BILL ANALYSIS                                                                                                                                                                                                    Ó



                                                                    AB 1447


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          Date of Hearing:  April 27, 2015


                       ASSEMBLY COMMITTEE ON NATURAL RESOURCES


                                 Das Williams, Chair


          AB 1447  
          (Alejo) - As Amended April 9, 2015


          SUBJECT:  Solid waste:  food and beverage packaging


          SUMMARY:  Establishes minimum recycled content standards for  
          polyethylene terephthalate (PET) food and beverage packing and  
          expands the recycled content requirement for glass food and  
          beverage containers to containers manufactured out of state.  


          EXISTING LAW: 


          1)Pursuant to the California Beverage Container Recycling and  
            Litter Reduction Act (Bottle Bill): 

             a)   Requires beverage containers sold in this state to have  
               a California refund value (CRV) of 5 cents for containers  
               that hold fewer than 24 ounces and 10 cents for containers  
               that hold 24 ounces or more and requires a distributor to  
               pay a redemption payment to CalRecycle.  Continuously  
               appropriates these funds to CalRecycle for the payment of  
               refund values and processing fees.  
             b)   Requires that each new glass container manufactured in  
               the state contain a minimum of 35% postfilled (recycled  
               food container cullet) glass.  Requires every glass food,  
               drink, or beverage container manufacturer in the state to  








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               report the amount of tons of new glass and the tons of  
               postfilled glass used in the manufacturing of those  
               containers to CalRecycle every month.   


          2)Pursuant to the Integrated Waste Management Act (IWMA):  
             a)   Requires that local governments divert at least 50% of  
               solid waste from landfill disposal and establishes a  
               statewide goal that 75% of solid waste be diverted from  
               landfill disposal by 2020.
             b)   Requires that 50% of newsprint paper sold in the state  
               contain a minimum of 40% postconsumer recycled content.  


             c)   Requires that rigid plastic packaging containers sold in  
               the state contain a minimum of 25% postconsumer recycled  
               material and have a recycling rate of at least 45%.  


             d)   Requires that manufacturers of plastic trash bags that  
               are at or above 0.70 mils thick to  annually certify that  
               they comply with one of the following: 


               i)     That the bags sold in California contain a minimum  
                 of 10% recycled content; or,
               ii)    That all plastic products sold by the manufacturer  
                 in California contain a minimum of 30% recycled content.   



             e)   Requires that fiberglass sold in the state contain a  
               minimum of 30% postconsumer recycled content. 
             f)   Requires that expanded polystyrene loosefill packaging  
               (i.e., packing peanuts) sold in the state contain a minimum  
               of 60% recycled content.  


             g)   Prohibits a manufacturer or supplier from selling a  








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               plastic food or beverage container that is advertised with  
               a specific recycling content amount unless the manufacturer  
               or supplier is able to provide certification of that claim  
               in a format that is easy to understand and scientifically  
               accurate.  Requires a manufacturer or supplier to provide  
               information and documentation verifying the recycling  
               content of a plastic food or beverage container within 90  
               days of a request for such information made by a member of  
               the public or a state agency.

          THIS BILL: 


          1)Defines "PET plastic packaging" to mean food, drink, or  
            beverage packaging material that consists primarily of  
            polyethylene terephthalate and used to contain food or  
            beverages.  


          2)Requires that, on and after January, 1, 2017, every  
            manufacturer of PET plastic packaging for sale in the state to  
            report to CalRecycle the amount of tons of new PET plastic  
            packaging made for sale by that manufacturer and the total  
            amount of postfilled PET plastic used in the manufacturing of  
            that packaging.  


          3)On and after July 1, 2016, requires each manufacturer of PET  
            plastic packaging for sale in the state to include a minimum  
            of 10 percent of postfilled PET plastic in the plastic  
            packaging that it manufactures.  


          4)Expands the 35% recycled content requirement for glass food,  
            drink, and beverage containers manufactured in the state to  
            all glass containers sold in the state.   


          FISCAL EFFECT:  Unknown








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          COMMENTS:  


          1)This bill.  This bill is intended to increase the use of  
            recycled content in California.  According to the author: 


               Californians are proud of their recycling efforts, but it's  
               unlikely that most Californians are aware that while our  
               collection for recycling rates are high, much of the  
               materials collected for recycling are in fact exported  
               overseas for recycling.  Less than half of the PET beverage  
               containers collected for recycling in California are now  
               being directed to California-based reclaimers and sold to  
               California-based manufacturers.  The balance of collected  
               PET - over half - is exported out of state, generally  
               overseas.  


               It can be argued that California consumers can reasonably  
               expect that the beverage and food containers they buy are  
               made out of recycled content, given our high recycling  
               collection rates?  


               To increase the amount of plastic recycling in-state, meet  
               consumers' basic expectations for buying recycled, and  
               create parity with other container minimum recycling laws,  
               AB 1447 proposes to create a minimum recycled content  
               standard for all PET containers sold in the state at 10%.  


            In addition, the current glass recycled content standard only  
            applies to containers made in-state.  To be uniform and  
            consistent? AB 1447 will require all glass containers  
            manufactured or filled in California to meet the existing 35%  
            recycled content minimum.  








