Bill Text: NJ AR71 | 2012-2013 | Regular Session | Introduced
Bill Title: Encourages businesses and individuals in NJ to purchase and utilize glass products, instead of plastic.
Spectrum: Partisan Bill (Democrat 1-0)
Status: (Failed) 2012-05-24 - Withdrawn from Consideration [AR71 Detail]
Download: New_Jersey-2012-AR71-Introduced.html
Sponsored by:
Assemblywoman CELESTE M. RILEY
District 3 (Cumberland, Gloucester and Salem)
SYNOPSIS
Encourages businesses and individuals in NJ to purchase and utilize glass products, instead of plastic.
CURRENT VERSION OF TEXT
As introduced.
An Assembly Resolution encouraging the use of glass products, instead of plastic.
Whereas, The accumulation, on land and at sea, of solid waste composed of discarded plastics; such as beverage bottles, food containers, and other plastic products and packaging, is a growing problem of public concern that poses a direct threat to both the natural environment and the health and safety of New Jersey's citizens; and
Whereas, Plastic products are manufactured using non-renewable petroleum resources, and are neither biodegradable, nor usable by anything in nature; and
Whereas, Only a few types of plastic products are capable of being recycled, and those that are recyclable may only be recycled to a limited extent, since plastic undergoes chemical compositional changes during the recycling process that cause it to become brittle; and
Whereas, Because plastic products lose their strength and value as a result of the recycling process, and cannot recover that lost strength or value due to the compositional changes that have taken place in the material, such products can only ever be "downcycled" into lower grades of plastic products, rather than being recycled in a manner that retains their original high quality; and
Whereas, Because there are presently no commercial or industrial applications for grades of plastic falling below the lowest current commercial grade thereof, plastic products "downcycled" over a period of time will ultimately become unrecyclable and unusable materials, which will continue to be disposed of in landfills; and
Whereas, The inevitable disposal of plastic products and materials creates an unnecessary addition to the State's already costly and overburdened solid waste management system; and
Whereas, Given the lightweight and buoyant nature of plastic products and materials, their disposal also has a tendency to increase unsightly litter across the land, and has contributed, in fact, to the creation of huge, floating plastic islands in the world's oceans; and
Whereas, Although consumers may engage in some reuse of plastic products prior to their ultimate disposal or "downcycling," several different sources have contended that the reuse, in particular, of plastic food and beverage containers - especially when such containers have been exposed to sunlight or other heat - is unsafe for public health, since consistent usage and high temperatures each cause plastic to weaken, and since this weakening, in turn, allows chemicals, such as bisphenol A (BPA), to be released from the plastic, and to contaminate the contents of the container; and
Whereas, Unlike products made of plastic, glass products are manufactured from plentiful, natural, and renewable resources, such as sand and silica; are reusable, ad infinitum, without concern for degradation of the material or the release of any chemicals therefrom; and are fully recyclable, in that the recycling process does not weaken or alter any properties of the glass as originally constructed, and, instead, allows for the creation of a recycled product that is of the same high quality as the original; and
Whereas, Although the traditional goal of green production has been the achievement of "eco-efficiency" - i.e., the minimization of environmentally-destructive waste associated with industrial and commercial production methods and product life-cycles - a relatively new green production framework, referred to as "cradle-to-cradle" product design, has established a more ambitious goal for green production, which focuses on the achievement of "eco-effectiveness" - i.e., the optimization of waste as a useable product; and
Whereas, By promoting the optimization of waste - i.e., the cyclical and continual reuse by one system or individual of waste generated by another system or individual - the "cradle-to-cradle" green production framework encourages production processes and product life cycles to mirror, and to attain full compatibility with, the healthy, regenerative, holistic, and waste-free systems and processes of nature; and
Whereas, Glass products have an efficient, essentially waste-free, and regenerative life cycle, which exemplifies, and neatly conforms to, the "cradle-to-cradle" green production framework; and
Whereas, The purchase, use, reuse, and recycling of glass products by the State's businesses, residents, and visitors is much more consistent with principles of sustainable and healthy living, and is much more compatible with natural systems and processes, than the similar purchase, use, reuse, and recycling of plastic products, and it is in the public interest for the State to support the use of glass products over plastic products; now, therefore
Be It Resolved by the General Assembly of the State of New Jersey:
1. In recognition of the unique properties of glass, which facilitate its recycling and the continual reuse of its waste products; and in acknowledgment of glass' superiority to plastic in this regard, this House urges each of the businesses and residents of, and visitors to, New Jersey, to purchase, utilize, reuse, and recycle glass, as opposed to plastic, products, to the maximum extent possible.
