Health Department begins statewide needs assessment under Act 103 to study packaging and paper product stewardship

The Hawaii Department of Health launched the formal needs assessment required by Act 103 (Session Laws Hawaii 2025), presenting the council with statutory aims to "reduce waste generation, increase reuse, improve collection services, and expand local processing" for packaging materials and paper products. Kellyanne, a DOH project specialist, told the council the assessment will be used to inform options for implementing extended producer responsibility in Hawaii.

"This needs assessment is the responsibility of the department to submit to the legislature at the end of next year. So the end of 2027," Kellyanne said, underscoring the statutory deadline and the department's lead role while inviting advisory feedback on draft products. The team described baseline data sources that will feed the assessment, including a statewide waste-sorting study and samples from landfill and H-POWER facilities. The department stressed that while it will solicit the council's input, final content rests with DOH leadership and the director.

The assessment must address 14 specific statutory considerations named in Act 103, such as contamination levels in collected materials, material composition effects on reuse and recyclability, and how EPR laws function in other jurisdictions. The DOH indicated the final needs assessment will summarize multiple technical memorandums and that a draft is targeted for mid-2027, with the final report due by the end of 2027.