“We all heard growing up plastics were the future.”
That’s how Tom Marting, director of sustainable solutions for the HC Companies and Classic Home & Garden, began his presentation on upcoming regulations for plastics use and sustainable solutions on the horizon at this summer’s Cultivate expo.
“They’re vital and durable but create an environmental impact, and people have a negative reaction to plastics use,” Marting continued.
He noted, “If we keep going the way we are, by 2050, we could have more plastics by weight in the ocean than fish.” That’s a disturbing idea, considering that only 9% of the plastics used in the U.S. are recycled. But consumers – including those buying seedlings and hanging baskets from nurseries – are becomingly increased concerned about plastic usage and its actual ability to be reused or recycled.
Marting listed four trends he sees emerging when it comes to plastic usage, from the manufacturer to the grower to the end user:
- Trend 1: Extended producer responsibility (EPR). This is based on the “producer pays principle.” The intent is to pass the cost for the end of life of plastics to their producers, to increase the recovery/recycling rates of those plastics already in the market; and to make alternative materials more economically feasible.
The most common framework to make this happen is to charge producers and manufacturers fees or taxes based on the mass or quantity of solid wastes being sold into a particular region, which would hopefully motivate movement to more sustainable choices through lower fees.
As an example, Marting cited sample fees per material from average Canadian programs for EPR cost to manufacturers – aluminum cans are given fees of 3 cents/lb.; cardboard boxes, 10 cents/lb.; PET bottles, 13 cents/lb.; plastic bags and films, 22 cents/lb.; and polystyrene containers, 36 cents/lb. The more sustainable the material, the lower the fee.
Marting said four states have already enacted EPR legislation. (The only one in the Country Folks Grower region is Maine, but other states are looking into it.) He added that EPR legislation will affect the bottom line of growers.
- Trend 2: Material requirements. These will be regulations that have prohibitions on the sale or use of specific substances/products – typically those that appear on different regulatory lists. (For example, the EPA has banned the use of plastic microbeads in cosmetics and other applications).
Marting said other regulations will phase in higher percentages of recycled content or attributes like compostability. There will also be some phasing out of certain materials or chemical byproducts/additives. Many areas are currently targeting single use plastics (such as shopping bags and straws).
More states are also prohibiting specific chemicals like PFAS or requiring others, like BPA, be used under certain levels.
- Trend 3: Truth in advertising. These are regulations aimed at preventing “greenwashing” – presenting misleading or inaccurate environmental claims and marketing practices. Marting noted that most states are “leaning on the Federal Trade Commission’s Green Guides as a basis” for this.
This affects growers due to claims of recyclability. To use and/or promote a product that claims to be recyclable, four conditions must be met: It must be technically recyclable (the material must be mechanically or chemically returned to a state where it can be manufactured); there must be a recycled material market demand; the recycled materials must be accepted at recycling facilities; and people need access to recycling services and infrastructure.
The lack of access is a big issue, according to Marting. So, when it’s possible, thoroughly clean and reuse any plastic containers you may use. Consider offering discounts or other incentives to customers who return plastic containers in good condition so they can be reused.
- Trend 4: ESG/environmental risk disclosures. Short for environment, social and governance, ESG investing is “used to screen investments based on corporate policies and to encourage companies to act responsibly,” according to Investopedia. Both federal and state agencies are beginning to require large companies to quantify and disclose their environmental and social risks.
“Merchants or retailers will likely find the environmental impacts from the goods sold and the associated distribution/freight to be their most significant impacts,” Marting said. “It’s a good idea to familiarize yourself with carbon accounting/scope emissions.”
The Plastic Plan for the Future
The U.S. Plastics Pact (usplasticspact.org) is working to bring together businesses, nonprofits, government agencies and research institutions with a common vision of a circular economy for plastics, as outlined by the Ellen MacArthur Foundation’s New Plastics Economy Initiative.
Marting noted the U.S. Plastics Pact has offered up a “road map” for 2030:
- Eliminate all items on the Problematic & Unnecessary Materials List and reduce the use of virgin plastic by 30% by 2030.
- Design and manufacture 100% of plastic packaging to be reusable, recyclable or compostable.
- Effectively recycle 50% of plastic packaging and establish the necessary framework to recycle or compost packaging at scale.
- Achieve an average of 30% post-consumer recycled content or responsibly sourced bio-based content across all plastic packaging.
- Identify viable reusable packaging systems and increase their implementation and scale by 2030, as part of reducing the use of virgin plastics.
“It’s important to know these trends if you’re purchasing plastics,” Marting concluded. As users of many different kinds of plastics, he suggested growers set meaningful goals and targets to reduce their operation’s impacts.
“Your products should reflect your position,” he said. For example: Only use plastics from recycled materials. Or utilize degradable fiber pots or bio-based containers (like those made from mycelium or the BioPax® wood pulp containers offered by HC Companies).
by Enrico Villamaino
