Recycling Laws

GLOBAL

            England generates approximately 177 million tons of waste a year. In order to prevent this waste, England has pushed for The Waste Prevention Programme for England. This program helps businesses make better use of their resources, helps people find out how to reduce waste, and helps organizations save money by reducing waste. There is also legislation in place to help prevent waste: “the EU Waste Framework Directive provides the legislative framework for the collection, transport, recovery, and disposal of waste, and includes a common definition of waste” (Waste Legislation). The participating member states are to make sure waste is recovered or disposed so that is does not harm or cause health problems; also, the member states should recover waste by recycling, re-use, or reclamation.

References

(2013, October 23). Policy: Reducing and managing waste. Retrieved from

https://www.gov.uk/government/policies/reducing-and-managing-waste#bills-and-legislation

(2013, April 9). Waste Legislation and regulations. Retrieved from

https://www.gov.uk/waste-legislation-and-regulations

UNITED STATES

 The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is an initiative found in the United States concerned with environmental issues. The EPA was established on December 2, 1970. It is a consolidation of “a variety of federal research, monitoring, standing-setting and enforcement activities to ensure environmental protection” (EPA HistoryiHiHisdkjfsldkfj dsfkjdsj fjsdkjfasdkjlf). The EPA’s mission includes: protecting Americans from risks to their health and their environment, enacting national efforts and federal laws to protect the environment and humans and to make sure they are enforced effectively, and to make sure all parts of society have access to information about how to participate in the efforts to protect the environment. The way the EPA accomplishes their mission is by writing regulations that implement the environmental laws Congress write. National standards are set by the EPA and the states get to decide how to abide by those regulations by implementing their own regulations. (Our Mission and What We Do).

References

About EPA: EPA History. Retrieved from http://www2.epa.gov/aboutepa/epa-history

About EPA: Our Mission and What We Do. Retrieved from

http://www2.epa.gov/aboutepa/our-mission-and-what-we-do

ARIZONA

The Arizona Department of Environmental Quality aims to “protect public health and the environment”. The ADEQ was established in 1986 due to a concern with groundwater quality. Now the ADEQ assists with: air quality issues such as asbestos, smoking management, and vehicle emissions; waste programs such as pollution prevention, solid waste, and underground storage; and with water quality issues such as water quality standards, wastewater, and safe drinking water. In order to ensure compliance with ADEQ regulations, the department offers assistance to businesses and facilities, they have a compliance and enforcement handbook, a compliant can be filed in which the ADEQ follows up. In response to those complaints by citizens, the ADEQ conducts inspections. At times the ADEQ will implement administrative changes in the facilities they inspect or take criminal action if an issue is serious.  There are environmental legislations associated with the ADEQ. Two examples of legislation are: Title 49, Arizona Revised Statutes which is a “codification of statues relating specifically to the environment and ADEQ programs” and the Arizona Revised Statues is the “official codification of all statues enacted by the Arizona legislature” (ADEQ)

References

ADEQ: Arizona Department of Environmental Quality. Retrieved from

http://www.azdeq.gov/index.html

 PHOENIX

The city of Phoenix has a Recycling and Diversion Program that “wants to capture and recycle as much material from the solid waste and stream as possible”. Some examples of the subprograms associated with the Recycling and Diversion Program include: Christmas tree recycling, election sign recycling, household hazardous waste recycling, residential recycling, and compositing and green organics recycling. There are a number of ways in which educational information is spread on recycling in Phoenix. Two of the nontraditional methods are Valley-wide Recycling Partnership and the Arizona Recycling Coalition. Both of those methods aim to “disseminate information on proper solid waste management along with the many environmental programs they provide”.

References

City of Phoenix. Retrieved from http://phoenix.gov/publicworks/recycling/index.html

Author: Jessica Covarrubias