WASHINGTON (April 2, 2018) — Last week Georgia’s House and Senate passed HB 785. The American Chemistry Council’s Plastics Division welcomed the legislation and issued the following statement, which may be attributed to Craig Cookson, senior director of recycling and energy recovery:
“America’s plastics makers applaud the passage of HB 785 in Georgia. This new legislation makes Georgia the third state legislature (after Florida and Wisconsin) in less than a year to approve legislation that creates a welcoming environment for innovative businesses to convert post-use non-recycled plastics into useful fuels, chemicals, or feedstocks for new plastics. This legislation recognizes the value of non-recycled plastics and the importance of keeping these materials out of landfills and in productive use.
We’re pleased to see legislation that attracts new businesses and supports the creation of new jobs by treating post-use plastics as valuable raw materials for “manufacturing” and not as “waste.” In addition, HB 785 makes clear that facilities which convert post-use plastics into liquid fuels, chemicals, waxes and lubricants are correctly regulated as manufacturing operations and not mischaracterized as solid waste management facilities. We applaud Representative Nix and Senator Harper for sponsoring this important legislation, and we urge Governor Deal to sign it.
With Florida, Wisconsin, and now Georgia taking steps to modernize their laws, more and more lawmakers are recognizing the economic value of post-use plastics and undertaking important legislative changes. HB 785 removes regulatory barriers to implementing innovative technologies to help ensure that these plastics are converted into new products. We congratulate these states for their leadership in plastics recycling and recovery, and look forward to additional states making similar progress.
It’s estimated that converting Georgia’s non-recycled plastics into energy could provide enough fuel to power more than 357,700 cars every year. Experts also determined that converting non-recycled plastics in Georgia into petrochemical feedstocks and fuels could support 11 facilities and generate $94 million in economic output each year.”