[link removed] Tell your governor: Hold plastic producers responsible for their waste:
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John,

Have you ever tried to go an entire day without plastic? What was the first plastic item that forced you to give up? Maybe it was your toothbrush, or a food container, or the case on your phone.

No matter what it was, this was by design. Plastic producers make a profit when we buy plastic products, so the more plastic we have in our lives, the better off they are.

But we end up worse off, and so does the planet. In the United States, we generate 35 million tons of plastic waste every year, and 50% of all that plastic is used once, then thrown away forever.[1,2]

Plastic producers need to be held responsible for the harm their products cause. Tell your governor to join the growing number of states reducing plastic waste by passing producer responsibility laws.
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What is producer responsibility?

You probably learned its basic premise in kindergarten: If you make a mess, you clean it up.

Producer responsibility laws shift the burden of waste management from taxpayers to the producers of the waste. If a company makes products and packaging that become waste, it should take financial responsibility for cleaning up its mess.

This legislation can require producers to physically collect their products at the end of their use if they aren't readily recyclable or can require producers to pay fees based on their products' negative impact that would fund the proper collection and disposal of their products.[3]

How does it help reduce plastic waste?

Plastic manufacturers would be incentivized to produce more sustainable alternatives to plastic and reduce their overall amount of plastic. It would also increase how many materials are actually recycled into new products by using plastic fees to fund recycling programs.[4]

These kinds of programs help reduce plastic at the source, meaning less of it ends up in our lives, communities and the environment in the first place.

How can we pass producer responsibility across the country?

Thanks to our national network of PIRG supporters like you, we've been able to make significant progress on producer responsibility for packaging in the last several years.

Maine, California, Colorado and Oregon have already passed producer responsibility laws for packaging, and 17 states have introduced other producer responsibility bills.[5]

You can help push your state to be the next to take this crucial action against plastic waste. Send a message to the governor today.
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John, imagine a world where plastic doesn't accumulate in the garbage after every shopping trip.

Or a world where we don't feel guilt when there seems to be no choice but to use plastic, despite our best efforts, because it's easier to live without plastic.

A world where companies have to think about our health and environment when making decisions about how they are packaging products.

We believe this world is possible, and that passing producer responsibility laws is a first step towards achieving that reality.

Send a message to your governor urging them to pass producer responsibility legislation.
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Thank you,

Faye Park
President

1. "Holding plastic producers accountable," U.S. PIRG, December 28, 2023.
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2. "Beyond Plastic," U.S. PIRG, last accessed February 21, 2024.
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3. "Holding plastic producers accountable," U.S. PIRG, December 28, 2023.
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4. Henry Hintermeister, "Companies that make single-use plastics shouldn't escape the cost of the cleanup," The Public Interest Network, March 7, 2021.
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5. Extended Producer Responsibility," National Conference of State Legislatures, October 2023.
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