CalRecycle Announces First PRO to Implement SB 54
The California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle) announced that the Circular Action Alliance has been approved to serve as the first Producer Responsibility Organization (PRO) for the implementation of SB 54.
By way of background, SB 54 (“The Plastic Pollution Producer Responsibility Act”), which was signed into law in June 2022, requires producers of covered single-use packaging and single-use food service ware to form and join a PRO by January 1, 2024. Beginning January 1, 2027, producers may not sell products in California unless they have been approved to participate in a CalRecycle-approved PRO.
Under SB-54, the PRO is responsible for developing and submitting a producer responsibility plan and annual budget and to submit annual reports to CalRecycle. In addition, SB 54 requires the PRO to develop and implement a plan to achieve a 25% reduction by weight and 25% reduction by plastic components for covered material by January 1, 2032. Under this plan, producers must source-reduce (i.e., reduce production of) plastic covered materials at the following rates:
- 10% reduction in plastic covered material by January 1, 2027
- 20% reduction in plastic covered material by January 1, 2030
- 25% reduction in plastic covered material by January 1, 2032
Producers also must ensure that the following recycling rates are achieved for plastic covered materials:
- 30% recycling rate by January 1, 2028
- 40% recycling rate by January 1, 2030
- 65% recycling rate by January 1, 2032
(For more information on SB 54, see the Packaginglaw.com article, California’s Policy Push: Litany of Laws.)