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          2)Food and beverage packaging.  Historically, glass, steel,  
            aluminum, and paper have been recycled for use in food  
            packaging.  The risk of post-consumer contamination has not  
            been a major concern with glass and metals, because they are  
            generally impervious to contaminants and are adequately  
            cleaned at the temperatures used in their recycling.  In  
            addition, pulp from reclaimed fiber in paper and paperboard  
            may be used for food-contact articles provided it meets  
            federal standards (Title 21 of the Code of Federal  
            Regulations, Section 176.260).  

          Manufacturers of plastic food packaging that contains recycled  
            plastic are responsible for ensuring that the recycled  
            material is of suitable purity for its intended use and will  
            meet all existing specifications for the virgin material.  The  
            federal Food and Drug Association (FDA) states that the main  
            safety concerns with the use of recycled plastic materials in  
            food packaging are: 1) that contaminants from the postconsumer  
            material may appear in the final food-contact product made  
            from the recycled material; 2) that recycled postconsumer  
            material not regulated for food-contact use may be  
            incorporated into food-contact packaging; and, 3) that  
            adjuvants in the recycled plastic may not comply with the  
            regulations for food-contact use. To address these concerns,  
            FDA considers each proposed use of recycled plastic on a  
            case-by-case basis and issues informal advice as to whether  
            the recycling process is expected to produce plastic suitable  
            for food packaging.  FDA then issues a "non-objection" letter  
            to the manufacturer for the packaging.  Generally,  
            manufacturers use postfilled plastic, which refers to recycled  
            materials that contained food or beverages prior to recycling,  
            to meet FDA standards.  

          3)PET.  PET is the most common plastic used in food and beverage  
            packaging, including bottled water and soda. According to  
            CalRecycle data, 43% of Bottle Bill containers are PET, making  
            it the most common beverage packaging material in California.   








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          Several plastic food and drink manufacturers located in  
            California have received non-objection letters from the FDA  
            and comply with the state's existing recycled content  
            requirements for rigid plastic packaging containers.  Several  
            beverage manufacturers also include postfilled content in  
            their packaging.  For example, Arrowhead and Nestle bottled  
            water both report a 50% recycled content rate; Pepsi reports  
            10% recycled content; and, Naked Juice reports that their  
            bottles are made from 100% recycled content.  

          California has seven reclaimers accepting plastic for washing  
            and producing recycled flake or pellets and 30 manufacturers  
            that use recycled plastic to manufacture new products.  While  
            there has been significant growth in the use of recycled  
            plastic in California, the vast majority of recycled plastic  
            is sent overseas.  

          4)Glass.  According to data reported to CalRecycle by glass food  
            and beverage containers, the statewide recycling rate for  
            glass containers was just over 48% in 2014.  For beverage  
            containers that are included in the Bottle Bill, the rate was  
            49.7% in 2013.  Glass food and beverage containers  
            manufactured in California are required to contain a minimum  
            of 35% postconsumer recycled content.  



          Five glass container manufacturing facilities are located in  
            California and employ approximately 2,600 people.  

          5)Related legislation.  SB 732 (Pan) would have required every  
            manufacturer of a beverage sold in any plastic container to  
            demonstrate to CalRecycle that each type of a plastic beverage  
            container sold in this state contains, on average, not less  
            than 10% postfilled material on and after January 1, 2017 and  








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            prohibited CalRecycle from reducing the Bottle Bill processing  
            fee requirements for any beverage manufacturer for any  
            beverage sold in the state unless the manufacturer  
            demonstrates to CalRecycle that the container is manufactured  
            at a facility that meets or exceeds the state's recycled  
            content requirements, regardless of whether the container is  
            manufactured in this state.  This bill failed passage in the  
            Senate Environmental Quality Committee on a vote of 1-0 (six  
            members did not vote) on April 15th.  



          6)Proposed amendments.  The author has proposed amendments to  
            the bill, which the committee may wish to adopt if the bill  
            passes.  These amendments would: 



             a)   Delete the section of the bill related to recycled  
               content requirements for glass containers.  

             b)   Move the requirements related to PET packaging out of  
               the Bottle Bill and into a new chapter in the IWMA.  



             c)   Clarify that the provisions apply to PET packaging that  
               is manufactured in the state or imported to be filled with  
               food or beverages in the state.  



             d)   Establish certification reporting, and enforcement  
               provisions to enable CalRecycle to enforce the bill's  
               requirements.  












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          REGISTERED SUPPORT / OPPOSITION:




          Support


          CA Plastics Recyclers Coalition 


          Californians Against Waste


          California Refuse Recycling Council 


          Don't Waste LA Project


          EcoPet Plastics 


          Los Angeles Alliance for a New Economy


          Napa Recycling and Waste Services


          Peninsula Packaging, LLC 


          Peninsula Plastics Packaging 


          RePET










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          rePlanet


          StopWaste


          Strategic Materials, Inc. 


          Tri-Ced Community Recycling


          Verdeco Recycling, Inc.


          Waste Management


          Zanker Recycling 




          Opposition


          American Chemistry Council 


          Glass Packaging Institute




          Analysis Prepared by:Elizabeth MacMillan / NAT. RES. / (916)  
          319-2092











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