Trade groups urge US House to pass recycling infrastructure, data bills

A coalition of packaging and recycling organizations are urging Congress to pass the Recycling and Composting Accountability Act and Recycling Infrastructure and Accessibility Act before the end of the year. The bills have passed the Senate multiple times, including this year by unanimous consent, but have stalled in the House.

The letter was sent Tuesday, Politico reported. Signatories to the letter include the Solid Waste Association of North America, the National Waste and Recycling Association, the Recycled Materials Association, Closed Loop Partners, Ameripen, The Recycling Partnership and the U.S. Composting Council.

“We can and must do more to realize the economic, environmental and national security benefits of recycling,” the organizations wrote in the letter. They said the combined bills “would advance the nation’s recycling capabilities, support a robust and circular economy, and help secure critical domestic supply chains.”

The RCAA would instruct the U.S. EPA to gather an inventory of MRFs around the country and explore a national strategy for compostable materials to help reduce recycling contamination rates. It would also “establish reporting guidelines for recycling and composting programs to track performance over time and incentivize improvements,” per the letter.

The RIAA would require EPA to create a pilot grant program to boost recycling, including in rural and disadvantaged communities. Recipients of funding could include state and local governments, tribal governments and public-private partnerships, with an emphasis on communities located at least 75 miles from a MRF. The grants would be used on collection infrastructure, including transfer stations.

Lawmakers have previously expressed surprise at the House’s inaction regarding the bills despite them receiving bipartisan support. In Tuesday’s letter, the organizations said that the United States’ recycling rate remains at 21%, below that of other advanced economies worldwide, according to data from The Recycling Partnership.

The bills are sponsored in the Senate by Shelley Moore Capito, R-W.Va, and Tom Carper, D-Del., who are ranking member and chair of the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee. Carper announced he would retire at the end of his term next year. Sen. John Boozman, R-Ark., who is a founder and co-chair of the Senate Recycling Caucus, also cosponsored both bills.