News & Events

GlobalPSC News – July 2013

Neil Hastie is retiring from his role as President and CEO of Encorp Pacific (Canada) on 31 July. This will enable Neil to devote even more time to serving as GlobalPSC President.

Neil has over 15 years’ experience running extended producer responsibility (EPR) programs in British Columbia, Canada. Prior to joining Encorp Pacific in 1998, Neil had been a senior executive in the retail industry for more than 30 years.

One of Neil’s long-term colleagues, Malcolm Harvey, reflected on some of the factors for Neil’s success and his value to the GlobalPSC,

“Neil is a very disarming fellow. His approachable and modest attitude belies the fact that behind it lies an incisive and decisive intellect. His concern for others is genuine and he is unlikely to be swayed by emotion alone; he is, fundamentally, a pragmatist. One reason I think he has been successful at Encorp is his belief that the core need is to identify the high ground in any debate and never, ever be pushed or step down from it.”

“Neil was one of the first senior executives to discover that product stewardship was one of the few places where business practices and experience could be successfully partnered with a truly beneficial objective. The transition from the business of selling chocolates to that of collecting bottles and cans could have been a wrenching one but it was a change he made in a heartbeat. I think he simply found his calling. That he will continue to be involved in product stewardship in various forms only confirms that for me.”

GlobalPSC CEO Russ Martin stated,

“Neil has carved out a strong reputation in North America and beyond, which is part of why we asked him to join the GlobalPSC board and more recently to become President. He’s earned a great deal of respect and admiration over the years. We’re looking forward to Neil having even more time for the GlobalPSC, when he’s not with his family or on a golf course, that is.”

 

Australia Establishes Priority Products for Product Stewardship

Australia has released a priority list of products potentially covered under the Product Stewardship Act 2011 (the Act). The Act provides a framework for establishing voluntary, co-regulatory and regulatory approaches for product stewardship. Under the Act, any future mandatory or co-regulatory approach must be preceded by 12 months notice before a particular product can have such a regulatory approach applied.

The designated products include:

• Waste architectural and decorative paint
• End-of-life handheld batteries (less than 2kg in weight)
• Packaging (and subsets of packaging, such as consumer packaging and beverage packaging)
• End-of-life air conditioners with small gas charges
• End-of-life refrigerators with small gas charges

The reasons given for their inclusion on the list are available here. In April 2013, Environment Ministers from Australia and New Zealand acting as the Standing Council on Environment and Water (SCEW) added end-of-life handheld batteries and waste paint to their work plan. Preparation of a Decision Regulation Impact Statement is also underway for packaging.

Australia’s Parliamentary Secretary for Sustainability and Urban Water, the Hon Amanda Rishworth MP, sought advice from a range of sources including the Product Stewardship Advisory Group, the SCEW, jurisdictional priorities, industry stakeholders, and international obligations in determining the list.

The Global Product Stewardship Council and GlobalPSC members serving on the Product Stewardship Advisory Group include:

New GlobalPSC Members and Member Profiles

TechCollect (Australia) – New Sustaining Corporate Member

Product Care Association (North America)

 

Events Update

The Global Product Stewardship Council is presenting at or attending the following events:

• Conference on Canadian Stewardship, 16-18 September in Toronto, Canada
• WasteMINZ Conference, 21-24 October in Rotorua, New Zealand
• 2013 Asia Pacific OH Conference + Exhibition, October 29 – 31 in Singapore
• Electronics Recycling Asia, 12–15 November in Singapore

At each of these events, we will be promoting the involvement of GlobalPSC members and our activities. We are also planning special events on 18 November in Melbourne, Australia, featuring overseas leaders on batteries and paint and including a members-only event. Details will follow.

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