Testimony before the Connecticut Environment Committee
By Carl E. Smith, CEO / President, Call2Recycle, Inc.
Raised Bill 6957
March 11, 2015
Good morning. Thank you for the opportunity to testify before you today regarding this committee’s consideration of battery product stewardship legislation.
My name is Carl Smith and I head the non-profit Call2Recycle, Inc., North America’s oldest and arguably most successful ...
Read MoreSuccess in any industry invariably begets copycats. When a zombie movie dominates the box office, more zombie movies follow. And it’s not limited to just Hollywood. We’ve seen the same thing in public policy.
When some governments realized that privatizing services such as waste management could raise capital, many others followed. But copying success is no guarantee of continued success. There have been many bad zombie films. And there have been many instances where privatizing critical municipal services has resulted ...
Read More
Battery product stewardship legislation has appeared in several states. Here is the latest update on each of those legislative efforts:
Oregon: The Oregon Small Rechargeable Battery Stewardship Act (HB2938) did not pass the House Energy and Environment Committee. Read previous post
Washington: The Washington Small Rechargeable Battery Stewardship Act (HB1364/SB5457), which was supported by the rechargeable battery industry and first introduced in January 2013, did not move ...
Read MoreProduct stewardship legislation has been proposed and considered in a number of states. Legislation is often used to compel various product manufacturers and industries to participate in a qualified program. However, hurdles stand in the way of enacting laws that would be beneficial for the environment, business, communities and future generations of people who will be affected by the outcome.
As product stewardship proponents, we need to identify ways to help facilitate adoption of these bills. This starts with a ...
Read MoreOn February 28th, the Oregon House Energy and Environment Committee heard testimony regarding HB 2938 – the Oregon Small Rechargeable Battery Stewardship Act. Similar to legislation being considered in Washington State, HB 2938 would have several requirements for a product stewardship program including easy access for the public to collection sites and the safe handling of rechargeable batteries according to state and federal laws. The bill is not intended to impact those that ...
Read More