Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) and Stewardship

Board Activities

• Advisory Groups
• Educational Forums
• Product-Specific Programs
• Performance Standards
• Board Implementation of EPR

Advisory Groups

On January 23, 2008, the Board adopted the revised Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) Framework (Adobe PDF, 106 KB) as an overall policy priority. The Framework is being used to guide proposals to seek the statutory changes necessary for the Board and other stakeholders to implement EPR in California. The Board also directed staff to convene advisory groups consisting of stakeholders and experts in each subject to work on specific challenges:

• Stakeholder Participation--To address free rider issues, imported products, and participation by stakeholders who are not producers yet are seen as necessary for the success of a program.
• Product Selection--To address issues related to the establishment of a product selection process such as selection criteria and methodology.
• Green Design Incentives--To address how best to incorporate green design incentives into product stewardship plans.

Educational Forums

Visit CIWMB's EPR Events web page for currently scheduled meetings, workshops, and other events related to EPR.

Product-Specific Activities

Several programs and initiatives at the Board encompass aspects of producer responsibility. These efforts include environmental performance standards, agreements for take-back, and participation in national dialogues to establish systems for managing product discards.

• Universal Waste
• Carpet
• Fluorescent Lights
• Computers, TVs, products with LCD screens
• Paint (Word, 61 KB)
• Sharps and Pharmaceuticals

Performance Standards

Standards help provide clear direction and a simple means of communicating complex information to all stakeholders. This makes them a powerful tool.

A variety of performance standards may be used in product stewardship programs. They range from standards used to define qualities a material must have to be used in a manufacturing process, product design standards used to design and manufacture products, to standards for safe handling, collection and processing of products and materials in recovery stages. Additionally standards may be developed for reporting and measurement. The types of standards that are beneficial will depend on the product category and program needs.

To the extent feasible, product stewardship programs can refer to existing standards, provided the standards are evaluated and determined to be sufficiently rigorous. This would include product labels conforming to the criteria of ISO 14020 and 14024, the standards for environmental labeling set by the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and the criteria for bonafide ecolabelling bodies of the Global Ecolabelling Network.

Board Implementation of EPR

Upon receipt of Legislative authority to establish product stewardship programs, the Board will develop and carry out State government roles and responsibilities such as those generally outlined in the EPR Framework. The EPR Framework includes conceptual goals, guiding principles, roles and responsibilities, suggestions for governance and initial thoughts on a product selection methodology. In terms of specific authority for CIWMB to implement an overall program, it specifically includes:

• Establishing selection procedures and selecting product categories;
• Requiring producers of selected categories to work with retailers, haulers, local jurisdictions, and other stakeholders, as appropriate, to develop and implement approved plans to address the targeted products;
• Specifying what provisions must be addressed in each plan (e.g., targets, fee or cost structure options, administration, reporting), while allowing flexibility in how provisions are implemented; and
• Specifying enforcement mechanisms such as penalty procedures and provisions for noncompliance.

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