NC Managing Environmental Waste Act of 2025.

GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF NORTH CAROLINA
SESSION 2025
H 2
HOUSE BILL 8
Committee Substitute Favorable 6/17/25

Short Title: NC Managing Environmental Waste Act of 2025. (Public)
Sponsors:
Referred to:
January 30, 2025
*H8-v-2*
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED 1
AN ACT TO REDUCE AND BETTER MANAGE THE D ISPOSAL OF SINGLE -USE 2
WASTE. 3
The General Assembly of North Carolina enacts: 4
SECTION 1.(a) G.S. 143-58.2 reads as rewritten: 5
"§ 143-58.2. State policy; bid procedures and specifications; identification of products. 6
(a) It is the policy of this State to encourage and promote the purchase of products with 7
recycled content. All State departments, institutions, agencies, community colleges, and local 8
school administrative units shall, to the e xtent economically practicable, purchase and use, or 9
require the purchase and use of, products with recycled content. 10
(a1) It is the policy of this State that all State departments, institutions, agencies, 11
community colleges, and local school administrativ e units shall, to the extent economically 12
practicable, purchase and use, or require the purchase and use of, materials and supplies with 13
compostable or recyclable content in food establishments operated under the auspices of the 14
department, institution, agency, community college, and local school administrative unit. 15
(b) No later than January 1, 1995, the The Secretary of Administration and each State 16
department, institution, agency, community college, and local school administrative unit 17
authorized to purchase materials and supplies or to contract for services shall review and revise 18
its bid procedures and specifications for the purchase or use of materials and supplies to eliminate 19
any procedures and specifications that explicitly discriminate against materials and supplies with 20
recycled content, except where procedures and specifications are necessary to protect the health, 21
safety, and welfare of the citizens of this State. 22
… 23
(d) The Department of Administration, in cooperation with the Division of 24
Environmental Assistance and Outreach Customer Service of the Department of Environmental 25
Quality, shall identify materials and supplies with recycled content that meet appropriate 26
standards for use by State departments, institutions, agencies, community coll eges, and local 27
school administrative units. 28
… 29
(i) On or before October 1 of each year, each State department, institution, agency, 30
community college, and local school administrative unit authorized to purchase materials and 31
supplies shall report to the Di vision of Environmental Assistance and Customer Service of the 32
Department of Environment al Quality the amounts and types of materials and supplies with 33
compostable and recycled content that were purchased during the previous fiscal year." 34
SECTION 1.(b) G.S. 130A-309.14 is amended by adding a new subsection to read: 35
General Assembly Of North Carolina Session 2025
Page 2 House Bill 8-Second Edition
"(n) On or before October 1 of each year, each State department, institution, agency, 1
community college, and local school administrative unit shall report to the Division of 2
Environmental Assistance and Customer Service of the Department of Environmental Qualit y 3
the amounts and types of materials collected for recycling within the department, institution, 4
agency, community college, and local school administrative unit." 5
SECTION 1.(c) G.S. 130A-309.06(c) reads as rewritten: 6
"(c) The Department shall report to the Environmental Review Commission Commission, 7
the Joint Legislative Commission on Governmental Operations, and the Fiscal Research Division 8
on or before April 15 of each year on the status of solid waste management efforts in the State. 9
The report shall include: 10
… 11
(22) A summary of the reports by each State department, institution, agency, 12
community college, and local school administrative unit authorized to 13
purchase materials and supplies detailing the amounts and types of materials 14
and supplies with compostable and recycled content that were purchased 15
during the previous fiscal year, as required by G.S. 143-58.2(i). 16
(23) A summary of the reports by each State department, institution, agency, 17
community college, and local school administrative unit detailing the amounts 18
and types of materials collected for recycling during the previous fiscal year 19
within the department, institution, agency, community college, and local 20
school administrative unit, as required by G.S. 130A-309.14(n)." 21
SECTION 2. The North Carolina Policy Collaboratory (Collaboratory) at the 22
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill shall study the issue of food service ware. In 23
conducting this study, the Collaboratory shall examine all of the following matters: 24
(1) The environmental impacts of plastics pollution. 25
(2) The State's current requirements for plastics recycling. 26
(3) Estimates of the proportionate volume of plastics recycled versus plastics 27
disposed of in landfills in the State. 28
(4) Recycling markets and available information on the fate of plastics collected 29
for recycling in the State, including data on plastics used as feedstock for 30
in-State recycling and national and international markets. 31
(5) Pending and enacted legislation in other states to regulate food service ware, 32
including bans on specific types of food service ware. 33
