Should manufacturers have to pay more recycling costs?

BBC, Nov. 25, 2018: The British government's "long-awaited resource and waste strategy... is expected to force manufacturers, retailers and supermarkets to pay significantly more towards recycling their waste.

According to reports, one of the key elements of the plan will be to put far greater emphasis on making manufacturers pay for the recycling of their own waste packaging.

If packaging is more resource-efficient, and cheaper to dispose of at the end of its life, then producers will pay less towards disposal. If it contains a high proportion of virgin raw materials and is less recyclable, then they will pay more.

Part of what's driving this approach is the EU circular economy package... signed off by the European Commission earlier this year," which will apply from 2019.