Statement: Colorado becomes third state to pass transformational producer responsibility waste policy

DENVER – Colorado became the third state in the country to pass a producer responsibility waste bill, which would require companies to pay for their packaging and use the new revenue to provide convenient recycling to everyone across the state. CoPIRG is calling on the Governor to sign the bill. 

According to an annual State of Recycling Report by Eco-Cycle and CoPIRG, Colorado’s recycling rate has hovered at an abysmal 15% for years and over $100 million in valuable materials are landfilled every year instead of being recycled and reused. 

By putting the financial responsibility for packaging on the companies that produce it, the bill, HB22-1355, will create an incentive for companies to reduce the unnecessary packaging that comes wrapped and stuffed into so much of our stuff, and will fund an expansion of curbside recycling and other infrastructure across the state so we can better collect and reuse valuable glass, aluminum and paper instead of using virgin materials.

In response, Danny Katz, CoPIRG’s executive director released the following statement:

“Too often, as consumers, we’re inundated by all the packaging — much of it unnecessary— that comes with our stuff. Add to that Colorado’s poor recycling infrastructure and that means 85% of our waste winds up in landfills, even if we could have recycled or reused it. Producer responsibility will help cut down on the amount of unnecessary packaging that is flooding into our lives. It will also fund a robust recycling system to ensure the stuff that wraps our goods is more recyclable and that more of it is collected and reused.”