Colorado’s plan to offer free statewide recycling could be in the dumps after a national trade association sued the state Thursday over how the plan is managed and funded.
The New Civil Liberties Alliance, acting on behalf of the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors, sued Jill Hunsaker Ryan, executive director of the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment, over the state’s new free, curbside recycling plan, which was approved in December and is expected to bring free recycling to more than 700,000 homes and businesses by 2035.
The distributors are asking a U.S. District Court judge in Denver for a preliminary injunction that would prevent Colorado from moving forward with the program while the case is litigated.
The recycling plan — known as the Producer Responsibility Program — will be funded by fees collected from the companies that create packaging for products such as soft drinks, egg cartons, soup cans and home-delivery boxes. Homeowners and local governments would not bear the cost of picking up and transporting recyclable materials to waste companies once the program is operational.
The first round of fees was due on June 1, and the first curbside recycling programs should be rolled out later this year or in early 2027.
Read this full story on The Denver Post's website here.
