The plastics industry has been a target of an increasing number of government actions in the U.S., laws that go beyond banning bags or straws.Two states on opposite sides of the country — — are moving forward with bills to add extended producer responsibility fees to companies in the packaging sector. And now the U.S. House of Representatives has added language into a massive bill that would that escape from plants or shipping operations.In each case, industry groups maintain that the industry should have more input into regulations and note that Operation Clean Sweep has been working for 30 years to eliminate pellet pollution.But here’s the thing: Voluntary measures haven’t worked. The amount of Plastic pollution has only increased. Blaming it on the public — saying that people fail to dispose of packaging properly — doesn’t actually move the needle forward in terms of sustainability, especially when industry leaders note a lack of infrstructure for recycling. Citing increased costs to manufacturers for work to mitigate the potential for pellet spills fails to recognize the costs involved in cleaning up waterways and beaches.Obviously, these proposed laws can and should receive industry input to create a viable improvement that both companies and the public at large can actually live with. But the industry has had decades, literally, to show it can improve things on its own. Don’t be surprised that local, state and federal governments are stepping forward with their own ideas now. Purple Innovation Inc., the company that makes the purple mattress sold directly to consumers, is adding on to a plant in Georgia it just opened.The company will in production, fulfillment, customer response and other areas in McDonough, Gov. Brian Kemp’s office announced. Those jobs will established there in mid-2020.Purple, which uses its own proprietary “hyper elastic polymer” along with foam and other materials, also has two factories in Utah, where it currently has a total of 670,000 square feet of manufacturing at sites in Alpine and Grantsville.The expansion will include a customer center, set to open in the spring of 2022, and additional “Mattress Max Machines” — its proprietary manufacturing equipment — to increase capacity.  French sports equipment maker Decathlon and plastics distributor Albis have joined forces to bring a to the market.The net’s base is made using recycled high density polythylene from LyondellBasell’s CirculenRecover line.The net met all quality requirements and also can be sold at a competitive price, Decathlon said.”We have already shown several times that plastic waste is a valuable resource,” said Anne Le Duc, material manager for Decathlon. “We are also working with developers to ensure that the plastic article can be recycled over and over again.” Do you have an opinion about this story? Do you have some thoughts you’d like to share with our readers? Plastics News would love to hear from you. Email your letter to Editor at Staying current is easy with Plastics News delivered straight to your inbox, free of charge. Subscribe to Plastics News Plastics News covers the business of the global plastics industry. We report news, gather data and deliver timely information that provides our readers with a competitive advantage.Customer Service: