Sustainable Plastics - January/February 2024 - 23

bioplastics
the value chain partnering with
the next. However, if we are
going to meet our goals, this
process needs to rapidly - and
economically - expand to encompass
the entire value chain
working together.
Challenges facing
compostability
It is important to note at the
outset that the move toward
composting is not being looked
at as a replacement for the 3Rs
- reduce, reuse, recycle - but
instead is meant to supplement
that effort by providing an additional
tool in the toolbox, particularly
in organic (food) waste
management. This presents a
huge opportunity to dramatically
reduce reliance on landfills
that currently capture the food
waste and to cut the resultant
methane emissions.
Probably the single greatest
challenge our industry faces
today is the fact that bioplastics
being considered an acceptable,
compostable material are
under threat because there is
a lack of cohesive or coherent
regulation, systems and infrastructure
that allow consumers
and composters - the other end
of the value chain - to effectively
process these items. Environmentally
conscious consumers
have good intentions and
are trying to do their part, but
when it comes to composting
products they have used, they
are confused about which are
compostable and what to look
for when they want to buy compostable
products.
Meanwhile, when compostable
materials reach companies
engaged in the business
of composting, it arrives as part
of a mixed-up assortment of
plastics and other non-compostable
materials, leaving
them to separate the stream.
They literally face the situation
of 'garbage in, garbage out.'
This has led some composters
to stop accepting compostable
bioplastics because they cannot
afford this process.
The challenges composters
are facing reverberate through
the entire value chain - to the
material producers and finally
the brands that must tell consumers
they are going to have to
January/February 2024
23
throw their compostable products
in the trash because there
is no way to dispose of them.
It's true that many of these
products are biodegradable,
but if they end up in the trash,
their final destination will be a
landfill, and practically nothing
biodegrades there. The lack of
oxygen will prevent biodegradation.
What does degrade is
anaerobic and will emit methane
into the atmosphere. Landfills
are the third-largest source
of methane emissions in the
world, and one of the industry's
goals is to divert materials from
landfills to composting sites to
reduce methane emissions.1
Driving regulatory
support through
collaboration
To address these challenges, we
need to pursue smart policies
that support a transition to compostable
plastic materials, and
governments are actively considering
such policies. An ordinance
introduced by the City
of Irvine, California, in late 2023
is a recent example. The ordinance
focused on reduction of
plastic waste and ocean plastic
proliferation, and it was written
to limit or prohibit the sale, use
and distribution of non-compostable
disposable items.
Lauren Scott, director of
corporate affairs with CJ Biomaterials,
spoke at the public
hearing on the ordinance and
Sustainable straws
was supported by key players
in the bioplastics industry,
including the Biodegradable
Products Institute, Ingevity and
Danimer Scientific. Scott's testimony
in support of the city's
efforts stated: " By removing
single-use plastics from circulation
in Irvine, the city will help
address contamination of the
organics recycling stream that
is caused by traditional plastics.
These generate microplastics
and introduce harmful contaminants
into finished compost.
Limiting packaging options to
those that are compostable will
help consumers sort out their
waste properly as more facilities
accept and process compostable
products. "
After extensive public testimony,
the ordinance was tabled
to give officials time to revise
the plan. This local momentum
to transition away from traditional
single-use plastics is encouraging
and demonstrates
how the industry is expanding
collaboration to the public policy
space to drive needed regulatory
changes.
Another example of continued
collaboration among industry
players is evident in California's
SB-54. There are numerous
challenges to the way the regulations
are written, which
are unintentionally stifling the
adoption of compostable materials.
CJ Biomaterials and its
value chain partners continue
to meet with stakeholders
in the state and engage in the
regulatory process to ensure
the language aligns with the
broader objectives of reducing
landfilled plastics and creating
a circular economy. This work
continues forward and is greatly
dependent on collaboration
between a broad cross-section
of people and organizations to
understand the implications we
regulate and engage to drive
smart policy.
The industry's most immediate
need is to focus on collaboration
to address the outdated
organics standards within
the National Organic Program
(NOP). These standards currently
restrict the inputs allowed
for use in compost for organic
agriculture and do not allow for
the inclusion of compostable
packaging. These standards
are becoming an increasing
threat to our industry as states
such as California are adopting
these standards in state code.
While well intentioned, they are
inadvertently creating a null set
in California. Stakeholders are
mobilizing to address the need
to update these standards to
reflect modern times and materials,
and the National Organics
Standards Board (NOSB) is
considering updates to these
standards in 2024.
Bringing in
new collaborators
Given the challenges composters
have faced, as discussed
above, and their posicontinued
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Sustainable Plastics - January/February 2024

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