CRI Supports California Carpet Recycling Bill

Dalton, GA, Sept. 16, 2010--Calling it a bill that could, "usher in a whole new phase of carpet recycling," the Carpet and Rug Institute says it supports proposed legislation in California that provides incentives for carpet recycling.

The Carpet Stewardship Bill, sponsored by Assembly Speaker John A. Perez, (D-Los Angeles) represents new thinking in the area of product stewardship, in that it will incentivize carpet recycling by rewarding those entrepreneurs and inventors who produce marketable products made from post-consumer carpet, said CRI President Werner Braun.

The bill, which has been passed by both houses of the California Assembly and is awaiting Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s signature, generates revenue through an initial assessment of $0.05 per square yard of carpet sold in California.

Consumers will be able to identify the assessment, which will be added to the carpet’s post-tax cost.

Further, manufacturers will be required to establish a stewardship plan for implementing carpet recycling. Stewardship plans will encompass plans for consumer education, the assessment of fees, and a progress measurement and report.
 
To develop their required stewardship plans, manufacturers will work with California regulatory agencies with the help of the Carpet America Recovery Effort, or CARE.

CARE is a non-profit organization comprising manufacturers, recycling entrepreneurs, and government environmental agencies that works to find market-based solutions for recycling carpet and diverting it from landfills.

(For more information, listen to today's FloorDaily interview with CRI's Werner Braun.)

Related Topics:RD Weis, Carpet and Rug Institute