(CNN) In an attempt to slash the wide-ranging impacts of plastic pollution, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law the country's most sweeping restrictions on single-use plastics and packaging on Thursday, the same day the Supreme Court limited the Environmental Protection Agency's ability to tackle the worsening climate crisis.
The law requires that single-use packaging and plastic single-use food serviceware be recyclable or compostable by 2032. It also requires by 2032 a 25% reduction in the sales of plastic packaging and for 65% of all single-use plastic packaging to be recycled. And it establishes an accountability group, which will include industry representatives, to run a new recycling program overseen by the state.
"Our kids deserve a future free of plastic waste and all its dangerous impacts, everything from clogging our oceans to killing animals — contaminating the air we breathe, the water we drink, and the food we eat," Newsom, a Democrat, said in a statement. "No more."
Stakeholders negotiated the language around the bill, attempting to design a law that would significantly cut plastic production, ramp up recycling and composting and shift the burden of plastics pollution to industry.
Newsom signed the law just as the US Supreme Court ruled that the federal Clean Air Act does not give the Environmental Protection Agency broad authority to regulate planet-warming emissions from power plants. The opinion was roundly criticized by environmental advocates and scientists who have been sounding the alarm that the world is running out of time to get the climate crisis under control.
Lionheart509 on July 3rd, 2022 at 06:14 UTC »
They had me until "industry representatives"
the_retrosaur on July 3rd, 2022 at 04:41 UTC »
Where do ziplock bags fit in this, or Saran plastic cling wrap? You sort of only ever hear about grocery bags.
Led_Halen on July 3rd, 2022 at 02:13 UTC »
My wife works for a company that sells commercially compostable disposables (straws, cups, ect). Cali is one of her territories. Even with 20% fill rates, she just blew her sales goal out of the water at like 1100% and looks to already beat those numbers by next year.
Here's the kicker though. Her company is still owned by one of the largest disposable plastics manufacturers in America. So the money still goes into Big Plastics pocket. Still, small victories I guess.