Kristine Kubat, executive director of Hawaii’s statewide recycling organization, Recycle Hawaii, presents her thoughts on EPR legislation in Resource Recycling Magazine.
In the article, Kristine introduces her concept of “transitional EPR, the idea that producers should not be expected to pay for downstream operations in perpetuity. What we should expect instead is willingness for them to reimburse municipalities for the costs associated with transitioning to a world in which products and packaging are readily repaired, reused or recycled.”
Kubat believes we need to “move forward on what unites us,” concluding that a “national, unified standard for less wasteful packaging is the place to begin. Let’s work together to provide producers the certainty they need to effectively innovate upstream and create space for the downstream waste-scape to take shape.”
ILSR has worked closely with Recycle Hawaii in preparing the Update to the Zero Waste Plan for Hawaii Island (1) , Memorandum on Gasification and Pyrolysis (2) and coordinating webinars on EPR and reuse for the Office of State Senator Laura Ocasio.
1) The original Zero Waste Plan for Hawaii Island was prepared by Richard Anthony and Associates, Hidden Resources and ILSR in 20009. The Update will be released presently by Recycle Hawaii.
2) https://ilsr.org/ilsr-advises-hawaii-to-avoid-solid-waste-combustion-as-a-waste-management-strategy/
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