Northwest Product Stewardship Council

In August 2019, the "province of Ontario, Canada, announced it is adopting extended producer responsibility (EPR) legislation to shift operating costs for its Blue Box [curbside recycling] Program from municipal taxpayers to the producers of products and packaging collected through the program.

SB 212, passed in 2018, "established a uniform take-back program to provide safe and convenient disposal statewide of medication and sharps. The program requires the manufacturers of needles and medications to provide for disposal and the program’s promotion. This “producer pays” policy approach has been very successfully implemented in Canada, Europe and Mexico for pharmaceuticals and in France for needles.

After eight years of testimony from supporters, paint stewardship (HB 1652) passed and was signed into law on May 9, 2019 (the law's effective date is July 28, 2019).

In 2018, Washingtonians recycled 1,271,304 mercury-containing lights, weighing almost 600,000 pounds, via LightRecycle Washington. LightRecycle, a manufacturer operated product stewardship program run by nonprofit Product Care Recycling and overseen by the Washington Department of Ecology, allows individuals and businesses to recycle up to 10 mercury-containing lights per day at sites throughout Washington – find a location near you.