Cleaning Up New York City’s Waste Stream - Spring

Team Members: Laurelle Ahn, Sarah Burns, Anne Canavati, Ethan Forauer, Janna Herndon, Risalat Khan, Anna Loizeaux, Cloud Nagy, Mike Tuckfelt, Andre Turner, Aiwen Zhou

New York City faces significant challenges managing hard-to-recycle waste, including paint, pharmaceuticals, and packaging, which impose high environmental and financial costs. These materials often end up in landfills despite having potential for reuse or recycling, undermining the city’s Zero Waste goals. Traditional waste management systems place the responsibility for disposal on municipalities, limiting incentives for manufacturers to design products that reduce environmental impacts. Extended producer responsibility (EPR) policies shift financial and operational responsibility to manufacturers, encouraging product design improvements and reducing landfill waste.

Implementing EPR programs in New York City would improve recycling rates, reduce municipal waste management costs, and support circular economy principles. Analysis of existing programs demonstrates that EPR policies increase recycling efficiency while incentivizing sustainable product design. Establishing EPR programs for targeted waste streams would enable the city to reduce landfill dependency while improving environmental outcomes. Expanding producer responsibility policies would support the city’s sustainability goals and provide a scalable model for improving waste management efficiency and environmental performance.

Learn more about the MPA-ESP Capstone projects.