Maine Adopts Implementing Rules for EPR Program

Maine’s Board of Environmental Protection (BEP) voted to adopt a revised draft rule that details the implementation of the state’s Stewardship Program for Packaging (SPP) (i.e., Maine’s EPR law). The law, passed in 2021, establishing the SPP in Maine, requires producers of products to participate in and pay into a stewardship organization based on the amount of packaging used for products sold in the state and the properties of the packaging. Under that law, the Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) was tasked with developing rules detailing various aspects of the program, including methods for determining producer payments, criteria for identifying easily recyclable packaging types, and requirements for producer reporting, among others. 

The first version of the draft rule was released on February 5, 2024; however, DEP later released a significantly modified version in July. The revised draft expanded the list of toxic chemicals in packaging that trigger fees under the SPP to include PFAS and phthalates. (See the packaginglaw.com article, Maine Revises Proposal for Packaging Stewardship Program, for more information on the revisions to the draft rule.)

More information on Maine’s Stewardship Program for Packaging, including an anticipated schedule for implementation, can be found on DEP’s website.