recyclable in California, according to a news release.

“California’s hallmark is solving problems through innovation, and we’re harnessing that spirit to reduce the waste filling our landfills and generating harmful pollutants driving the climate crisis,” Newsom said in the release. “With today’s action and bold investments to transform our recycling systems, the state continues to lead the way to a more sustainable and resilient future for the planet and all our communities.”

Allen said the law broadens the existing Truth in Environmental Advertising law, which prohibits use of the word “recyclable” on unrecyclable products, to say manufacturers cannot use the chasing-arrows symbol (also known as the recycling symbol) or any other suggestion that a material is easily recyclable if it is not.

“Consumers are being misled by the placement of the recycling symbol on items that aren’t actually recyclable under real-world conditions,” Allen who chairs the Senate Committee on Environmental Quality, said in the release. “By enforcing truth in labeling and empowering consumers to make informed decisions, this measure will reduce contamination in the recycling stream and improve the sorting process, which incidentally translates to big savings for ratepayers and local governments.”

According to an analysis by jdsupra.com, California’s SB 343 law gives CalRecycle until 1 January 2024, to develop a list of commonly recovered materials at recycling facilities in the state.

 Based on that information, the law provides that a product may only be labeled “recyclable” if (1) that product is collected in one of the curbside programs that cover at least 60% of the state’s population, (2) can be sorted into defined streams, and (3) can be reclaimed at appropriate facilities, according to the analysis. 

Packaging manufacturers would then have 18 months after the list’s release (and after each subsequent update to the list) to ensure that their products are in compliance. according to the analysis.

Governor Newsom also signed AB 881 by Assemblymember Lorena Gonzalez (D-San Diego), which discourages practices resulting in exporting plastic that becomes waste and ensures that only exports of truly recycled plastics count toward state waste reduction and recycling metrics.

AB 1201, also signed by Newsom, was put forward by Assemblymember Phil Ting (D-San Francisco) and strengthens labeling requirements to ensure products labeled “compostable” are actually compostable and to keep harmful chemicals out of California’s compost stream, according to the release.