If you're involved with Surfrider (and you clearly are, since you're reading this!), you're surely aware of how much joy the ocean provides and want to undo and prevent the harm being done to it by plastic pollution. You likely know that current levels of plastics production are inconsistent with a sustainable, healthy and equitable future. We've talked about how the anticipated increase in production levels will lead to deeper and potentially irreversible consequences for the climate, biodiversity and human health.
And yet, the United States generates more plastic waste than any other country with an annual recycling rate for post-consumer plastics a mere 5-6%, which not only speaks to tremendous inefficiencies in our recycling infrastructure, but also underscores the fact that the vast majority of cheap, single-use plastics were never designed to be recycled in the first place. Faced with these facts, 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.”
However, the fight against plastic pollution continues!
In addition to our ongoing local and statewide efforts, U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley (D-OR) and U.S. Representative Jared Huffman (D-CA-02) reintroduced the Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act of 2023, the most comprehensive federal legislation to address the toxic plastics crisis and protect people and the planet from corporate polluters.
The new legislation expands upon earlier versions of the bill by advancing common sense solutions that have been proven through policies enacted at the state and local levels – many thanks to the tireless efforts of our activists! – across the United States for nearly a decade. This includes strengthening prohibitions on single-use plastic bags and certain single-use food service items, and further establishing a prohibition on black plastics at food and retail establishments because they are virtually impossible to recycle. It also expands environmental justice protections at covered facilities by incorporating crucial language from the “Protecting Communities from Plastics Act” that was introduced in the U.S. Congress last year.
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
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!