2. This House further encourages the Department of Environmental Protection, the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, the New Jersey Business and Industry Association, and the New Jersey Division of Travel and Tourism in the Department of State to take actions that are reasonably designed to promote the purchase, use, reuse, and recycling of glass, as opposed to plastic products, by businesses and residents of, and visitors to, New Jersey.
3. Duly authenticated copies of this resolution, signed by the Speaker of the General Assembly and attested by the Clerk thereof, shall be transmitted to the Commissioner of Environmental Protection, the Commissioner of the Department of Community Affairs, the New Jersey Business and Industry Association, and the Director of the New Jersey Division of Travel and Tourism.
STATEMENT
This resolution would encourage New Jersey businesses, residents, and tourists to purchase, use, reuse, and recycle - to the maximum extent possible - glass, as opposed to plastic, products. The resolution would further encourage the Department of Environmental Protection, the New Jersey Department of Community Affairs, the New Jersey Business and Industry Association, and the New Jersey Division of Travel and Tourism in the Department of State to take actions that are reasonably designed to promote the purchase, use, reuse, and recycling of glass products by businesses and individuals in the State.
Although the traditional goal of green production has been the achievement of "eco-efficiency" - i.e., the minimization of environmentally-destructive waste associated with industrial and commercial production methods and product life-cycles - a relatively new green production framework, referred to as "cradle-to-cradle" product design, has established a more ambitious goal for green production, which focuses on the achievement of "eco-effectiveness" - i.e., the optimization of waste as a useable product. By promoting the optimization of waste - i.e., the cyclical and continual reuse by one system or individual of waste generated by another system or individual - the "cradle-to-cradle" green production framework encourages production processes and product life cycles to mirror, and to attain full compatibility with, the healthy, regenerative, holistic, and waste-free systems and processes of nature.
The life-cycle of plastic products, which are manufactured from non-renewable petroleum resources, fails to conform to this holistic "cradle-to-cradle" framework. In particular, plastic material (1) is neither biodegradable, nor usable by anything in nature; (2) is weakened by reuse or heat, which weakening allows potentially harmful chemicals from the plastic to leech into any food or liquids contained within; and (3) undergoes chemical compositional changes during the recycling process, which reduce its strength and value, and necessarily result in its initial "downcycling" to a lesser-quality material and its ultimate disposal in a landfill or ocean. Consequently, while plastic waste may be minimized, it is not conducive to optimization in accordance with "cradle-to-cradle" principles.
In contrast to the life-cycle of plastic products, however, the life-cycle of glass products neatly conforms to the parameters of the "cradle-to-cradle" green production framework. In particular, glass products are manufactured from plentiful, natural, and renewable resources, such as sand and silica; they are reusable, ad infinitum, without concern for degradation of the material or the release of any chemicals therefrom; and they are fully recyclable, in that the recycling process does not weaken or alter any properties of the glass as originally constructed, thereby allowing for the creation of a recycled product that is of the same high quality as the original.
Because glass products have an efficient and regenerative life-cycle, which allows for the optimization of glass waste in conformance with the "cradle-to-cradle" green production framework; and because the purchase, use, reuse, and recycling of glass products is, therefore, much more sustainable and consistent with natural systems than the comparable purchase, use, reuse, and recycling of plastic products, it is reasonable for the State to encourage its businesses, citizens, and visitors to choose glass over plastic products.
