EPA issues procurement guide requiring recycled content.

In an effort to increase the national rate of recycling, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has issued a list of items that are - or can be - made with "recovered" materials. This list is in the form of a proposed guideline to be used by federal agencies whenever they purchase any of the designated items from the private sector. Included in the proposed guideline are items that can incorporate nonwovens such as geotextiles, carpet backings and carpet pads.

INDA, Association of the Nonwoven Fabrics Industry, has a Geotextiles Focused Interest Group (FIG) and as this article was going to press, its members were drafting comments to the EPA regarding the listing of geotextiles under the proposed guideline. Members of the Geotextile FIG are particularly concerned that information contained in the draft version of the guideline is not accurate and they are seeking changes before the guideline is finalized.

The draft guideline, known as a Comprehensive Procurement Guideline (CPG), was developed in response to Executive Order 12873, issued by President Clinton last October. The Executive Order is intended to increase the production of goods manufactured with recovered materials by making recycled content a condition of federal procurement and has the force of law under Section 6002 of the Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA).

RCRA requires that the EPA designate items that are - or can be - made from recycled materials, then requires that federal agencies purchase designated items that are composed of the highest percentage of recovered materials practicable. But the EPA has not been particularly vigorous in designating items under RCRA Section 6002 (only five guidelines have been developed since 1983) and President Clinton's Executive Order is designed to speed up the process.

Specifically, the Executive Order requires that the EPA prepare a comprehensive list of items that can be, or are being, made from recycled materials as quickly as possible. Then, once the list has been completed, the EPA is instructed to develop a Recovered Materials Advisory Notice that provides information and purchasing recommendations for the agencies to use when buying designated items.

While the EPA notes that mandating minimum content of recycled material will likely increase the cost of certain goods to the federal government, it also notes that there will be a number of benefits that should result from the policy. For instance, the EPA states in the proposed CPG that procurement requirements for recycled content can spur private sector development of new technologies ... thereby creating businesses and employment opportunities that enhance local, regional and national economies." The EPA also points out that development of these guidelines should have a ripple effect since many state and local governments, and even private sector companies, will likely adopt them as well.

Draft Guidelines

Contained within the draft CPG (which was released for public comment in late April) are items classified under the following categories: Paper and Paper Products, Construction Products, Transportation Products, Park and Recreation Products, Landscaping Products, Vehicular Products, Non-Paper Office Products and Miscellaneous Products.

Under the Construction Products section, the EPA lists several items of particular interest to the nonwovens industry - geotextiles, carpet backing and carpet pads. Also included is fiberglass insulation (and a requirement that recycled glass bottles be used in the production of fiberglass purchased by the federal government).

The EPA notes that geotextiles are made from woven and nonwoven materials and states that nonwovens dominate the 'stabilization and separation" markets. Moreover, the EPA states that nonwoven geotextiles are being produced from postconsumer recovered plastics (PET bottles) as well as inhouse plastic scrap.

The EPA claims it is justified in designating geotextiles under the CPG because it has identified seven geotextile manufacturers who use recovered materials in the production of their products. Without naming these companies, the EPA states that three produce "needlepunched nonwoven polyester geotextiles" from recovered PET bottles. A fourth company produces both woven and nonwoven geotextiles that contain postconsumer polypropylene. Another company cited by the EPA uses inhouse recovered polypropylene scrap in the production of geotextiles used in erosion control applications and two other companies that use recovered PET in their production are also noted.

In addition, the EPA has designated these goods because none of the 13 standards adopted by ASTM's Committee D-35 on Geosynthetics preclude the use of recovered resins in the manufacture of geotextiles. Based on these findings, the EPA is recommending under the Recovered Materials Advisory Notice that federal agencies only purchase those geotextiles that contain either 1) 50-100% postconsumer PET or 2) 20-100% postconsumer polypropylene. There is no recommendation for geotextiles made from recovered inhouse scrap even though the EPA notes in the draft CPG that it has identified manufacturers who use this material.

Since 80% of all highway construction and maintenance is funded by the Federal Highway Trust Fund, the designation of geotextiles under the CPG could virtually eliminate any geotextile that does not contain recovered material from the market. Other federal agencies that purchase geotextiles and would also be subject to the CPG requirements include the Department of Defense, the Army Corps of Engineers and the U.S. Forest Service.

With carpet backing and carpet pads, the EPA notes that it is aware of one company that uses inhouse scrap during the manufacture of its carpet backings and one company that uses recovered material, including postconsumer material, in the manufacture of carpet pads. Because there is such limited use of recovered material in the production of these products, the EPA has decided not to designate either of them at the present time. But the EPA has requested information on additional manufacturers who are using recovered materials in the manufacture of backings and pads and should it receive a sufficient response, these goods will likely be designated under the CPG in the future.

These proposed guidelines are only the first step in the EPA's efforts to implement Executive Order 12873. Future guidelines, which will include many additional items, are already being drafted. The EPA notes, for instance, that it is currently reviewing the use of recycled "Tyvek" in envelopes as a potential item to be listed under the "Non-paper Office Products" section of the CPG in the future.

Moreover, the EPA intends to issue guidelines on "environmentally preferable products" that federal agencies will have to follow when they purchase goods as well. These guidelines are also required under President Clinton's Executive Order, but the EPA has not yet announced when these guidelines will be released.