A holy grail for reducing plastic waste remains elusive in New York as lawmakers close in on the final week of the legislative session. With leaders indicating little interest in tackling any more big issues — except perhaps the Clean Slate Act — the prospect of passing a major measure to reduce packaging waste is slim. For years, environmental advocates have pushed the concept of “extended producer responsibility.” This means the makers and sellers of goods that get dropped at your front door or plucked off the supermarket shelf bear the costs of disposing the cardboard or plastic you wishfully toss into the recycling bin and the trash. While Gov. Kathy Hochul and Democrats in the state senate backed versions of the measure in the budget, Assembly Democrats pushed to defer the issue. The new chairs of the Environmental Conservation committees and their staff in both chambers have been working feverishly — including over Memorial Day weekend — and a new version of the bill is expected to drop soon. Sen. Peter Harckham (D-Westchester County) confirmed the measure is at “pens down” and will be revealed in a matter of days. “It’s a short amount of time to build consensus around,” he said. “We feel optimistic with the work product… There are five days of session left, that can be a lot of time." Still, it is a tight window for a complex issue that’s been the subject of a virtual lobbying bonanza. “We’ve worked on it for several years, but in the last three there’s been an intense amount of work on this,” said Adrienne Esposito, executive director of Citizens Campaign for the Environment. “It’s frustrating and causes a lot of anxiety to see all of this come down to a few days.” The plastic, forestry and paper industries, as well as makers of consumer goods, have raised concerns about the proposal, which also mandates reductions in the amount of packaging used. Meanwhile, the American Chemistry Council has been pushing to allow the use of “advanced recycling,” such as pyrolysis, where plastic materials are heated to high temperatures to produce fuel and other byproducts. But the bill is expected to limit the use of “chemical recycling” to meet those packaging reduction goals — a redline issue for some environmentalists. “We understand that the plastic industry and chemical industry is very focused on not just continuing, but expanding their operations. We don’t think this bill is a vehicle for creating more plastic that we don’t have an ability to dispose of, or to increase toxic waste,” Assemblymember Deborah Glick (D-Manhattan) said. IT’S THURSDAY. WHERE’S KATHY? In New York City, joining the Simons Foundation and Stony Brook University for a Historic Endowment Gift Announcement. WHERE’S ERIC? In New York City, touring the facilities of Rosco, a Queens manufacturing and engineering company. Then, he will make an announcement with Billy Joel at Madison Square Garden. Later, he will deliver remarks at an affordable housing event and appear on ABC’s “GMA3.” Next, he will meet with Macquarie Group CEO Shemara Wikramanayake and receive an award at the Auschwitz Jewish Center Foundation’s annual gala. Finally, he will deliver remarks at the Neighborhood Technical Assistance Clinic’s annual gala. CORRECTION: Wednesday's Playbook gave the wrong fine structure for the mandate to separate yard waste. It has since been updated.
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