Assemblymember Pamela J. Hunter (D-Syracuse) announced that legislation she authored to extend the Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Pesticide Container Repair Interim Policy has passed the Assembly (A.9643). The policy, released in 2009, allows New York retailers to make minor repairs to damaged pesticide product containers to eliminate unnecessary waste, provided the repairs are approved by the EPA.

“The EPA’s policy was a necessary solution to address concerns associated with pesticide waste and its impact on our environment and public health,” Assemblymember Hunter said. “It’s important we do all we can to reduce pesticide exposure and ensure products that are still usable are not unnecessarily discarded.”

According to the EPA, approximately 5 million pounds of pesticide consumer products, including lawn fertilizers, may become waste in the U.S. each year due to damage to the containers before they can be sold by retailers.¹ Hunter’s legislation extends the EPA’s policy until 2018.

Currently, the EPA reviews proposals for repair plans on a case-by-case basis and requires plans to demonstrate product integrity. Specifically, repaired products cannot have any appreciable loss of contents or change in net contents as indicated on the label, and the physical characteristics of the product must remain the same.

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