2009 Used Oil/HHW Conference

Solutions Through Shared Responsibility

Howard LevensonCIWMB

November 2, 2009

Need for Holistic Approach

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Manufacturers Designers Importers

ExtractorsMinersHarvesters

Material & chemical suppliers

Consumers

Technical materials

Recyclers DismantlersProcessors

Retailers

Biodegradable materials

Haulers Collectors

or Local Governments

Government

Brand Owner

California’s Disposed Waste, 2008

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Organic17%

Food 16%

Inerts 14%Lumber 15%

Paper 17%

Plastic 10%Metal 5%

Special Waste 4%Glass 1%

Mixed Residue 1% Electronics 1%HHW 0%

Products and GHGs

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Crossing Boundaries & Building Bridges

• Organics• Climate Change• Procurement• EPR• Litter and Packaging• Stakeholders

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Organics Cross-MediaRegulatory Challenges/Issues

• Air Quality– AQMD regulations re: emissions

• Water Quality– State/Regional Water Board re: salinity– Food safety

• CDFA– Licensing– Diseases/pests– Persistent pesticides

• Climate Change• Caltrans and Agriculture Use Specs

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Climate Change – Scoping Plan Measures

• Landfill Methane Control , and Increasing Efficiency of Landfill Methane Capture

• High Recycling/Zero Waste:• Mandatory Commercial Recycling• Increase Production and Markets for Composting and

Other Organics Products• Anaerobic Digestion• Extended Producer Responsibility• Environmentally Preferable Purchasing

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Greening California - Procurement

•Department of General Services contracting•EPP Best Practices Manual (40 products)

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Product Stewardship / EPR• Primary responsibility on producers– Locals and ratepayers currently pay as much as $500

million per year• But still a shared responsibility– Programs will have to involve retailers, haulers,

HHW facilities, etc.• Issues raised by CMTA– E.g., all products? Fines to large? One fits all?

Unlevel playing field?– Need to build bridges

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Cleaning Up Litter

• Collaboration with Ocean Protection Council

• Plastic Bag Recycling

• Hospital Blue Bag

• CA Coastal Commission and CA Clean Boating Network

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Packaging• Wal-Mart Packaging Scorecard– Scores on environmental performance– Participating on committee

• Starbuck’s Cup Working Group– Goal = all cups, lids, straws recyclable or

compostable in all markets by 2012

• Sustainable Packaging Coalition– Industry group with EPA, Wal-Mart, others– Research on LCA, EPR, and labeling

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Bridges with Stakeholders

• HHW info exchanges• Surveys (e.g., used oil grants)• RMDZ touch-base meetings and ZoneWorks• Visits to jurisdictions, state agencies, grants• Internal Grant Working Group• CIWMB transition and new Dept. of R3

– Who will be in charge, with what public input/process?– Opportunities with Division of Recycling

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Streamlining Grants• Process Improvement

- Efficiency- Fiscal Integrity- More effectively meeting needs of stakeholders

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Improving Program Efficiency

Used Oil – SB 546• Restructures Grant programs• Incentivizes production of re-refined oil• Increases incentive for recycling of

used oil• Allows flexibility for promoting new

technologies

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Future Bridges / Actions??• For CIWMB, how to maintain service, transparency to public,

and partnerships/shared efforts?• More broadly, how to build coalitions and better understand

other perspectives, to move forward?– Engaging those with different goals or missions– Political processes

Can you speak “their” language? Can you develop coalitions? Can you reach appointees, legislators, administration?

– Timing can you spend years and be ready for real opportunity?

• 2010 Election

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