plastic pollution

Great news from New Jersey! The State Legislature just passed an ambitious new bill (S2515/A4676) that will require minimum percentages of post-consumer recycled content in a variety of packaging products, including rigid plastic containers, beverage containers, paper and plastic bags, trash bags, and glass containers. The new law, which is just awaiting Governor Murphy's signature, will also set incremental increases to the Post-Consumer Recycled (PCR) percentages and bans Styrofoam packing peanuts.

In this three part blog series, learn more about our work in Rhode Island to fight climate change, stop plastic pollution, and create healthier communities. The first in our series focuses on our campaign to stop plastic pollution.

Clean Water Action is also pushing for one or two things: a reduced tax rate for non-single-use products made from virgin resins or clear definitions explaining what products are single-use and which are not. Join Clean Water Action in eliminating the problem at the source. 

In recent years, bills have been introduced to address polystyrene, plastic flatware, single-use water bottles and other plastic packaging. But, none have succeeded. The most efficient way to comprehensively solve the problem of single-use plastics, then, is with a statewide EPR bill.

Let's continue the fight to get a plastic bag ban in Rhode Island. Click here to eliminate plastic pollution in Narragansett Bay and protect the community. 

For Plastic Free July, will you join us in calling on restaurants and businesses to reopen with non-toxic reuse?

Please join our campaign! Start by writing to City Council NOW and email me to learn about other ways you can help. Also, if your store has stopped allowing the use of reusable bags, please contact them and urge them to allow reusable bags again.Together, let’s make it happen.

Imagine a world without plastic waste. For Plastic Free July, millions of people around the globe are working to make this vision a reality by stopping the use of single-use disposable plastics for one month.

This July, join millions of people around the world reducing their plastic waste. Clean Water Action’s ReThink Disposable program is excited to be part of the solution to plastic pollution – every day we work for cleaner streets, oceans and beautiful communities. Join us to ReThink Disposable together by choosing to refuse single-use plastics for Plastic Free July. Together, we can make a difference and be a part of the solution.

Internet challenges come and go, and generally I don’t pay much attention to them. This week, however, I began to see pictures of people posing with bags full of trash they had collected pop up all over social media. It seems the #trashtag challenge has taken off across the globe, bringing a ton of attention to a problem that has plagued us for decades, ever since the advent of our convenient, throwaway lifestyle.