New York’s long-debated and many-times-revised Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act is the center focus again, with days left to move to the Senate and Assembly before the legislative session ends.
Formally known as A5322/S4246, the bill has several provisions:
- Companies would have to halve single-use plastic and packaging incrementally over 12 years.
- Producers would pay to collect and manage what they still produce once it’s spent, with the funds invested in New York’s recycling and reuse system.
- Several toxic chemicals would be banned from packaging, including PFAS, phthalates, bisphenols, and heavy metals.
- What is known as chemical recycling would not be recognized as recycling.
