New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy signed S2515/A4676 into law Jan. 18. Industry associations have mixed opinions about the recycled-content requirements.

New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy has signed a bill into law that will establish postconsumer recycled content requirements for rigid plastic containers, glass containers, paper and plastic carryout bags and plastic trash bags. The law also prohibits the sale of polystyrene loose fill packaging.

S2515/A4676 passed in the New Jersey Senate and Assembly Jan. 10, and Murphy signed it into law Jan. 18.

Under the law, the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection (NJDEP) is authorized to review and adjust any of the postconsumer recycled content requirements based on changes in market conditions, availability of recycled material and capacity of recycling infrastructure.

“This measure is a multifaceted approach toward tackling the issues surrounding our recycled waste industry, while also reducing the amount of microplastics introduced to the environment. Over the past few years, other countries such as China have decided to no longer buy most plastic waste content. New Jersey has an opportunity to enhance our market for plastics, and this bill will allow us to be at the forefront of a transitioning recycling industry,” New Jersey Assemblymembers Annette Quijano, Mila Jasey and John McKeon write in a joint statement upon the passage of this bill.

Recycling industry associations have expressed mixed views on S2515/A4676.

The Washington-based Institute of Scrap Recycling Industries (ISRI) has expressed support for S2515/A4676. ISRI states, “The passage of bill A4676 by the New Jersey State Assembly reflects a strong commitment to not only increase the use of recycled content in packaging materials but to develop a sustainable program with quantifiable metrics and realistic goals. This will help increase stakeholder commitment throughout the supply chain to ensure plastics are responsibly manufactured, collected and recycled into new products. ISRI is excited about the opportunity the passage of A4676 presents for the state of New Jersey, and we stand ready to provide essential third-party advice and technical expertise in plastics recycling and manufacturing.”

However, the Arlington, Virginia-based Glass Packaging Institute (GPI) opposed the legislation. GPI President Scott DeFife says S2515/A4676 is aimed primarily “at plastics issues” and unnecessarily includes what he calls “a flawed provision related to recycled content for glass sold in New Jersey.”

He adds, “GPI’s opposition is based on what was not included in the bill, which omits any provision to effectively improve glass recycling in the state of New Jersey. The New Jersey bill took language from long-standing California law regarding glass containers made in California and incorporated it into a provision regarding glass sold in New Jersey. As we previously testified to the New Jersey legislature, the California requirement used in the bill is tied to the existence of the California Beverage Container Redemption program (CRV, or bottle bill) and was designed to ensure that glass collected through the CRV program is used by glass manufacturers in California. There is no recycled-content requirement for glass merely sold in California. There is also no bottle bill in New Jersey or substantial supply of good, clean quality glass in or from New Jersey, elements required to achieve consistent recycled-content levels for manufacturing."

He continues, “Instead, the bill sets up a costly bureaucratic program that will collect recycled-content data from international food and beverage manufacturers who sell products into the state of New Jersey that are packaged in glass.”

DeFife says it would be more useful for material recovery facilities and haulers to disclose where they send their glass and how much of their recycled glass goes to landfill.

He adds, “We strongly disagree with the proponents’ claims that this policy will fix New Jersey glass recycling. … What should have been included in the New Jersey bill are policy changes that would put performance standards on facilities that process curbside recyclables because high residual contamination and poor quality make much of the state’s MRF glass unusable; additional support for infrastructure to create cleaner streams of glass if the MRFs are unable or unwilling to reduce contamination; and restrictions to keep New Jersey glass bottles and jars out of landfills.”

California-based company aims to produce 13,000 barrels per day of recycled-content aviation fuel.

Newport Beach, California-based Indaba Renewable Fuels is planning to build two waste-to-aviation fuel greenfield refineries, one in California and the other in Missouri, according to a technology vendor to the project.

Denmark-based Topsoe says the HydroFlex technology it is providing will let Indaba convert plant and animal oils, fats and grease-based feedstock into sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). Topsoe says each facility is expected to begin production of SAF in 2024 and each will have a capacity of 6,500 barrels per day of production.

“We are excited to provide Indaba with refining technology and catalysts as they initiate production of renewable fuels in the United States,” says Henrik Rasmussen, managing director for the Americas with Haldor Topsoe Inc. “Our HydroFlex solution is designed to produce SAF based on renewable feedstock, with a minimal carbon intensity (CI) score compared to traditional petroleum aviation fuel,” adds Rasmussen.

Topsoe says its technology “enables Indaba’s facilities to accept a wide variety of feedstocks as well as the production of multiple low-CI renewable fuels.”

“We are thrilled to select Haldor Topsoe’s market-leading HydroFlex technology for these projects that will enable us to lead the aviation industry’s transition to sustainable and low emissions fuel,” says Geoff Hirson, CEO of Indaba Renewable Fuels. “These projects will source feedstocks from waste products to create low carbon emission SAF for decades.”

The Equipment Leasing and Finance Association sees supply chain disruptions, inflation continuing in new year.

