Policy Institutes Challenge Obama, Global Leaders; Link Shopping and Climate Change

CONTACTS
Bill Sheehan, PPI  706-247-2500
Tod Brilliant, PCI  707-235-1026

ATHENS, GEORGIA USA (November 23, 2009) -- All those products and packaging about to be consumed during the world’s biggest shopping day will have a major effect on climate change. This finding is derived from complementary reports recently released by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Product Policy Institute (PPI).

On the heels of these reports, PPI and the Post Carbon Institute are issuing a challenge to world leaders assembling next month to discuss a unified global response to climate change: make producers responsible for the greenhouse gas emissions associated with their products and packaging throughout the product’s entire life-cycle, from “cradle to cradle.”

THE PROBLEM

Production, consumption and disposal of the huge quantity of short-lived products and packaging used in the United States contribute 44% of all U.S. greenhouse gas impacts, according to the PPI report (written by the same technical author as the US EPA report).
These emissions have a dangerous impact on the Earth’s climate.

“If we’re serious about tackling global, we need policies that drive better product design and management at end of life,” says Bill Sheehan, Executive Director of PPI and a Post Carbon Institute Fellow.  “Reducing impacts from production and consumption of throw-away products offers the single largest opportunity to combat climate change.  The best point to apply leverage is with the producer, who controls product design and marketing.”

THE OPPORTUNITY

Popularly known as “Black” Friday due to the massive traffic jams and over-crowded sidewalks resulting from a crush of frenzied shoppers, this year’s day-after-Thanksgiving shopping spree is of special significance.  It lands only ten days prior to the start of COP15, the United Nations Climate Change Conference being held in Copenhagen. The gathering will be the world’s largest meeting of legislators trying to tackle the economic and social effects of a warming planet. An agreement in Copenhagen to take strong, decisive action to combat climate change also has the potential to jumpstart the moribund global economy. If producers were required to ensure environmentally sound stewardship of their products and packaging, this would create local economic opportunities and green jobs in recycling and repair services in communities all over the world where the products now become waste.

THE CHALLENGE

Product Policy Institute challenges nations and municipalities to adopt policies that make brand-owners responsible for ensuring sound environmental stewardship of their products, from creation to disposal. The policy approach, known as Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), influences green design of products and packaging and reduces waste – and in so doing, reduces greenhouse gas emissions.  EPR requirements give producers an incentive to design products that close the loop by being easy to repair, reuse, and recycle. EPR is a well-established policy in Canada, Europe, Japan, and South Korea and is poised for broader adoption.

Download PPI White Paper: http://bit.ly/GHG_report
Download EPA Report:  http://bit.ly/EPA-rpt
Download NY Times article:  http://bit.ly/jg0gI

About Product Policy Institute: Product Policy Instituteis a North American not-for-profit education and technical assistance organization. PPI’s mission is to prevent waste and promote sustainable production and consumption practices through good public policy and governance.  Founded in 2003, PPI works with communities and their local governments to advocate for public policies that protect public health and safety and address climate change by encouraging waste prevention and clean production.   PPI is an affiliate of the Post Carbon Institute. P.O. Box 48433, Athens, GA  30604  info@productpolicy.org  Web:  http://www.productpolicy.org

About Post Carbon Institute: Post Carbon Institute has gathered 28 of the world's leading experts, including the Product Policy Institute, to point the way forward through a systems oriented, interdisciplinary, and collaborative approach. Through strong, collaborative partnerships with the Transition Town movement and other leading innovators, the Institute work to transform lives and communities through a powerful combination of integrated thinking and replicable direct action. 
500 N. Main St., Suite 100, Sebastopol, CA 95472  Web: http://www.postcarbon.org