OSPIRG State Legislative Scorecard

SB 582

Recycling Modernization

For decades, we've all had to pay the costs associated with plastic pollution: The cost of disposing of it; the public health costs of pollution from plastic trash in our incinerators and landfills; and the incalculable cost that plastics are inflicting on our environment. Yet somehow, producers of wasteful single-use plastic products have avoided paying up. SB 582 makes much needed improvements to our recycling system to make it work better for Oregon and ensure better environmental outcomes. It also sets up a "shared responsibility" system in which producers of packaging, paper products and food serviceware will start bearing some of the costs of the waste management system.