Page 76 - Plastics News January 2023

IN THE NEWS

Environmentalists nab win on chemical recycling in federal budget

To keep plastics out of our ocean,
“we need to make less plastic, and
better recycle what we already have,”
she said. “Expanding chemical recy-
cling will kill any chance we have of
accomplishing either.”

In a post on Twitter, Brandon thanked
Rep. Jared Huffman, D-Calif., for get-
ting the language in the budget bill.
Huffman is one of the lead sponsors of
the Break Free from Plastic Pollution
Act and the Protecting Communities
from Plastics Act.

According to Ocean Conservancy, the
budget language specifically directs
EPA to “consider the emissions, dis-
proportionate impacts, and lack of
he $1.7 trillion spending plan on that question in 2021, saying it was circularity in its ongoing rulemaking”
Tthat passed Congress Dec. 23 getting more questions about how and noted concerns over the growth
includes a victory for environmental the technologies were being used for of the technologies in handling plastic
groups in the policy fight over chemi- plastics recycling and finding “consid- waste.
cal recycling. erable confusion” in the market.
These chemical recycling technol-
The last-minute budget plan, which Now, the new budget has Congress “ogies do not result in the recovery
avoids a government shutdown for making a “request” to EPA to maintain of plastic materials to advance a cir-
the holidays and keeps agencies fund- the regulatory status quo, according cular economy and the facilities con-
ed through September, includes regu- to a statement from the environmen- tribute to climate change and impose
latory language on chemical recycling tal group Ocean Conservancy. disproportionate health burdens on
that’s been pushed by environmental the communities where they are lo-
groups. This boils down to Congress for- cated,” the budget bill said.
“mally recognizing that harmful
Specifically, the budget legislation for- chemical recycling technologies are The American Chemistry Council de-
mally urges the Environmental Pro- not true recycling and do not move us clined to comment but it and other
tection Agency to keep regulating closer to a circular plastics economy,” plastics groups have said the technol-
pyrolysis and gasification technologies said Anja Brandon, the group’s asso- ogies can be a key part of efforts to
as municipal waste combustion op- ciate director of U.S. plastics policy. recycle more plastic and have noted
erations, rather than as manufacturing “These technologies emit dangerous that EPA has included it within its pro-
facilities, as plastics industry groups greenhouse gasses and toxic chemi- posals for a national recycling strategy.
want. cals while enabling industry to con-
tinue unfettered plastics production.”
The EPA opened a formal rulemaking

76 PLASTICS NEWS January 2023