This year’s Earth Day theme is “Planet versus Plastics.” When most people think of plastic pollution, their minds likely conjure up an image of single-use plastics—such as grocery bags, beverage container rings, or discarded bottles—laying along a beach or public parkway. Yet even with these images in everyone’s mind, the United States has yet to implement any nationwide restrictions on their use. This is not due to a lack of effort by certain members of Congress, and in the interim other entities have stepped up to try and fill the void. When all is said and done, however, will a ban on single-use plastics be enough?
The Break Free from Plastic Pollution Act of 2023
Late last year, Congress introduced the bi-cameral Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act of 2023. While introducing a ban on single-use plastics such as plastic bottles and plastic bags, the Act recognizes that such a ban on its own may not do enough for plastic pollution reduction. In addition to the ban, the Act requires plastic producers to implement a source reduction plan that staggers its reduction targets, eventually culminating in a 50 percent weight and plastic component reduction by January 1, 2050. Other goals include reducing the minimum recycled content requirements for beverage, packaging and food containers (no less than 60 percent by 2040); and imposing a moratorium on new plastic production facilities until regulations can be developed to address impacts from existing facilities. The onus on paying for these programs would fall on the producers of these products. As with most other bans of its type, the single-use plastics ban does not extend to medical devices.
When the Act was introduced on October 25, 2023, it was referred that same day to the Senate Committee on Environment and Public Works, where no public actions have since followed. There has been some extended activity in the House of Representatives, with the last action being a referral to the House Agriculture Subcommittee on Conservation, Research and Biotechnology on January 18, 2024. However, as with previous iterations in 2020 and 2021, the Act is not expected to garner enough support to pass.
Stalled progress on a federal ban has generally resulted in state and local governments tackling the task instead, with many localities starting off with a ban on single-use plastic grocery bags. As discussed by the World Economic Forum, a recent report found that over 500 municipalities in 28 states had plastic bag legislation in effect as of 2021, and 12 states currently have state-wide bans on single-use plastic bags. Some areas, like Vermont and Washington D.C., have introduced default choice modification, a process whereby, for example, plastic straws or disposable utensils are only provided to customers who specifically ask for them (that’s right, your wait staff did not forget to give you your straw). Instead of going the ban route, some localities have addressed the issue through a bag tax, or alternatively a bag credit for bringing a re-usable bag to the grocery store instead of having a single-use bag provided to you. Of course, the state level is facing its own share of opposition to single-use plastic bans, with multiple states banning a ban on single-use plastic bags.
Executive Actions Aimed at Reducing Single-Use Plastic
While federal legislation tackling single-use plastics nationwide has repeatedly stalled, executive attempts aimed at the products have seen some movement. On April 21, 2023, the Biden Administration and Environmental Protection Agency announced its draft “National Strategy to Prevent Plastic Pollution.” The strategy outlines “ambitious actions to eliminate the release of plastic and other waste from land-based sources into the environment by 2040.” Among the strategy’s goals is to reduce the production of single-use, unrecyclable plastic products. This would be achieved in part by identifying alternative materials, products or systems with fewer impacts on the environment. The Administration also aims to develop a list of single-use, unrecyclable, difficult to recycle or frequently littered plastic products that can be integrated into organizational purchasing policies and procurement guidelines. Other proposals in the Draft Strategy include creating an innovation challenge program to develop single-use plastic alternatives; identifying policy tools to reduce single-use plastic production; and setting a national voluntary goal to reduce the production of single-use plastics. The Draft Strategy also proposes providing funding to communities that seek to reduce single-use plastic use through the creation and implementation of plans that facilitate product reuse, and developing targeted public messaging regarding reduction of single-use plastics. The EPA to-date has received over 91,000 public comments on the Draft Strategy, and while the public comment period ended in July 2023, the associated EPA webpage states that EPA is continuing to review all comments received.
The above action followed a June 2022 Department of Labor order that sought to gradually phase out the procurement, sale and distribution of single-use plastics at national parks, and eventually banning such use by 2032. Efforts have gone beyond America’s borders, with the country being one of roughly 175 nations that in 2022 entered a United Nations Environmental Assembly resolution to end plastic pollution and develop an internationally binding agreement by the end of 2024. The Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee tasked with developing that agreement begins its fourth drafting session today in Ottawa, Canada. The current draft includes, for example, language requiring each signee to reduce or ban by a date certain the production, sale, distribution, import or export of specified single-use plastic products. But should the resolution pass, will America be in a position where legislative steps are taken to meet the terms of that agreement?
Is a single-use plastic ban the solution?
A ban on single-use plastics may address the issue of plastic litter, but may not address other long-term environmental impacts of plastic use. And such a ban may not be as straightforward as it may initially seem. Replace plastic bags with paper bags or cotton totes, and suddenly the burden shifts to deforestation or high intensity water and energy usage. A single-use plastic tax would likely be felt most in low-income communities unless a reusable product support program is introduced with it. Single-use plastics also require a smaller production footprint than their re-usable plastic counterparts, and will the public choose to re-use those items if they have them? Default choice modification gives the customer some semblance of control, but may not create the results sought to profoundly reduce the ongoing impacts of single-use plastic pollution.
Legislation addressing single-use plastics may be a start, but other actions are required to ultimately tackle the long-term impact of plastic pollution. This includes government investments in a more robust recycling infrastructure, enhancements in recycling technology, and incentives to tackle the lackadaisical public approach to plastic disposal. Everyone can recite the age-old mantra of “Reduce, Reuse, Recycle,” but what steps are otherwise being taken to encourage this behavior? While there are several approaches to addressing single-use plastic pollution, until something is done, the area will remain on the front lines as the most visible component of the global focus on plastic pollution. It is imperative that sound public policies be developed to ensure long-term sustainable initiatives that can help the planet deliver a knockout blow.
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