Happy New Year! With another successful year in the books, we are expecting great things for EPR in 2024. And thanks to you, we are well on our way to success with 135 EPR laws across 18 product categories in 33 states. Your support is what drives our mission! We are grateful to everyone who generously donated to our end-of-year fundraising drive. Together we raised over $10,000, which will directly support our continued efforts in 2024. Thank you!

Thanks to a US EPA Region 6 grant, PSI was able to partner with the Choctaw Nation, Indian Health Service, and the Iowan Tribe of Oklahoma to expand medical sharps collection infrastructure in Native American communities in Oklahoma. Over the past year, the project provided 15 permanent sharps collection kiosks and distributed over 1,600 sharps collection containers to clinics for in-home use for patients. The partnership also provided educational materials to patients, organizations, and communities on proper medical sharp disposal. PSI also updated its guidebook, “Establishing Community Medical Sharps Programs: A Guide for Municipalities, Pharmacies, Health Clinics, and Nonprofits in Oklahoma,” to include the “health network” model, which expands sharps collection opportunities by using existing health care systems. In 2024, PSI will continue to monitor collection data and evaluate the effectiveness and efficiency of collection sites. For more information, contact PSI’s Hanz Atia at [email protected]  

The Northwest Product Stewardship Council (NWPSC), the first ever product stewardship council in the U.S., is a coalition of local government agencies in Washington and Oregon formed in 1998 to promote EPR policies in the Northwest. PSI’s Will Grassle coordinated the NWPSC’s first in-person annual retreat since the COVID-19 pandemic. The strategic planning event, held in September 2023 in conjunction with PSI’s national EPR Forum, focused on packaging EPR and other pertinent EPR product categories. Throughout the year, PSI assists the NWPSC to organize informative webinars and lunch & learn sessions. Last year, the group covered topics such as Oregon's E-Cycles program and packaging EPR initiatives in Colorado and Washington. PSI also assisted the NWPSC in developing educational factsheets on existing pharmaceuticals, lighting, electronics, and paint EPR programs in Washington. For more information, contact PSI's Will Grassle at [email protected]

PERSPECTIVES ON PRODUCT STEWARDSHIP:

Navigating an extended producer

responsibility path to a circular economy

by Scott Cassel, CEO and Founder of PSI

If you are a PSI Member or Partner, contact

[email protected] for 30% discount code. Signed copies available.

Four years in the making, Scott’s book covers his 40-year personal journey in the recycling field from a local volunteer to advocating for municipal recycling programs as a state government official, and to the creation of PSI. The book lays out abundant evidence on why a change to the US recycling system is desperately needed and how PSI and numerous others translated policy concepts into EPR laws. It also contains the process that PSI uses to create effective EPR laws through collaborative stakeholder engagement.



Scott discusses the first two decades of the EPR movement in the U.S., where we are now in the journey, and expected trends for the future. The book outlines the basic principles of product stewardship and EPR, along with the roles played by each stakeholder group. And it traces the origin of the concept of responsibility, how it was incorporated into the environmental and EPR movements, and the reaction to it by corporations and others. The book also covers the major EPR laws developed in Europe and Canada that have provided the foundation for EPR laws in the U.S. It references many of the 25 product categories on which PSI works, with three in-depth case studies—on paint, batteries, and packaging.  

Thank you to all of our new partners who joined PSI's mission in 2023!

If you’re interested in becoming a PSI Partner, or if you are affiliated with a state or local government and are interested in PSI Membership, contact [email protected] to learn more! 

PARTNER SPOTLIGHT: GREENDOT

Brands are making bold commitments to recyclable packaging and post-consumer recycled (PCR) content. But with U.S. plastic recycling rates hovering at 10%, we lack the PCR to deliver on those promises.  

The solution: a multi-pronged approach. Innovative collection programs, improved access, and consumer education are crucial. But the game-changer will be a massive expansion of plastic recycling infrastructure.  

Enter Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR). This powerful tool helps build the systems and markets needed for a circular future. While EPR legislation is in its early stages, companies need to act now. 

GreenDot, a PSI Partner, believes in proactive collaboration to lead the charge. Discover why.

WE'RE HIRING!

Interested? Apply! Or help us spread the word. Please share the following information on this exciting new role with those in your network who might be interested in joining our dedicated team of environmental stewards.



Marketing and Communications Coordinator: We are seeking an energetic and talented person with a passion for waste reduction and recycling policy and a talent for storytelling and advocacy to join our organization, which is leading the producer responsibility movement in the US. Join our team!

PSI IN THE NEWS

Scott Cassel, CEO and Founder of PSI, and Brett Rogers, Director of Communications at Paint Care, a PSI Partner, recently spoke with Coatings World about Illinois’ paint stewardship program and the benefits of implementing a PaintCare program.  

PSI recently collaborated with the Missouri Product Stewardship Council to run an Ask the Expert piece in Missouri Life Magazine on the state’s proposed paint stewardship program. (Pages 48-49) 

April 2-4, New Orleans – Scott Cassel, PSI's CEO and Founder, will participate in the Sustainable Packaging Coalition's IMPACT 2024 Conference. Register here. 

An Iowa State University study concludes that countries with established EPR for plastics and landfill bans have higher recycling rates and improved recycled product quality. Read more.  

A new study conducted by a team of researchers at Xiamen University Malaysia, Brno University of Technology, and Sookmyung Women’s University suggests that a swift transition to sustainable waste management practices could potentially reduce global solid waste emissions to net-zero warming by 2050. Read more.  

A report from Ball and Eunomia Research shows that deposit return programs and EPR for packaging boosts recycling rates. Read More.  

New research from the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory reports that cardboard and paper waste in the U.S. represents $4 billion in lost economic value. Read more. 

On January 1, 2024 the California Carpet Stewardship Program increased differential assessment levels on all carpet sold in the state. Read more. 

The European Parliament projects an increase of electric vehicles on the road in order to meet the European Green Deal’s emission standards, resulting in a surge in battery production. Read more. 

The Product Stewardship Institute is a policy advocate and consulting 501(c)(3) nonprofit that powers the emerging circular economy. We rely on the generosity of our members, partners, and supporters to convene diverse stakeholders to build extended producer responsibility (EPR) policies, programs, and laws. Thank you!

The Product Stewardship Institute, Inc. is an equal opportunity employer and provider. Persons with disabilities who require alternatively formatted materials to ensure effective communication should contact Amanda Nicholson at [email protected] or 617.236.4855.