“Our children are already bearing the cleanup costs of a generation of single-use plastic that is clogging our rivers and is infiltrating our food chain,” stated Sen.Tom Udall (New Mexico). He and Rep. Alan Lowenthal (California) will introduce the the Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act tomorrow.
If approved, product manufacturers across the country would be required to collect and recycle their materials and packaging. Exporting plastics to developing nations would be nationally prohibited. The bill would also improve the efficiency of our recycling industry.
But as Michael Corkery of the New York Times admits, it’s a long shot. With no Republican co-sponsors, it is unlikely the bill will gain much traction.
Even though the bill is far from perfect, it’s still a giant step in the right direction. We are addressing plastic pollution on a national level.
Update:
This morning, February 11, Sen. Udall (New Mexico) and Rep. Lowenthal (California) introduced the Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act in Congress:
“Senator Udall and Congressman Lowenthal have crafted a comprehensive, ambitious piece of legislation that proposes bold solutions – from banning unnecessary single-use plastics to implementing extended producer responsibility to incentivizing recycling – to turn the tide on ocean plastics. The health of our ocean and the economies, communities and wildlife that depend on it are at stake. This bill shows visionary leadership in meeting the ocean plastics challenge head-on, and Ocean Conservancy is proud to endorse it.” – Janis Searles Jones, CEO of Ocean Conservancy (Source)
Sources: NY Times, senate.gov,
Zero Waste California 