More than 99 percent of plastic is made from chemicals sourced from fossil fuels. Fortunately, President Biden and his administration can begin to clean up this mess. Join us in urging the President to take eight actions to help stop plastic from polluting our world.
Tiny microplastic particles are polluting the food we eat, the water we drink, and the air we breathe. Disposable, single-use products are clogging our waterways. Producing these single-use items pollutes nearby—mostly Black, Brown, and low-income—communities. This requires even more of fossil fuels we MUST keep in the ground to avoid climate catastrophe.
The U.S. can begin to lead on this issue, but we need to act now. That's why the Sierra Club is joining over 600 organizations urging President Biden and his administration to take the following eight key actions on plastic:
- Using the purchasing power of the federal government to replace single-use plastic items with reusable products
- Denying permits for new or expanded plastic facilities, infrastructure, and exports
- Making corporate polluters pay and rejecting false solutions that burden taxpayers with cleanup
- Advancing environmental justice in petrochemical (plastic producing) corridors
- Updating federal standards to curtail pollution from plastic facilities
- Stopping subsidizing plastic producers
- Joining international efforts to establish binding commitments to reduce plastic production and eliminate single-use plastics
- Reducing and mitigate the impacts of discarded and lost fishing gear
While these actions alone will not stop the tide of plastic pollution—we must also work together to push Congress, local governments, and corporations to do their part—they represent a significant step forward. Will you act now?