Legislature(2023 - 2024)BARNES 124
01/22/2024 03:15 PM House LABOR & COMMERCE
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| Audio | Topic |
|---|---|
| Start | |
| HB143 | |
| HB115 | |
| HB192 | |
| Adjourn |
* first hearing in first committee of referral
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
+ teleconferenced
= bill was previously heard/scheduled
| += | HB 115 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| *+ | HB 192 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 143 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| += | HB 159 | TELECONFERENCED | |
| + | TELECONFERENCED |
HB 143-ADVANCED RECYCLING AND FACILITIES
3:16:00 PM
CHAIR SUMNER announced the first order of business would be
HOUSE BILL NO. 143, "An Act relating to the Department of
Environmental Conservation; relating to advanced recycling and
advanced recycling facilities; relating to waste; and providing
for an effective date." [Before the committee was CSHB
143(RES).]
3:16:20 PM
TREVOR JEPSEN, Staff, Representative Tom McKay, Alaska State
Legislature, on behalf of the sponsor, the House Resources
Standing Committee, on which Representative McKay serves as
chair, presented a refresher PowerPoint presentation on CSHB
143(RES) which puts into statute a regulatory framework for
advanced recycling to come to Alaska. He presented slides 2 and
3, "What is 'Advanced Recycling?'" He defined advanced
recycling as chemical recycling which converts post-use plastics
that currently cannot be recycled mechanically into hydrocarbon-
based products. Twenty-four other states have passed similar
legislation to HB 143, leading to regulatory stability and
billions of dollars going into the domestic advanced recycling
industry. This technology can convert discarded plastics into
valuable products. This new industry is not dependent on
government subsidies and is meant to complement not replace
mechanical or traditional recycling.
MR. JEPSEN moved to slides 4 and 5, "Advanced Recycling
Processes" and "Potential Economic Benefits," which briefly
defined the manufacturing components of gasification, pyrolysis,
and solvolysis and also described the economic benefits in
Alaska.
3:20:00 PM
REPRESENTATIVE SADDLER stated he felt the numbers on slide 5
might be overstating the amount of material produced in Alaska.
MR. JEPSEN described a weighing factor to account for the amount
of recycling that Alaska does compared to other states. He
deferred to Craig Cookson.
3:20:45 PM
CRAIG COOKSON, Senior Director, Plastics Sustainability,
American Chemistry Council, explained that the numbers are not
based on manufacturing but on waste generation. People still
drink milk and eat snack mix as well as using toothpaste and
hand cream. In addition, things are shipped to Alaska in
plastic. It's based on the generation of plastics in the
economy.
3:22:28 PM
REPRESENTATIVE FIELDS asked whether this bill was helpful for
the higher numbered plastics that are not being recycled as
opposed to the "1s" and "2s" that are to be recycled.
MR. JEPSEN agreed that the 1s and 2s are the traditional
mechanical recycled plastics and the 3s to 7s can be done with
advanced recycling.
3:23:10 PM
MR. COOKSON verified that the advanced recycling technology
complements current plastic recycling. Alaska is similar to
other states in recycling PET bottles, but all over the country,
the tubes, pouches, and film wraps are not being effectively
recycled.
3:23:50 PM
REPRESENTATIVE FIELDS explained that in Anchorage there is a
single waste stream where all plastics are mixed together. He
asked whether there are states where there is a meaningful rate
of recycling for 3 through 7 plastics and whether it requires
pre-sorting by consumers.
MR. JEPSEN pointed out that under HB 143, plastic is not defined
as solid waste because there is a sorting, cleaning, and
packaging process in route to the advanced recycling facility.
REPRESENTATIVE FIELDS asked Mr. Cookson for clarification
regarding possible changes in air and water regulations. He
requested information on why the chemistry council wants a
different regulatory structure from the one covering mechanical
recycling.
3:25:08 PM
MR. COOKSON responded that current waste and recycling laws
effectively regulate facilities that either comingle or separate
plastics. It's a different regulation for what advanced
recycling facility does because they are actually small chemical
manufacturing plants. They take plastics that are homogeneous
raw materials, heat them in the absence of oxygen until they
melt and then heat them until they turn to gas vapors. The
vapors are cooled and condensed down until it becomes a liquid
feed stock that is kind of an oil equivalent. That feed stock
is used in the production of new plastics and chemicals again.
To best protect Alaska's health and environment, manufacturing
regulations are the best fit because the activities are much
different from a solid waste facility.
3:26:30 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RUFFRIDGE questioned the economic benefits and
whether these were export products or for Alaska production.
MR. COOKSON replied that this would be an export product.
3:27:16 PM
MR. JEPSEN concluded his presentation by explaining that
advanced recycling is a low greenhouse gas process which can be
used to create petroleum-based products from discarded plastics.
The technology greatly increases the percentage of plastics that
can be recycled, decreases landfill space taken up by plastics,
and provides economic benefits to Alaska. The precursor to
those benefits is passing CSHB 143(RES).
3:27:53 PM
CHAIR SUMNER opened public testimony on CSHB 143(RES). After
ascertaining there was no one who wished to testify, he closed
public testimony.
3:28:25 PM
REPRESENTATIVE RUFFRIDGE moved to report CSHB 143(RES) out of
committee with individual recommendations and the accompanying
fiscal notes. There being no objection, CSHB 143(RES) was
reported out of the House Labor and Commerce Standing Committee.