Oregon has a proud history of passing forward thinking policies that help Oregonians steward and respect the resources that go into making the products we use everyday– from passing the nation’s first Bottle Bill, to eliminating wasteful, toxic products like polystyrene foam food serviceware, and more. Among these forward thinking policies is the Recycling Modernization Act, which goes into effect on July 1, 2025 and promises to improve recycling and reduce waste in Oregon.
What does the Recycling Modernization Act do?
In 2021, The Oregon legislature passed the Plastic Pollution and Recycling Modernization Act, which will improve Oregon’s recycling system by ensuring responsible end markets for recyclables, bringing producers in to start bearing some of the costs of the system and expanding recycling to even more Oregonians.
These big changes are going into effect (though not all right away) on July 1st. Here are some of the most important things to know about the new law:
- Uniform statewide collection
One of the biggest benefits of the Recycling Modernization Act is that there is now a standard collection list for the items that can be thrown in your blue bin or taken to a depot, no matter where you live in Oregon. This will address a lot of the confusion in the recycling system and make it easier to make sure you are recycling the right things.
What can be recycled in Oregon?
- Expanded access to recycling.
The new law also requires recycling services to be available in multi-family dwellings and expanded service in rural areas, ensuring that Oregonians, regardless of where they live, have access to recycling.
The Recycling Modernization Act creates a producer responsibility program for packaging and paper products. Under the new law, manufacturers of packaging and paper products are responsible for the waste their products create, and bear some of the costs of the waste management system through a shared responsibility model. The fees that producers pay into the system are graduated based on how environmentally-friendly their products are, creating an incentive for producers to use packaging that is recyclable and less harmful to the environment.
The Circular Action Alliance (CAA) is the Producer Responsibility Organization (PRO) in Oregon that will be managing all of the producer obligations. Interested in diving deeper to see what all the PRO is responsible for? You can see the latest approved program plan from CAA here (warning: it’s 400 pages long).
The Recycling Modernization Act includes a requirement that the products that are covered under the new law and are collected for recycling are sent to responsible end markets and are managed in a way that is “environmentally-protective.” This means that when you put items in your blue bin or take them to a depot, you will have assurance that it will actually get recycled in a way that won’t have huge unintended environmental or public health consequences in Oregon or in other communities. The responsible end market standard brings much needed transparency and accountability to Oregon’s recycling system to help ensure that Oregon materials are being recycled responsibly.
- Waste prevention and reuse
One of the most promising elements of the Recycling Modernization Act is that while we are fixing and expanding the recycling system, there is also a built-in mechanism for investment in waste prevention. As part of the new law, producers will now be required to pay a “waste prevention and reuse” fee up to $15 million every year that can be used to stop waste at the source in a variety of ways. These investments could include everything from investing in the infrastructure needed for replacing single-use items with reusables to pollution control technology to repair and lifespan extension of certain products and more.
For too long, taxpayers, ratepayers, the environment, and future generations have been bearing the costs of our waste management system. Oregon is now bringing in the producers of packaging and other products to help bear some of the costs alongside the rest of us.
The Recycling Modernization Act will help build a future with less waste and pollution, and requiring producers to significantly invest in waste prevention is among the biggest opportunities we have to build that future here in Oregon.
To learn more about Oregon’s Recycling Modernization Act, head to the Oregon Department of Environmental Quality’s webpage, which includes factsheets and videos with more information.
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As director of Environment Oregon, Celeste develops and runs campaigns to win real results for Oregon’s environment. She has worked on issues ranging from preventing plastic pollution, stopping global warming, defending clean water, and protecting our beautiful places. Celeste’s organizing has helped to reduce kids’ exposure to lead in drinking water at childcare facilities in Oregon, encourage transportation electrification, ban single-use plastic grocery bags, defend our bedrock environmental laws and more. She is also the author of the children’s book, Myrtle the Turtle, empowering kids to prevent plastic pollution. Celeste lives in Portland, Ore., with her husband and two daughters, where they frequently enjoy the bounty of Oregon’s natural beauty.
Charlie directs OSPIRG’s campaigns to rein in the cost of health care, get big money out of politics and stand up for consumers. In a previous advocacy role with Environment Oregon, Charlie was part of successful efforts to increase Oregon’s clean energy commitments and get the state off coal. Charlie’s work has earned coverage in the Oregonian and other local and regional news outlets around Oregon. Charlie lives in Portland, Ore., where he enjoys bike rides along the Springwater Corridor and the city’s local music and food scenes.
