Stop New Incinerators and False Solutions!
AB 1705 would prohibit new incinerators and related technologies until California has achieved specific recycling and organic waste reduction targets for three consecutive years.
Compared to recycling and composting, incinerators and related facilities require vast amounts of energy, are carbon-intensive, and exhibit unstable business models. These facilities have historically been sited in low-income communities of color; proximity to these locations is associated with numerous health issues, disproportionately impacting these groups.
Purported “newer technologies” marketed under the guise such as “conversion technologies,” “chemical recycling,” “engineered municipal solid waste (EMSW),” “advanced recycling,” and various other terms claim that they can recycle plastics and are fundamentally different from traditional incinerators. In reality, these facilities yield shockingly little output in comparison to the high energy demands, operation costs, and emission burdens associated with production.
For the last two decades, these businesses have consistently faced issues keeping their doors open due to large upfront costs, unresolved technical issues, and low-grade final products that lack an end market. These facilities also emit numerous pollutants such as arsenic, benzene, mercury, and formaldehyde.
AB 1705 (McKinnor) would help pave the way towards true and meaningful solutions that transition away from single-use plastics and support vibrant, equitable zero-waste communities.