I can’t believe it will accomplish anywhere, since New Hampshire doesn’t like doing anything that inconveniences businesses, but there’s a bill that would look seriously at charging industries for the waste they create, reports NH Business Review story (here).

Extended producer responsibility, or EPR, shifts the financial burdens related to waste management away from state and local governments and back onto product manufacturers. House Bill 253, voted unanimously as “ought to pass” by the House Environment and Agriculture Committee on Tuesday, would establish a committee to study EPR as a means of providing relief to municipalities for the costs for solid waste disposal.

EPR is a framework gathering steam nationally, and one that’s been well-developed internationally. EPR is known across Europe in the context of packaging, batteries, and electrical equipment. Similar laws have also been put into place in Japan, South Korea, Singapore, Israel, and India.

In 2021, Maine became the first U.S. state to pass a law regarding EPR for paper and packaging waste. Once the program is up and operating, producers will be required to finance stewardship organizations by paying into a fund based on the amount and recyclability of packaging associated with their products. The funds will be used to reimburse municipalities for recycling and waste management costs, and future investments in recycling infrastructure.

California, Oregon, and Colorado have since enacted EPR legislation as well

It’s obvious that the only way the industrialized world is going to cut back on the amount of crap that ends up in landfills or floating in the ocean is by hitting the bottom line of the industries that make it in the first place. Only they have the skill and ability to reduce waste; they just need a little incentivizing. If you worry only about cleaning up after the fact, we’re screwed.