EPA Releases 2030 National Recycling Strategy, Puts Chemical Recycling on the Plan

Introduction

The U.
S.
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on Monday released its 2030 National Recycling Strategy, a roadmap for the country to achieve its 50 percent recycling rate goal by 2030
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The master plan focuses on implementation steps to achieve recycling rates, which the regulator promises are just "part of a larger effort" to tackle climate change at a higher level
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The final version, released on U.
S.
Recycling Day, includes five main goals to make progress on the current recycling rate of 32 percent
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These include improving the market for recyclables, increasing and improving collection, reducing pollution in rivers, and developing policies with a more comprehensive, circular economy approach beyond recycling systems, while also requiring standardized measurement practices and increased data collection needed to achieve goals
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The National Recycling Strategy is a more detailed update of the EPA's draft recycling strategy, which the agency first released in 2020 during the Trump administration
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Here are some highlights from the announcement:

New emphasis on circular economy thinking and environmental justice

The plan's new focus on circular economy considerations is a major change from the draft
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The report mentions new targets to reduce the climate impact of "material production, consumption, use and disposal", saying materials account for about half of global greenhouse gas emissions
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That goal would go hand in hand with President Biden's pledge to reduce net economy-wide greenhouse gas emissions by 50% to 52% below 2005 levels by 2030
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In the strategy document, the EPA links achieving a circular economy and environmental justice, saying the two goals serve as the basis for creating a "restorative or design-regenerative" recycling system
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EPA Administrator Michael Regan emphasized that infrastructure projects, research and improvement projects must involve stakeholders from low-income or so-called "environmental justice" communities
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He said the National Recycling Strategy was only one part of this larger circular economy view, calling the document "the first part" of a multi-step series to achieve broad environmental goals
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In a statement, ISRI President Robin Wiener praised the initiative, saying: "It states that recycling is part or one of the tools of a successful materials management infrastructure, which both prioritizes market demand for recycled commodities and The paramount importance of designing recyclable products has been prioritized
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David Biderman, CEO of the North American Solid Waste Association, said in a statement he was pleased to see "EPA expand the draft National Recycling Strategy to include climate change, environmental justice and other topics
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After careful consideration, chemical recycling is mentioned in the plan

The final version of the plan re-references chemical recycling as a possible waste diversion strategy
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The process uses techniques such as pyrolysis to break down plastics down to the molecular level for use in new plastic products or fuels
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The EPA plans to study infrastructure that also includes landfills, incinerators, transfer stations and MRIFs to determine whether such operations would disproportionately impact environmental justice communities
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The American Chemistry Council (ACC) applauds the inclusion of chemical recycling in the program
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Joshua Baca, vice president of plastics at ACC, said in a statement that the plan will make it possible to "transform plastic recycling rates in the United States," adding that the approach is "critical to achieving a circular economy for plastics
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" ACC has worked in several states this year, but some on behalf of environmental groups have opposed the practice, saying the process used to break down plastic down to the molecular level is not the right approach and could also have harmful effects on nearby communities
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The EPA stated, "Many stakeholders have commented on whether to include chemical recycling in the strategic scope, and when considering ways to sustainably manage materials, all options to include chemical recycling should be discussed
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Therefore, chemical recycling is in the scope of this strategy.
part, and further discussion is welcome
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Elsewhere in the document, EPA lists a number of other policy drivers as worthy of future research and analysis, including content requirements for recycling, recycling, bottle bills, EPR, packaging fees, landfill fees, ready-to-use Minimum quality standards for pay-as-you-go models and MRIFs
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"Governments and other entities have adopted a variety of policy approaches to address the challenges facing recycling systems
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Analyzing the effectiveness of different policies can help inform policymakers across the country,
" the agency said
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Other jobs

The plan has a separate climate impact reduction target, which aims to study how material consumption affects climate change
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The agency said it also plans to work on strategies to reduce waste generation
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Environmental advocates have criticized the national strategy for not making material reduction a larger focus from the start
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"It's a total missed opportunity because it doesn't start at the source with reduction, reduction, reuse, refill and repair first," Sanborn said
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In addition, the agency has committed to work on the following topics:

• Sustainable product design

• Reuse strategy

• Strategies for other “critical materials” such as plastics, food, cement and concrete, and electronics
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Waterhouse said the national recycling strategy "should not be seen as the end, but as the beginning", adding that it was the first in a series of policies aimed at "addressing some of the biggest environmental challenges we face".

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