Sustainability Is Here To Stay - Page 6 of 15

By Gary Jones

This created a public outcry causing legislation to be passed at the state and local level banning the use of “single use plastics.” In addition, legislation is being considered at the state and federal level to force companies to take responsibility for their waste. This legislation is known as Extended Producer Responsibility, and it is designed to make the producer responsible for the fate of their packaging. It is a tax on printed paper and plastics that helps pay for recovery and recycling activities.

End of Life Becomes More Important

The action by China and other countries in Southeast Asia has brought forth a discussion on what happens to a product when it has fulfilled its primary purpose. Is it to be simply discarded, or can it be recycled or repurposed into a different product? The latter is propelling the discussion, giving rise to an entirely new concept embodied by the term circularity. It is becoming increasingly difficult to just simply view landfilling as an acceptable end point for a product, and producers are being pushed hard to change the status quo.

« Previous 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 All Next »

0 Comments

View Comments

Gary Jones Author's page

Gary A. Jones is the director of environmental, health and safety (EHS) affairs at PRINTING United Alliance in Fairfax, VA. His primary responsibility is to monitor and analyze EHS regulatory activities at all domestic and some international government levels. He provides representation on behalf of the printing and specialty graphic imaging industry. In doing so, Mr. Jones works closely with the federal and state-level Environmental Protection Agencies (EPA), Occupational Safety and Health Agency (OSHA), Department of Transportation (DOT), and other agencies. He also provides membership assistance on EHS compliance and sustainability programs through a variety of approaches including responding to inquiries, presentations, writing, and consulting services.

Mr. Jones is also supporting PRINTING United Alliance’s efforts for the Sustainable Green Printing Partnership (SGP). SGP is dedicated to assisting printing operations respond to the customer demand for sustainable printing.

He holds a BS in biology from LaRoche College and an MS in chemistry from the University of Pittsburgh.