A proposal to drastically curb plastic pollution in the U.S. was presented by U. S. Senator Tom Udall (D-N.M.) and U.S. Representative Alan Lowenthal (D-Calif.).
The Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act of 2020 will radically reduce and reshape the production, use and disposal of single-use plastics on a national scale. While many waste companies will oppose this bill, the Berkeley Ecology Center, which runs the nation’s first and longest-running curbside recycling program, proposes it will help return recycling to its proper place as a last resort in the “reduce reuse recycle” hierarchy.
Martin Bourque, Ecology Center Executive director, said “It is clear we cannot recycle our way out of plastic pollution. We need a robust new framework like this bill to focus on reducing waste, not just recycling more. When companies feel they are free to pollute the planet, they do. When the government changes the rules to protect communities and the environment, it works.
When Berkeley banned Styrofoam (1986) and plastic bags (2013), everyone said the world would end – it didn’t. They said charges on disposables will kill commerce-they don’t. We put a $.05 deposit on beverage bottles (1986), a $.10 charge on paper carryout bags (2013), and a $.25 charge on compostable disposable cups (2020); and its business as usual. Today Berkeley benefits from less litter and plastic pollution, and our recycling is cleaner as a result.
In the 50 years since the first Earth Day, the Ecology Center has fought to keep recycling true to its original values; this is the first national bill we have seen make a serious effort to achieve that goal.”
Here is what the bill would do:
•Require producers of packaging, containers, and food-service products to design, manage, and finance waste and recycling programs.
•Create a nationwide beverage container refund program.
•Ban certain single use plastic products that are not recyclable.
•Ban single use plastic carryout bags and place fees on the distribution of remaining carryout bags.
•Establish new minimum recycled content requirements for packaging, container, and food-service products.
•Prohibit plastic waste from being shipped to developing countries.
•Protect state and local governments that enact more stringent standards.
• Place a temporary pause on new plastic production facilities until the EPA updates and creates important regulations for those facilities.
The legislation comes on the heels of other national, state and municipal legislation sweeping across the country and the world to tackle single-use plastics. Single use plastics currently account for a vast majority of consumer waste. This waste pollutes ecosystems and communities, contaminates our recycling systems, clogs our storm drains, and litters our business districts.
In January, The Berkeley Single Use Foodware and Litter Reduction Ordinance co-authored by the Ecology Center went into effect banning plastic disposable foodware and placing a $0.25 charge on disposable cups. The law calls for the complete phasing out of single use plastics at restaurants and other food establishments by July 2020, including foodware for dining on site. The ordinance has attracted both national and worldwide attention for its expansiveness and strategic approach. So far it has been replicated in Vancouver, Watsonville, San Anselmo, Santa Cruz County, and San Mateo; and it has been introduced in San Francisco and a number of other cities.
Published in the March 2020 Edition