Document MKdnV1exr71LZL67RqmG4RLa

The Society of the Plastics Industry, Inc. Volume 3 Number 21 October 21, 1983 (21 ATTENTIONI Additional information about any item in thit iaeue of tha neualattar may ba obtained by aontaoting Aileen Coreohnan, Editor, Publio Relatione Department, The Society of the Plaetiee Industry, Ina., 3SS Lexington Avenue, Neu fork, NT 10017 (212) S73-9400. FOOD SAFETY BILLS INTRODUCED IN CONGRESS; WOULD IMPROVE PLASTICS PACKAGING REGULATIONS... , Following several days of hearings in June, S. 1938 (Sen. Hatch, R-VT) and H.R. 4121 (Rep. Madigan, R-IL) introduced October 6 to revise Federal food safety laws... Would establish new method for regulating food packaging materials... Copy of legislation and analysis available from SPI Washington Office, 605 14th St., NW, 7th Floor, Washington, DC 20005 (202) 628-0270, ****** SPI VINYL INSTITUTE TO DEVELOP SLIDE/TAPE PROGRAM FOR FIRE SERVICES... Joint project with International Society of Fire Service Instructors, Ashland, AM... TT^minute pro gram to objectively present use of vinyl products in today's society... Anticipated completion date: early January 1984... Will be previewed at 1989 Annual Fire Safety Education Confer ence (February 1989, metropolitan Washington, DC area); premiered before some 3,000 fire instructors at Annual Fire Department Instructors Conference (March 18-22, 1989, Cincinnati); provided to all 50 state fire training directors and all 50 state fire marshals, fire chiefs in 82 major cities, and National Fire Academy... VI believes program will be effective in countering misconceptions about vinyl and plastics in general that exist within fire community. ****** EXTENSION OF INCREMENTAL PRICING TO NATURAL GAS FEEDSTOCKS TO BE RECONSIDERED... Federal Energy Regulatory Commission announced October 12 its intention to reconsider rule it adopted in 1980 to extend incremental pricing concept of natural gas to feedstock use and process applica tions... 1980 rule vetoed by Congress, but veto lifted by Supreme Court's decision that congres sional vetoes unconstitutional... SPI one of 13 associations and 18 companies that petitioned FERC August 19 to take such action... Implementation of pending rule delayed by FERC until at least December 14, maybe another 180 days, to allow time for new rulemaking proceeding. NEW SPI MEMBERSHIP PROMOTIONAL A/V PROGRAM COMPLETED... Cooperative effort between Membership and Public Relations... Available in three formats: slides with audiotape; videotape; film... Designed to tell story of SPI and what it does for its members... Useful in membership recruitment as well as retention... Arrangements being made to show presentation at various operating unit and section meetings. EPA TO SURVEY SMALL QUANTITY GENERATORS OF HAZARDOUS WASTE; PLASTICS INDUSTRY INCLUDED... Environmental Protection Agency plans to survey 24 industry groups in November to determine waste streams of small quantity generators of hazardous waste... Among those receiving surveys: 1,200 plastics companies randomly chosen from SIC Code 3079--Miscellaneous Plastics... SIC 2821--Plastics Materials and Synthetics--also included in sample design... Firms generating less than 1,000 kg (2,200 lbs.) per month of hazardous waste currently exempt from Federal regulation under Resource Conservation and Recovery Act (RCRA)... EPA spokesmen say survey results will enable Agency to assess existing exemption and provide data necessary to establish workable regulations for small quantity generators... SPI encourages member survey recipients to respond... Details: Edlu Thom, SPI Washiington Office, 605 14th St., NW, 7th Floor, Washington, DC 20005 (202) 628-0270. BOR 008544 FAA PROPOSES NEW AIRCrJ^} SEAT CUSHION STANDARD... More stringent flammability standards for seat cushions and performance standards for floor guidance lights in commercial aircraft proposed by Federal Aviation Administration (48 FR 46218 and 46250, October 11, 1983),., First notice would require seat cushions to meet Bunsen burner test criteria in sent regulations as well as new criteria based in part on percentage weight loss