(6) The impact that bans on specific types of food service ware have had on people 34
with disabilities. 35
(7) Current private sector initiatives to reduce plastics pollution and additional 36
financial and market tools that may be employed by private sector interests 37
for this purpose. 38
(8) Alternatives to the use of food service ware for serving or transporting food 39
and beverages. 40
(9) New technologies for plastics recycling and waste reduction. 41
(10) Any other issue the Collaboratory deems relevant. 42
In conducting the study, the Collaboratory shall consult with stakeholders, including 43
the Department of Environmental Quality, the Department of Health and Human Services, the 44
Department of Administration, representatives of the environmental community, the North 45
Carolina Retail Merchants Association, and the North Carolina Beverage Association. The 46
Collaboratory shall report its findings and recommendations, including any legislative proposals, 47
to the 2026 Regular Session of the 2025 General Assembly upon its convening. 48
SECTION 3.(a) The Legislative Services Officer shall evaluate all opportunities to 49
reduce the use of food service ware in food establishments and beverage services operated by the 50
General Assembly and imple ment such measures at the earliest date that (i) does not result in 51
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House Bill 8-Second Edition Page 3
disposal prior to use of food service ware already procured on the date this act becomes law and 1
(ii) does not impair contracts for purchase of such food service ware in effect on the date this act 2
becomes law. As used in this section, the term "beverage services" includes the provision of 3
coffee, water, and other beverages in committee meetings and the legislative chambers. The 4
Legislative Services Officer shall issue a preliminary report on the implementation of the 5
requirements of this section, including any additional costs associated with replacing food service 6
ware with compostable or recyclable materials, to the Environmental Review Commission no 7
later than September 1, 2025, and shal l provide a final report to the Commission no later than 8
March 1, 2026. 9
SECTION 3.(b) The Department of Natural and Cultural Resources shall implement 10
a pilot program to eliminate the sale or provision of food or beverages in or with food service 11
ware. In implementing this pilot, the Department shall identify five facilities operated by the 12
Department to implement measures to eliminate food service ware at the earliest possible date 13
that (i) does not result in disposal prior to use of food service ware already procured by the agency 14
on the date this act becomes law and (ii) does not impair contracts for purchase of such food 15
service ware in effect on the date this act becomes law. The Department shall issue a preliminary 16
report on the implementation of the requirements of this section, including any additional costs 17
associated with replacing food service ware with compostable or recyclable materials, to the 18
Environmental Review Commission no later than September 1, 2025, and shall provide a final 19
report to the Commission no later than March 1, 2026. 20
SECTION 4. For purposes of Sections 2 and 3 of this act, the term "food service 21
ware" means products, other than compostable or recyclable products, used by a food provider 22
that are designed for one -time use for serving or transporting prepared, ready -to-consume food 23
or beverages, including plates, cups, bowls, trays, utensils, straws, cup lids, and hinged or lidded 24
containers. 25
SECTION 5.(a) G.S. 130A-309.05 reads as rewritten: 26
"§ 130A-309.05. Regulated wastes; certain exclusions. 27
(a) Certain Wastes Regulated as Nonhazardous. – Notwithstanding other provisions of 28
this Article, the following waste shall be regulated pursuant to this Part: 29
(1) Medical waste; andwaste. 30
(2) Ash generated by a solid waste management facility from the burning of solid 31
waste. 32
(b) Management of Ash Generated from Burning of Solid Waste. – Ash generated by a 33
solid waste management facility from the burning of solid waste shall be disposed of in a properly 34
designed solid waste disposal area that complies with standards developed by the Department for 35
the disposal of the ash. The Department shall work with solid waste management facilities that 36
burn solid waste to identify and develop methods for recycling and reusing incinerator ash or 37
treated ash. 38
(c) Recovered Material. – Recovered material is not subject to regulation as permitting 39
requirements for solid waste under this Article. In order for a material that would otherwise be 40
regulated as solid waste to qualify as a recovered material, the The Department may require any 41
person who owns or has control over the material to demonstrate that the material meets the 42
requirements of this subsection. In order to protect public health and the environment, the 43
Commission subsection or may require the person to obtain a beneficial use determination from 44
the Department in accordance with subsection (d) of this secti on. The Department may adopt 45
rules to implement this subsection. Materials that are accumulated speculatively, as that term is 46
defined under 40 Code of Federal Regulations § 261 (July 1, 2014 Edition), shall not qualify as 47
a recovered material, and shall be subject to regula tion as solid waste. In order to qualify as a 48
