(AGENPARL) – ven 26 aprile 2024 Issued: Apr 26, 2024 (11:05am EDT)
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EPA Celebrates Earth Week and Agency Efforts to Prevent Plastic Pollution
WASHINGTON – Today, April 26, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is
wrapping up Earth Week by highlighting the work the agency is doing to prevent
plastic pollution. 
“Plastic waste is growing and so is the impact it has on public health and
the environment,” said Cliff Villa, EPA Deputy Assistant Administrator for
the Office of Land and Emergency Management. “This Earth Week, I challenge
everyone to do their part to reduce plastic waste to protect our health and
ensure that future generations can continue to enjoy a safe and healthy
planet.”
Together, everyone can prevent plastic waste from entering the environment by
reducing the waste they generate, reusing or recycling plastic products, and
picking up littered materials. EPA strongly supports an innovative, equitable
and circular approach to preventing plastic pollution from harming human
health and the environment, particularly in already overburdened communities.
The agency’s Draft National Strategy to Prevent Plastic Pollution, together
with the National Recycling Strategy, identifies actions that governments,
businesses, industry, and nonprofits in the U.S. can take to:
Reduce pollution from plastic production.
Decrease plastic waste generation by encouraging reuse.
Capture and remove plastics and other materials from the environment,
including waterways and oceans.
Expand markets for recycled goods.
Improve materials management infrastructure and increase collection.
Reduce contamination in the recycled materials stream.
Recently, the 2021 Bipartisan Infrastructure Law provided the largest EPA
investment in recycling in 30 years, supporting improvements to waste
management systems and programs. Just this past year in September, EPA
selected 25 communities to receive grants totaling more than $73 million under
the newly created Solid Waste Infrastructure for Recycling funding
opportunity. In addition, EPA made available about $32 million for states and
territories to improve solid waste management planning, data collection and
implementation of plans.
In November, the agency announced 59 selectees to receive over $60 million in
SWIFR grants for Tribes and Intertribal Consortia and 25 selectees to receive
over $33 million in Recycling Education and Outreach grants. These grants will
expand recycling infrastructure and education for waste management systems
across the country. EPA also created a Model Recycling Program Toolkit to help
communities increase participation in recycling programs and reduce
contamination in the recycling stream.
Everyday ways to combat plastic pollution
Support policies and programs that aim to reduce plastic pollution.
Purchase products that are designed to be easily reusable or recyclable.
Participate in community recycling programs if they are available and learn
which types of materials the local recycling program accepts.
Pick up litter in the environment and make sure it can be collected for
recycling or proper disposal.
Reduce and reuse materials in everyday life. The most effective way to prevent
plastic pollution is to not create plastic waste in the first place.
Additional Information on Plastic Waste
Plastic is one of the most prevalent materials in daily life—most people
don’t go a single day without encountering plastic. And while it’s a
valuable resource that can be put to so many uses (and reuses), it’s also a
key contributor to pollution. EPA’s estimates show that plastic waste
generation in the United States increased from 0.4% of total municipal solid
waste generated in 1960 to 12.2% in 2018. Plastic waste that does not make it
into the U.S. waste management system often ends up in the environment as
plastic pollution.
Plastic pollution is particularly concerning because plastic materials do not
fully biodegrade in the environment. Land-based sources account for up to 80%
of plastic waste that pollutes waterways and oceans. Plastic pollution has
been found in a wide range of organisms and habitats, including coral reefs,
estuaries, beaches, and the deep sea. Since plastic material does not
decompose, it accumulates in landfills and in the environment. Plastic
products also contribute to global greenhouse gas emissions throughout their
life cycles, with most of these emissions coming from the production and
conversion of fossil fuels into new plastic products. The Organisation for
Economic Co-operation and Development estimates that in 2019, plastic products
were responsible for 3.4% of global greenhouse gas emissions throughout their
life cycles, with 90% of these emissions coming from the production and
conversion of fossil fuels into new plastic products.
Visit EPA’s webpage on plastics to learn more about plastic pollution and
ways to combat it.
Visit EPA’s webpage on materials and waste to learn more. 
Visit EPA’s webpage on circular economy to learn more. 
Visit EPA’s webpage on Bipartisan Infrastructure Law initiatives to learn
more. 
Visit EPA’s Trash Free Waters program webpage to learn more.
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