REQUESTING THE DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT DIVISION TO CONDUCT A STUDY ON THE BENEFITS AND COSTS TO IMPLEMENT EXTENDED PRODUCER RESPONSIBILITY IN THE STATE.

THE SENATE S.R. NO. 73 THIRTY-FIRST LEGISLATURE, 2021 STATE OF HAWAII SENATE RESOLUTION requesting the department of health environmental management division to conduct a study on the benefits and costs to implement extended producer responsibility in the State . WHEREAS, the State has a duty to protect the environment, economy, and public health; and WHEREAS, globally, only nine percent of all the plastic ever produced has been recycled, while the other ninety-one percent is in landfills, has been incinerated, or is dispersed throughout the environment; and WHEREAS, the oceans are now awash with at least one hundred fifty million tons of plastic waste, an amount that researchers say will soon surpass the weight of all the fish in the sea; and WHEREAS, a 2019 study reported that, globally, marine plastic is responsible for an estimated lost of $500,000,000,000 to $2,500,000,000,000 annually in value benefits derived from marine ecosystem services because of direct and indirect impacts on tourism, transport and fisheries, and human health; and WHEREAS, Hawaii is especially vulnerable to the loss of natural capital caused by plastic due to the State's reliance on natural resources and marine ecosystems for the tourism and fisheries industries; and WHEREAS, plastic micro-particles, which are present in air, water, and food sources, can introduce toxins into a person's body with unknown impacts to human health; and WHEREAS, starting in the 1970s, the plastics industry deployed strategic public relations campaigns designed to convince consumers that their individual actions are a solution for plastic pollution; and WHEREAS, the plastics industry and product manufacturers avoided accountability by passing on the external costs of plastic pollution to local, state, and federal governments, as well as local businesses and organizations, through expenditures on waste collection and disposal, habitat mitigation, and damage to natural resources; and WHEREAS, China was previously the biggest buyer of recyclables worldwide, but recently implemented new restrictions for imported waste; and WHEREAS, as a result, Hawaii's counties are left with fewer and more expensive options for recyclables, leading to even more of these materials ending up in landfills and resulting in growing costs for locally managed recycling programs; and WHEREAS, in 2018, Kauai County changed the plastic recycling program to only accept polyethylene terephthalate and high-density polyethylene plastic bottles and jars and eliminated the collection of plastic clamshells and food trays; and WHEREAS, in 2019, Hawaii County scaled back the types of materials accepted for recycling, doing away with plastic bottles and containers, paper, and non-corrugated cardboard; and WHEREAS, the high cost of recycling and the narrowing market for recyclable materials presents an opportunity to pivot away from a reliance on individual recycling and toward a model that places more responsibility for the end-of-life management on the producer; and WHEREAS, producers should internalize the environmental and public health costs of their products and design better products and systems that reduce waste at the source and encourage the reuse of more waste materials; and WHEREAS, making producers responsible for the true cost of the goods they create will incentivize innovation in packaging design that minimizes impacts, promotes the use of recycled content in plastic packaging, and promotes reuse; and WHEREAS, an extended producer responsibility program in the State would serve these goals, reduce taxpayers' burden, and ensure better waste management services; now, therefore, BE IT RESOLVED by the Senate of the Thirty-first Legislature of the State of Hawaii, Regular Session of 2021, that the Department of Health Environmental Management Division is requested to conduct a study on the benefits and costs to implement extended producer responsibility in the State; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Health Environmental Management Division is requested to analyze the following in its study: (1) The implementation of extended producer responsibility in the State, independent of other state and federal packaging extended producer responsibility initiatives; (2) The implementation of extended producer responsibility packaging in the State in conjunction or synchronicity with other state and federal initiatives; (3) The best science available relating to extended producer responsibility and best packaging practices; (4) The costs and benefits to all stakeholders, including but not limited to the environment, consumers, taxpayers, government, and businesses; (5) The potential benefits and drawbacks of implementing extended producer responsibility for packaging in the State; (6) The feasibility of implementing extended producer responsibility for packaging in the State; (7) The projected timeline for the implementation of extended producer responsibility for packaging in the State; (8) The expected savings, if any, for the State and counties in costs relating to waste management and recycling in the implementation of extended producer responsibility packaging in the State; and (9) Any other issues the Department of Health deems relevant; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that for the purposes of the study, the Department of Health Environmental Management Division is requested to consult with other state departments and community organizations; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Health Environmental Management Division is requested to utilize $125,000 for the purposes of the study; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Department of Health Environmental Management Division is requested to submit a report of its findings and recommendations, including any proposed legislation, to the Legislature no later than twenty days prior to the convening of the Regular Session of 2024; and BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that certified copies of this Resolution be transmitted to the Governor, Director of Health, Mayor of the City and County of Honolulu, Mayor of the County of Hawaii, Mayor of the County of Maui, and Mayor of the County of Kauai. OFFERED BY: _____________________________ Report Title: Extended Producer Responsibility; Department of Health; Study