Extended Producer Responsibility
Known as EPR for short, Extended Producer Responsibility is a policy approach in which counties, states and large entities hold producers legally and financially responsible for mitigating the environmental impacts of their products and packaging. It’s also sometimes called “Polluter Pays”.
It’s a commonsense policy that’s been more widely adopted in Canada and the European Union. Although interest is growing here in the U.S., there are few existing EPR laws on the books - just a handful of states have mandated EPR programs for products like paint, batteries, and mattresses.
When done correctly, EPR policies can create jobs, reduce waste, preserve precious natural resources, decrease greenhouse gas emissions, and lighten the financial burden for the under-funded municipalities and agencies tasked with waste management and recycling.
We’ve created many materials to help ensure that states enact effective EPR policies that avoid common pitfalls.
Map of U.S. Plastics REDUCTION Policies
Wondering what plastics policies are already in place across the U.S.? Check out Surfrider’s beta map! Drawing on the efforts of their grassroots chapter network, they’ve compiled a dataset that includes over 1,000 U.S. plastic reduction laws. This map is the first visualization of their dataset and currently features bag, polystyrene, and straw laws. Future versions will include more policies and more details. To use the map:
Click on the open icon with the arrow to the top left to show all the layers.
Click the icon on the top left to show all the layers.
Select and deselect layers of the map to show state and/or local laws for each product type: bags, polystyrene, and straws.
Click on an icon for specifics about that law.
Note: the main limitation of this mymaps visualization is that if an original and amendment have been adopted for the same jurisdiction and product type, only one law will be visible. Surfrider is working to correct that. Please note that this map is a work in progress. If it is missing any laws, please let Surfrider know by filling out their corrections form!