Texas Legislature Passes Chemical Recycling Bill
Texas Legislature passed HB 1953 on May 6. If signed by Governor Greg Abbott, Texas will become the sixth state to pass legislation to promote advanced plastics recycling and recovery technologies. This would convert post-consumer plastics into valuable raw materials using chemical recycling.
What HB 1953 Does
CSHB 1953 would prohibit the Texas Commission on Environmental Quality (TCEQ) from considering post-use polymers or recoverable feedstocks to be solid waste if they were converted using pyrolysis or gasification into a valuable product. Processed post-use polymers and recoverable feedstocks would be considered recyclable materials.
The bill would specify that the recycling and reuse of post-use polymers and recoverable feedstocks classified as hazardous waste under federal law would be subject to federal requirements.
Potential Economic Impact
A report by the American Chemistry Council found the potential economic impact of expanding advanced plastic recycling and recovering technologies in the U.S. to be nearly $10 billion. A recent Closed Loop Partners report found the demand for recycled plastics is growing. ACC believes that if chemical recycling technology companies meet growing demand, they have potential revenue opportunities of $120 billion in the U.S. and Canada.
Where Texas Stands
Texas is the largest chemical manufacturing state in the U.S. with more than $117 billion of industry investment. In Texas, it’s estimated that converting the state’s post-consumer plastics into transportation fuel could power 859,700 cars per year.
Experts also determined that converting just 25 percent of the state’s postconsumer plastics into manufacturing feedstocks and transportation fuels could support 40 advanced recycling and recovery facilities and generate $501 million in economic output annually.
Talk to Us About the Bill
If finally passed by a two-thirds record vote of the membership of each house, the bill will take immediate effect. Otherwise, it would take effect on September 1, 2019. If you’d like to know more about how this bill could impact your business, contact us now.
Click here for more about the bill.
