Batteries, carpet, packaging, pesticides, and fertilizers might soon join paint, mattresses, and consumer electronics as products Connecticut requires manufacturers and customers to cover the cost of recycling.
The Connecticut Department of Energy & Environmental Protection awarded a $180,000 grant to the Boston-based Product Stewardship Institute to develop policies and programs where the manufacturers are responsible for the safe disposal of those five products at the end of their useful life.
Earlier this year, Connecticut became the first state in the nation to implement a mattress program where customers must pay a fee when they purchase the project to cover its recycling cost. Connecticut has a similar program for paint.
DEEP has made no secret about taking this product stewardship concept to other products, with batteries and carpet likely next on the list.
Connecticut likes product stewardship because it shifts these products out of the waste stream and puts the burden of disposal away from taxpayers and onto manufacturers and consumers.
