Legislature Approves Higher Standards For Compostable Products

Cracking down on “greenwashing,” the state Legislature approved a bill that raises standards for what products can be labeled as compostable.

Assembly Bill 1201, dubbed the Better Composting Standards Act, now heads to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s desk to be signed by Oct. 10. The bill, authored by Assemblymember Phil Ting, is designed to help consumers determine what products are and aren’t environmentally friendly and to reduce harmful chemicals from contaminating compost.

Composting helps keep waste out of landfills and create material that enriches soil and plants. But certain chemicals, such as perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances, or PFAS, can contaminate compost, making it unusable and potentially dangerous.

Neil Edgar, executive director and co-founder of the California Compost Coalition, said that AB 1201 would allow compost manufacturers to produce cleaner compost and strengthen the economy for repurposing waste.

“Returning valuable resources to the soil through composting is one of the most effective tools we have in the battle against climate change,” Edgar said in a statement. “While organics, such as food scraps and yard clippings, are obviously compostable, packaging is not as clear and can lead to contamination.”

Under AB 1201, products containing PFAS would no longer be able to be labeled “compostable.” On Tuesday, the Legislature had passed another bill by Ting — Assembly Bill 1200 — banning PFAS from all food packaging.

Products would also have to meet standards set by the California Department of Resources Recycling and Recovery (CalRecycle) and ASTM International, a third-party standard-setting organization, in order to be labeled as compostable, biodegradable, degradable, or decomposable. The legislation leaves room for CalRecycle to clarify or build upon these labeling regulations.

The bill would build upon recent state efforts to put an end to “greenwashing” — the practice of falsely marketing products as environmentally friendly. The California Attorney General’s Office filed the state’s first greenwashing lawsuit in October 2011, settling with three companies that the state alleged made misleading claims about their plastic water bottles being biodegradable and recyclable.

Last month, 23 California district attorneys’ offices settled with four companies claiming their dog waste bags were plastic-free.

“Consumers and businesses are being deceived into thinking they’re buying the right products to conserve resources and reduce their environmental impact,” Ting said in a statement. “We must be clearer on what is acceptable for composting and ensure that our compost doesn’t contain harmful chemicals.”