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For the second year in a row, the Democratic supermajority- controlled New York State Assembly failed to vote on the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (A1749 Glick) despite having enough votes to pass. Judith Enck, Beyond Plastics president and former U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regional administrator, issued the following statement.
“President Trump has launched an unprecedented assault on environmental protections. New Yorkers didn’t vote for any of this, yet at the eleventh hour the Assembly Speaker still has not brought up for a vote this widely popular environmental and public health measure that would pass major cost savings onto municipalities and taxpayers. As has been reported for weeks, the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act has enough votes to pass. It’s unbelievable that we’re in this position for the second year in a row. Assembly Speaker Heastie needs to bring the bill to a vote immediately.”
Yesterday, the New York State Conference of Mayors and Municipal Offices, the New York State Association of Counties, and the New York Association of Towns issued a joint statement urging the Assembly to pass the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (A1749 Glick).
As the petrochemical industry and its allies lobby against the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (S1464 Harckham/A1749 Glick) and falsely claim the legislation would raise grocery prices, Beyond Plastics is correcting the record.
IN THE NEWS
While the Trump administration has put a pause on many proposed new tariffs, some — like the 25 percent tariff on aluminum — are still in play. Coca-Cola chief executive James Quincey said that Coke may increase its use of plastic to mitigate price hikes, as it imports aluminum from Canada for its soda cans.
Microplastics have been found for the first time in human ovary follicular fluid, raising a new round of questions about the ubiquitous and toxic substances’ potential impact on women’s fertility. The new peer-reviewed research published in Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety checked for microplastics in the follicular fluid of 18 women undergoing assisted reproductive treatment at a fertility clinic in Salerno, Italy, and detected them in 14.
Americans are being peddled misinformation about what happens to the plastic they buy and use in their daily lives, and Maryland taxpayers have an opportunity to fight back. California Attorney General Rob Bonta has sued ExxonMobil for the fossil fuel company’s pollution and track record of misinformation — particularly around the recyclability of Americans’ plastics.
While other governments have brought legal action against consumer brands for their plastic pollution, California’s case is the first to target a major plastic producer for falsely promoting recycling as a solution.
This is a historic moment in the fight against plastic pollution, a crisis that has been created by companies that have known recycling was not possible for most plastics. While others have filed important suits against consumer brand companies for their pollution, like New York attorney general Letitia James’ lawsuit against PepsiCo, Bonta’s suit is the first to target a company for lying about plastic recycling’s efficacy.
Black-colored plastic used in children’s toys, takeout containers, kitchen utensils and grocery meat and produce trays may contain alarming levels of toxic flame retardants that may be leaching from electronic products during recycling, a new study found.
In a landmark lawsuit filed this week, the California attorney general accused ExxonMobil of “deceptively” promoting chemical recycling as a solution for the plastics crisis, citing ProPublica’s recent reporting and expanding on our findings. In June, we examined the oil giant’s claim that it had transformed discarded plastic into new fruit cups through an “advanced” chemical recycling technology called pyrolysis.
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In celebration of Plastic Free July, Beyond Plastics is rolling out a robust slate of resources and activities to help all of us take concrete steps toward a plastic-free future. With Beyond Plastics’ help, individuals can participate in 31 days of simple, effective actions — one for every day of the month — to reduce reliance on plastic.