Putting Packaging Waste in its Place: The Case for Federal Legislation
By Jonathan Schneeweiss
INTRODUCTION
Few people would disagree that packaging has become an integral part of contemporary life. Among other things, it protects food from spoilage, reduces product breakage, prevents the spread of disease, and facilitates transportation. But as with most things in this world, packaging has its downside, too. In particular, it generates a great deal of waste when its useful life is over. This waste presents serious problems for the municipalities that must dispose of it, especially where landfill space is diminishing. And it is not just disposal space that is problematic; packaging waste also contributes to contaminated landfill leachate, toxic incinerator emissions and ash residues, and handling and transportation costs.
In response to these local pressures, many states and localities are moving to regulate packaging waste. These laws and ordinances take many forms including recycling requirements, toxic content limitations, and packaging bans. They do, however, have something in common: they tend to focus narrowly on specific local or regional conditions. This creates two distinct problems. First, this narrow focus often blinds lawmakers to the secondary effects of their decisions, and as a result their laws are frequently ineffective or even counterproductive. Second, packaging waste solutions specifically tailored to local or regional needs result in a patchwork of rules and regulations that can drastically increase costs for businesses operating in multiple jurisdictions.
This article argues that comprehensive federal packaging legislation is necessary to correct the problems created by these state and local initiatives. It goes on to examine several possible legislative approaches and recommend a course of action. First, Part II discusses the costs and benefits of packaging in today's society and economy by way of background. Part III makes the case for a federal packaging law by analyzing two particular initiatives--Maine's aseptic packaging ban and the Conference of Northeastern Governors' Model Toxics in Packaging Law--to demonstrate the inefficiency and lack of uniformity caused by state and local initiatives. Part IV reviews the packaging waste control efforts of three European entities--the European Union, the United Kingdom, and Germany--and highlights some features of their programs that could be employed in the United States. Finally, Part V recommends a course of action for drafting and passing a federal packaging bill that both protects the environment and provides uniformity for U.S. companies.
Few people would disagree that packaging has become an integral part of contemporary life. Among other things, it protects food from spoilage, reduces product breakage, prevents the spread of disease, and facilitates transportation. But as with most things in this world, packaging has its downside, too. In particular, it generates a great deal of waste when its useful life is over. This waste presents serious problems for the municipalities that must dispose of it, especially where landfill space is diminishing. And it is not just disposal space that is problematic; packaging waste also contributes to contaminated landfill leachate, toxic incinerator emissions and ash residues, and handling and transportation costs.
In response to these local pressures, many states and localities are moving to regulate packaging waste. These laws and ordinances take many forms including recycling requirements, toxic content limitations, and packaging bans. They do, however, have something in common: they tend to focus narrowly on specific local or regional conditions. This creates two distinct problems. First, this narrow focus often blinds lawmakers to the secondary effects of their decisions, and as a result their laws are frequently ineffective or even counterproductive. Second, packaging waste solutions specifically tailored to local or regional needs result in a patchwork of rules and regulations that can drastically increase costs for businesses operating in multiple jurisdictions.
This article argues that comprehensive federal packaging legislation is necessary to correct the problems created by these state and local initiatives. It goes on to examine several possible legislative approaches and recommend a course of action. First, Part II discusses the costs and benefits of packaging in today's society and economy by way of background. Part III makes the case for a federal packaging law by analyzing two particular initiatives--Maine's aseptic packaging ban and the Conference of Northeastern Governors' Model Toxics in Packaging Law--to demonstrate the inefficiency and lack of uniformity caused by state and local initiatives. Part IV reviews the packaging waste control efforts of three European entities--the European Union, the United Kingdom, and Germany--and highlights some features of their programs that could be employed in the United States. Finally, Part V recommends a course of action for drafting and passing a federal packaging bill that both protects the environment and provides uniformity for U.S. companies.