The Washington-based Equipment Leasing and Finance Association (ELFA), which says it represents the nearly $1 trillion equipment finance sector in the United States, has unveiled its Top 10 Equipment Acquisition Trends for 2022. ELFA says “real private investment by U.S. businesses in equipment and software is forecast to be almost $2 trillion in 2022, with a substantial amount of that investment activity financed, so these trends impact a significant portion of the U.S. economy.”

ELFA President and CEO Ralph Petta says, “The pandemic is the underlying theme throughout the trends this year as equipment acquisition continues to drive supply chains across all U.S. manufacturing and service sectors. Nearly 8 in 10 of U.S. businesses use equipment leasing and financing to acquire the productive assets they need to operate and grow.”

ELFA says it distilled recent research and data, including the Equipment Leasing & Finance Foundation’s 2022 Equipment Leasing & Finance U.S. Economic Outlook to forecast the following Top 10 Equipment Acquisition Trends for 2022:

ELFA says its 580 members include independent and captive leasing and finance companies, banks, financial services corporations, brokers/packagers and investment banks, as well as manufacturers and service providers in the equipment sector.

Global company says a planned European facility will be able to recycle some 160,000 metric tons of plastic scrap annually.

United States-based Eastman says it plans to invest up to $1 billion to build what it calls the world’s largest molecular plastics recycling facility in France. An announcement is being jointly made by French President Emmanuel Macron and Eastman Board Chair and CEO Mark Costa.

Calling the new facility a “material-to-material molecular recycling,” Eastman says it will use its “polyester renewal technology” to recycle up to 160,000 metric tons annually of plastic scrap it characterizes as hard to recycle material “that is currently being incinerated.”

The project will involve the installation of units that would prepare mixed plastic scrap for processing, a methanolysis unit to depolymerize the scrap and polymer lines to create “a variety of first-quality materials for specialty, packaging and textile applications,” according to Eastman.

Tennessee-based Eastman, which is building a similar but smaller scale such plant in that state, says it also plans to establish “an innovation center for molecular recycling that would enable France to sustain a leadership role in the circular economy.”

The plant and innovation center are expected to be operational by 2025, says the company. Eastman says the project has “garnered support from an impressive roster of global brands who share its commitment to solving the world’s plastic waste problem and view molecular recycling as a pivotal tool for achieving circularity.” The firm cites LVMH Beauty, the Estée Lauder Companies, Clarins, Procter & Gamble, L’Oréal and Danone as having signed letters of intent for multiyear supply agreements from the planned facility in France.

Eastman says its polyester renewal technology accepts hard-to-recycle plastic scrap that is “broken down into its molecular building blocks and then reassembled to become first-quality material without any compromise in performance.”

“Accelerating the transition to a circular economy is one of the main challenges in the years to come,” says Barbara Pompili, French Minister for Ecological Transition. “Eastman’s substantial investment in France demonstrates our country’s willingness to embrace innovative technologies that will help us achieve our ecological and economic ambitions, by revolutionizing our country’s plastics recycling capacities.”

Pompili adds, “France has always been at the forefront of this journey, and together with Eastman, is giving itself the means to achieve its ambitious plastics recycling targets set for 2025. We are very excited to welcome a company that has a 100-year history of innovation at a global scale and more than 30 years of molecular recycling experience.”

Eastman CEO Costa says, “The investment in France is a significant step forward in Eastman’s strategy to accelerate a circular economy globally. Eastman is proud to partner with the French government to actively contribute to France’s and the EU’s bold commitments.”

He continues, “We look forward to working together for the long term and offer necessary innovations to recycle plastic waste and protect our planet for future generations.  The plan to build the world's largest plastics recycling facility in France is an important part of our overall circular economy strategy.”

Ty Marsh has led the Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio for the past eight years.

The Solid Waste Authority of Central Ohio (SWACO), Columbus, Ohio, has announced that SWACO Executive Director Ty Marsh plans to retire March 31. Marsh has served as SWACO’s executive director for the past eight years.

According to a news release from SWACO, Marsh was hired by the SWACO board of trustees in 2013 and since then has been responsible for strategic changes at SWACO and the solid waste district. SWACO says its district has a recycling rate of 51 percent as well as a municipal solid waste landfill with more than 40 years of capacity remaining to serve the public.

“Director Marsh has accomplished much in his tenure with SWACO, setting a clear strategic direction for the future of solid waste disposal, recycling, waste reduction and diversion for our community,” says Susan Tilgner, chair of the SWACO board of trustees. “His retirement is well deserved, but he will be missed.”

In his remaining months with SWACO, Marsh says he plans to focus on initiatives where the goals of environmental protection and economic security intersect.

“It has been a great honor to be part of SWACO’s transformation from an organization solely focused on landfill operations to one that is leading the conversation and efforts around community sustainability,” Marsh says. “With a strong foundation and clear plan for progress in place, I am excited to see how SWACO can seize the opportunities before our community in the years ahead.”

SWACO’s board of trustees will conduct an open search for its next executive director. The group has hired Ohio-based Strategic HR and Direct Effect Solutions to recruit potential candidates.