of cushion specimen during test... Second related notice would establish new performance standards for floor proximity emergency escape path markings "to provide visual guidance for emergency cabin evacuation when all sources of cabin lighting more than four feet above the aisle floor are totally obscured by smoke"... If proposals accepted as final rules, expected that threeyear implementation period will begin from effective date__ Comments due February 8, 1984. ****** NEW PLASTIC BOTTLE REPORTER FOCUSES ON POSITIVE STORIES IN AREAS WHERE INDUSTRY UNDER ATTACK... Quarterly published by SPI Plastic Bottle Information Bureau... Highlights of October 1983 issue, third to date: *Plastic milk bottle as a recyclable material--at time when it is challenged by multimillion dollar Paperboard Packaging Council ad/PR campaign; *Substantial cost/energy savings of miniature PET liquor bottle over glass, causing airline to switch (counters Glass Packaging Institute's persistent effort to undermine plastic bottle); *PET beverage bottlers rapid market penetration, topping 20 percent five years after its introduc tion in 1977; *New technology making possible the use of plastic bottles in new markets such as ketchup and mayonnaise... Newsletter's major audiences: activist groups, general news and trade media, government officials, key legislators, solid waste management officials, urban and state energy officials; current circulation: 1,500... Anyone wishing to be added to mailing ******list, contact: PBIB, SPI/New York (212) 573-9468. PLASTICS TARIFF INCREASES PROPOSED BY CANADA... Office of U.S. Trade Representative has advised SPI of recent Canadian proposal to increase its tariffs on more than 175 items... Several plastics products and resins included... Copy of proposal available from SPI Washington Office, 605 14th St., NW, 7th Floor, Washington, DC 20005 (202) 628-0270. SPI PRESIDENT G.R. 'MONK' MUNGER NOMINATED TO SERVE AS A DIRECTOR OF ANSI (American National Standards Institute, Inc.) PLANT CLOSING BILL APPROVED BY HOUSE SUBCOMMITTEE... Measure establishing Federal guidelines for how a company can close a plant or cut back operations approved October 6 by House Education and Labor Subcommittee on Labor-Management Relations... H.R. 2847, spon sored by Rep. Ford (D-MI) and 64 other Democrat representatives, would require firms with more than 50 employees to notify workers and Department of Labor six months in advance of any changes that would result in layoff of at least 15 percent of a plant's labor force... If more than 100 employees to be laid off, one year's notice would be required... Subcommittee's approval of measure came after decade of similar bills introduced in Congress... For copy of bill: SPI Washington, 605 14th St,, NW,*7*th**Fl*oo*r, Washington, DC 20005 (202) 628-0270. CONFERENCE ON 'WORLD PLASTICS OUTLOOK: THE RECOVERING GLOBAL ECONOMY FOR PLASTICS'... Spon sored by SPI Committee on Resin Statistics... Wednesday, November 30, 1983, Halloran House, New York City... Morning Session: "Worldwide Plastics--Who Will Be the Major Players?" Ted Semegran, Shearson-American Express; "Doing Business with State-Owned and State-Protected Companies," Jane Rovira, Business International Corp.; "The Changing Scenario of Middle East Polymer Manufacture and Its Potential Influence on World Markets," Bruce Pickover, Chem Systems, Inc.; "Plastics in Packaging Worldwide," Jack Hauck, Plastics World magazine... Afternoon Session: "New End Use Growth Areas for Engineered and Specialty Polymers," Darrell Meyer, E.I. du Pont de Nemours & Co.; "Licensing of Plastics Technology around the World," Don Phillips, Celanese Corp.; "Plastics Exports and Imports--Worldwide Trends in the *80's," Robert Reinstein, Office of the U.S. Trade Representative; "The Plastics Industry of the Soviet Union," Sid Gross, Modem Plastics magazine... Details: Howard Kibbel, SPI/New York. CORRECTION: MICROWAVE/COMBINATION OVEN PLASTICS COOKWARE PAMPHLET PRICES (Ref. Plastics News Briefs, Vol. 3, No. 19 - September 23, 1983)-- $4.00 (not $3.00) per copy, non-SPI members ($2.00 per copy, members). BOR 008545