Democrats push Biden on plastics following U.N. talks

In a letter this week, lawmakers urged the administration to

Prominent Democrats are calling on the Biden administration to take aim at plastics, arguing that the executive branch should do more to address the sprawling pollution crisis.

In a letter sent Tuesday, California Reps. Jared Huffman and Alan Lowenthal joined Sens. Jeff Merkley of Oregon and Cory Booker of New Jersery in appealing to President Joe Biden over "the harmful impacts" of plastics on human health and the environment.

"Plastic pollution can no longer be looked at as a stand-alone environmental issue. As plastic production globally has soared to over 360 million metric tons, plastic pollution has been found around the entire globe — from the deepest trenches in the ocean to within our bodies," the lawmakers wrote.

Their request came in the aftermath of the first meeting of the Intergovernmental Negotiating Committee, a United Nations effort that is working to develop an international and legally binding blueprint for addressing plastics pollution.

The lawmakers tied the issue to a range of problems, including climate change, noting that plastics are a petrochemical product. They also noted concerns around microplastics, which have become major contaminants around the globe, and environmental justice, as low-income communities of color disproportionately experience impacts from plastics facilities.

Much of the power over curbing plastics lies with Congress, and the letter's signatories pushed both the "Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act," S. 984 and H.R. 2238, and the "Protecting Communities From Plastics Act."

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By:  E.A. Crunden
Source: E&E Daily

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