As we have all discovered in this column and elsewhere, there are no set rules about what can and cannot be recycled. Every processor has their own way of doing it. That makes effective recycling education very difficult., and leads, in turn, to confusion and high rates of contamination of recyclable materials.

Brunswick citizens have a strong recycling ethic because they want to do the right thing. We need recycling to be effective because it saves taxpayer money, helps keep materials out of landfills, and reduces carbon pollution.

In some cases, it’s actually cheaper for a manufacturer to use new materials than to recycle old ones. That means there is no financial incentive or mandate for large corporate brand-owners to make a recycled or recyclable package, to promote more universal policies on recycling, or to help educate consumers.

There is, however, now a national effort being made to do some important things. One is to halt the use of newer plastics for which there is no recycling option available. Another is to drive manufacturers to instead produce less-wasteful packaging that can easily be recycled locally or use less packaging altogether.

It’s going to take some serious policy changes to make these improvements happen. A public law proposal to achieve those goals in Maine is LD 2104. That would reform recycling by providing a clear economic incentive for brand owners and big corporations to cooperate. This policy approach is called “Extended-Producer Responsibility” (EPR) for packaging, and it is already being used in other parts of the world. It is currently stuck in committee in Augusta.

One way the law can work is to require manufacturers to take back their packaging, but that would be difficult to do logistically. The Maine approach is to collect and process the packaging as we do now, but to charge the manufacturers a fee for each package, and use those funds to pay for the recycling of the products. Easier recycling results in lower fees.

Clearly, the best approach to all of this would be to use less packaging in the first place. We urge all consumers to become smarter shoppers and buy less stuff in packaging that can’t be reused or recycled. Use washable mesh bags for your produce, for example, and reusable bags to bring you groceries home (when COVID-19 allows). Look for and choose items that have less packaging around them, and choose produce that is loose, rather than wrapped in plastic and Styrofoam. Then add your support to LD 2104 by directly contacting our state and local officials to press for this sort of change.

For more information, go to https://www.nrcm.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/02/EPR-recycling-bill-fact-sheet-2020-LD2104-FINAL.pdf , and for an in-depth look at the efforts of the National Resources Council of Maine in this area, go to https://www.nrcm.org/programs/sustainability/recycling-waste-management/recycling-reform-maine/.