Pass the Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act of 2023

U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and U.S. Representative Jared Huffman (D-CA-02) have reintroduced the Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act, the most comprehensive federal legislation to address the toxic plastics crisis and protect people and the planet from corporate polluters. 

The Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act of 2023 features vital policy tools that will hold corporate polluters accountable for the harmful impacts of their toxic plastics throughout the full use of those products and/or packaging, from production through disposal, including requirements to:

• Eliminate toxic substances in beverage containers and post-consumer recycled material 
• Create a nationwide refund program for beverage containers
• Ban black plastics (which are virtually impossible to recycle) and most non-recyclable single-use plastic food service products and bags 
• Establish a moratorium on new permits for petrochemical infrastructure
• Spur investment in recycling and composting infrastructure 
• Stop plastic waste exports from the US to non-OECD nations (which are not only unethical, but also get counted towards abysmal U.S. plastics recycling rates)
• Set strict limitations for wastewater, spills, and runoff from plastic polymer production facilities
• Establish a nationwide Extended Producer Responsibility program to ensure that producers are covering the costs to clean up their discarded plastic waste

More than 350 million metric tons of plastic are produced globally each year, and the United States generates more plastic waste than any other country. Most of these plastics are intended to be used for only a few seconds or minutes before being discarded, where they either wind up incinerated, discarded as waste in our streets and waterways, or landfilled where they break up into smaller and smaller microplastic particles. Each of us has these microplastic and nanoplastic particles inside our bodies, and they have been found in every part of the world from Mt. Everst to the Marianas Trench.

The annual U.S. recycling rate for post-consumer plastics is between 5-6%. Faced with this shameful performance record, the plastics industry is now using terms like “chemical recycling” or “advanced recycling” to point to pyrolysis, gasification, and other unproven techno-fixes for what is essentially “plastic burning.”

We can't continue to just talk about the problems caused by plastic pollution. We need to act now to protect human health and the health of our ocean. We need to act now to slow the contribution of plastic production to climate change. We need to act now to hold plastic manufacturers accountable for the unnecessary toxic products they create. We need a practical, equitable solution: We need the Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act.

With your help, Surfrider can gather the support necessary to ensure this legislation remains a Congressional priority. Make a donation today for a plastic pollution-free tomorrow!