John,
As the biggest purchaser of goods and services in the world, the United States government could make a big dent in our plastic waste crisis.[1]
Unfortunately, the federal government's new proposed rule on single-use plastics doesn't require anybody to use less plastic. That's a wasted opportunity at best.
Tell the federal government: Require real reductions in single-use plastic products and stop adding tons of plastic waste to our landfills and environment.
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How big of a dent in plastic waste can the federal government make? A really big one.
The U.S. government spends $650 billion per year on consumer goods and services. The goods it purchases include a mountain of plastic products -- the single-use plastic bags, utensils, straws, bottles, packaging and other plastic products purchased for use in government buildings and at official events.[2]
Tons of this plastic ends up in the trash -- adding to the jaw-dropping 35 million tons every year, give or take a few tons.[3]
Yet even though the federal government has an opportunity to reduce how much plastic is produced and thrown away, and it's about to let it go to waste -- by making plastic reduction a "voluntary" option, not a requirement.
Plastic is harming our communities and the planet. The federal government has a chance to help make a big reduction in plastic waste and pollution. Send a message today.
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Each piece of plastic we throw away will remain in the environment for decades, or even centuries, to come. In the meantime, it will break down into microplastics that further pollute our water, food and air.[4]
And each additional plastic item we produce requires dirty fossil fuels to make and releases greenhouse gasses in the process.[5]
We can't let this opportunity go to waste. The new proposed rule for federal purchasing should make it mandatory to reduce plastic.
Add your name today.
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Thank you,
Faye Park
President
1. Sharon Udasin, "NGOs petition the Biden administration to stop buying single-
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use plastic," The Hill, February 4, 2022.
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2. Sharon Udasin, "NGOs petition the Biden administration to stop buying single-
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use plastic," The Hill, February 4, 2022
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3. "National Overview: Facts and Figures on Materials, Wastes and Recycling," Environmental Protection Agency, last accessed December 11, 2023.
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4. Laura Parker, "The world's plastic pollution crisis explained," National Geographic, June 7, 2019.
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5. Sandra Laville, "Single-use plastics a serious climate change hazard, study warns," The Guardian, May 15, 2019.
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