Sanchez and Anderson discuss preparing for new waste types from emerging technologies

Is there also any conversation, given how rapidly technology is just moving and new products are coming around and, you know, lithium ion batteries were not a thing

25 years ago, as we're experiencing all of these new technologies and these new kinds of waste, are we preparing or understanding what those...

New things happening to our waste streams look like and how they're affecting our waste?

Absolutely.

And I think this is where, for packaging in particular, where an EPR program would have a massive impact because it would require companies, as they're looking at new packaging products, to think about the end

use of those products and the

of those products, the recycled content that's contained within them.

I think right now packaging companies are looking at a variety of other performance-related aspects of their packaging.

Does it keep food fresh, for example?

That is a good goal to have.

But if it keeps food fresh and can't be recycled, we need to be able to balance those two components to make sure that we are...

You know, designing packaging that works best, you know, for the entire life cycle of the value chain.

So that's what an EPR program would do for packaging in particular.

You know, there are always new products that are coming onto the market.

And unfortunately, because we're at the end of the line, we end up being very reactive around developing programs for those new products.

I think rechargeable batteries are a great example there.

And, you know, we're always working with our partners across the country and, you know, even around the world to try to identify those new things as they're coming up.

It's almost like there's a bill in Albany that will help us be proactive about that.

Yes, Albany, I'm looking at you.