recovered material, the material. The material shall be managed as a valuable commodity in a 49
manner consistent with the desired use or end use, and all of the following conditions shall be 50
met: 51
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(1) Seventy-five percent (75%), by weight or volume, of the recovered material 1
stored at a facility at the beginning of a calendar year commencing January 1, 2
shall be removed from the facility through sale, use, or reuse by December 31 3
of the same year. 4
(2) The recovered material or the products or by -products of operations that 5
process recovered material shall not be discharged, deposited, injected, 6
dumped, spilled, leaked, or placed into or upon any land or water so that the 7
products or by-products or any constituent thereof may enter other lands or be 8
emitted into the air or discharged into any waters including groundwaters, or 9
otherwise enter the environment or pose a threat to public health and safety. 10
Facilities that process recovered material shall be operated in a m anner to 11
ensure compliance with this subdivision. 12
(3) The recovered material shall not be a hazardous waste or have been recovered 13
from a hazardous waste. 14
(4) The recovered material shall not contain significant concentrations of foreign 15
constituents that render it unserviceable or inadequate for sale, or its intended 16
use or reuse. 17
(d) Beneficial Use Determination. – For the purposes of preservation of landfill capacity, 18
economic development, energy savings, and reduction of greenhouse emissions, the Department 19
may determine whether nonhazardous solid waste may be used or reused for a particular site or 20
application as an alterna tive to disposal at a permitted solid waste management facility as set 21
forth in this subsection. 22
(1) A person seeking a beneficial use determination shall submit an application to 23
the Department. The Department, after a review of an application submitted 24
under this subsection, may take any of the following actions: 25
a. Authorize management of a specified type of nonhazardous solid 26
waste at a site other than a permitted solid waste management facility. 27
b. Issue a beneficial use determination with appropriate conditions for 28
use of specific types of solid waste in construction, land application, 29
or other projects and applications. 30
(2) An applicant for a determination under this subsection shall submit 31
information on forms prescribed by the Department and any additional 32
information required by the Department necessary for a determination under 33
this subsection. In its review of the application and additional information, the 34
Department shall also consider internal research or information submitted by 35
any person or entity concerning the potential hazard to public health or the 36
environment of any type of solid waste. 37
(3) The Department may require submittal of a demonstration that the solid waste 38
is being managed in a manner to protect public health or the environment and 39
may include any of the following as a part of an authorization under 40
subdivision (1) of this subsection: 41
a. Requirements for periodic testing of solid wastes. 42
b. Conditions to ensure that the products or by -products of a material 43
recovered or diverted for beneficial use shall not be discharged, 44
deposited, injected, dumped, spilled, leaked, or placed into or upon 45
any la nd or water so that the products or by -products or any 46
constituents thereof may enter other lands or be emitted into the air, or 47
discharged into any waters, including groundwaters, or otherwise enter 48
the environment or pose a threat to public health and safety. 49
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(4) Approvals granted under this subsection are valid for no longer than five 1
years. Requests for renewal shall be made at least 60 days in advance of the 2
expiration date of the approval. 3
(5) The applicant for a determination under this sub section shall submit to the 4
Department on an annual basis a report detailing the usage of material under 5
the approval and certifying compliance with this Article and any applicable 6
rules adopted under this Article. 7
(6) The Department may suspend or revoke an authorization and may modify an 8
authorization if it is determined that the activity is not in compliance with the 9
requirements of applicable laws or rules or if new information is provided to 10
the Department that impacts the determination of protection of publi c health 11
or the environment. 12
(7) The Department shall provide notice on its website of approved beneficial use 13
determinations. 14
(8) Facilities that manage source separated materials for the purpose of recycling 15
as defined in G.S. 130A-290 are not subject to the provisions of this 16
subsection. 17
(9) The Department may adopt rules implementing this subsection and 18
establishing application fees for a reuse determination under this subsection. 19
All fees collected under this subdivision shall be credited to the Solid Waste 20
Management Account established under G.S. 130A-295.8(a). In determining 21
the amount of the total application fee in rule, the Department shall have the 22
authority to establish separate fee amounts for annual fees for each year based 23
on the length of time for which the approval will be valid as requested by the 24
applicant." 25
SECTION 5.(b) This section becomes effective January 1, 2026. 26
SECTION 6. Except as otherwise provided, this act is effective when it becomes 27
law. 28