Democrats accuse Biden of inaction on plastic pollution

Two prominent Democrats said the Biden administration is not going far enough to curb plastic waste.

As international negotiators reconvene Monday to continue work toward a global treaty to end plastic pollution, some Democrats say they're disappointed with what they see as the Biden administration's lack of ambition.

In a letter to the White House on Thursday, Sen. Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.) and Rep. Jared Huffman (D-Calif.) criticized the United States' proposal that prioritized "greater flexibility" over certain mandatory standards.

"Our fear [is] that it signals that this Administration is not committed to an ambitious agreement," the two lawmakers wrote. "As one of the leading drivers of this crisis, the United States has a leadership opportunity and an obligation to help move the world responsibly in the right direction."

Merkley — the chair of the Environment and Public Works Subcommittee on Chemical Safety, Waste Management, Environmental Justice and Regulatory Oversight — and Huffman — ranking member of the Natural Resources Subcommittee on Water, Wildlife and Fisheries — insisted on three actions the proposal should have included.

The proposal calls for the treaty to include methods to "increase plastic circularity" and "strengthen demand for secondary plastics," mirroring parts of the plastics industry's stance.

But Merkley and Huffman, who share similar views to the anti-plastics advocacy groups, pushed for measures to reduce plastic production, decreasing the need for recycling.

The two lawmakers also criticized the administration's favoring "voluntary approaches," saying those opt-in approaches are "insufficient to meet the scale and scope of these global problems."

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By:  Ellie Borst
Source: E&E Daily

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