Moving beyond the “patchwork:” a review of strategies to promote consistency for extended producer responsibility policy in the U.S.

Abstract

Abstract Product-oriented environmental policy with an emphasis on extended producer responsibility (EPR) (frequently referred to as product stewardship in the U.S.) is being applied in the United States for an increasingly broad scope of products including waste electronics and household hazardous wastes such as paint and mercury-containing lamps. However, due to the lack of a unified federal response, these efforts are driven by state-level policies and regulations. This state-led approach is frequently characterized as resulting in a “patchwork” of disparate regulations. Historically, two strategies are often suggested as offering a remedy for this situation; 1) federal legislation and 2) model state legislation. However, another policy strategy has emerged in the U.S., that of an overall EPR policy framework, which creates a clear process for selecting and designating products and articulates the roles and responsibilities for the various players along the product chain. This article provides an analysis of the experiences and prospects for each of the three strategies to serve as a policy vehicle for greater consistency of EPR regulations throughout the U.S. In part motivated by global extended producer responsibility policy approaches, particularly in the Canadian Provinces, efforts are now underway to investigate a similar comprehensive regulatory approach to be implemented by individual states in the U.S. The article examines the “framework” model that is envisioned in the U.S. and outlines the recommend components of this policy concept. Finally, the article provides a comparison with other jurisdictions, most notably, British Columbia, which has implemented a broad extended producer responsibility policy.