Maryland State Senate votes to hold packaging producers responsible

ANNAPOLIS, Md.  – Maryland’s “Reducing Packaging Material – Producer Responsibility” bill (SB222), introduced by Sen. Malcolm Augustine and Del. Sara Love passed the State Senate  Friday evening on a 32-13 vote.  The legislation sets a target for packaging waste reduction and requires large producers to cover some of the costs of managing their packaging waste, which will help update the state’s recycling system. 

Packaging waste makes up 28% of the waste stream in the U.S.  If the House of Delegates passes and Gov. Moore signs the bill, Maryland will become the fifth state in the nation to enact a producer responsibility law, following Maine, Oregon, Colorado and California.

The bill heads to the House with three weeks left in the 90-day state legislative session.

In response to the vote, environmental and consumer groups made the following statements:

“Nothing we use for a few minutes should pollute our oceans and the Bay for hundreds of years. Sen. Augustine’s producer responsibility bill will reduce the amount of single-use plastic and other waste that pollutes the environment and harms wildlife,” said Environment Maryland Conservation Campaign Director Steve Blackledge.

“For decades, Marylanders have all had to pay the costs associated with packaging waste: we pay to deal with the trash and litter; we pay with our health from leaky landfills and pollution; and, we pay the price of seeing our communities, wildlife and environment degraded. This bill begins to change that by requiring large producers to start paying up for the waste they create – and in so doing, providing new incentives for them to produce less waste in the first place,” said Maryland PIRG Director Emily Scarr.

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Environment Maryland is a citizen-based environmental advocacy organization. We work to protect clean air, clean water, and open space.

Maryland PIRG is a state based, small donor funded public interest advocacy organization with grassroots members across the state. We work to find common ground around common sense solutions that will help ensure a healthier, safer, more secure future