New Jersey Bill Targets Source Reduction in Plastic Packaging

A New Jersey bill aimed at source reduction in plastic packaging, as well as other goals, was introduced by Sen. Bob Smith Oct. 1 and currently sits in committee. Senate Bill 4656, or the “Protect our Health from Plastics Act,” would require plastic packaging producers to gradually reduce their production of those materials each year and would prohibit the presence of certain substances in packaging. It also would define forms of advanced, or chemical, recycling as a means of “disposal.” Included in the bill are primary, secondary and tertiary packaging. Each producer of plastic packaging would be required to register with the state’s Department of Environmental Protection (DEP), pay a registration fee and provide information about the amount of plastic packaging they produce, which would serve as a baseline. There would be exemptions for producers that can prove they realized less than $1 million in total gross revenue during the prior calendar year or used less than 1 ton of covered plastic packaging material in total during the prior year.

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