Waste

Clean Water is taking-on single use products. From shopping bags, to food and beverage packaging, to plastic water bottles, our goal is to minimize the use of single use products. We engage businesses, local governments, and individual consumers in rethinking the disposable lifestyle.

Maryland

Sewage Backups in Baltimore

Heavy rainfall stresses all of our infrastructure: flooded transportation systems, leaking houses developing mold, inundated drinking water sources full of polluted runoff, and sewage systems letting rainwater leak in and

Recent Actions

California, National

Take the Pledge to Reduce Single-Use today!

Pledge to reduce your reliance on single-use disposable products and packaging.

Take the Pledge!

New Jersey

Take Action: Ban Plastic Bags in NJ

Ask the NJ State Legislature for a ban on single-use plastics.

Take Action

Pennsylvania

Let's Eliminate Single-Use Bags in Philly!

Did you know the Philadelphia Water Department found that plastic bags comprise 17% of the total debris recovered by their skimming operations?

Act now!

New Jersey

Urge your town to pass a local plastics ordinance

Please contact your local officials to let them know you would like to see a single-use plastics ordinance in your hometown.

Go Reusable! Urge your town to pass a local plastics ordinance

English

Waste Blog Posts

A Zero Waste Business on Baltimore's Bag Ban

August 22, 2019

People all across Baltimore have been weighing in on the Plastic Bag Reduction Bill - and businesses, too! Diane Wittner, the owner of Echotopia, shared her testimony with us, and we wanted to share it with you. Businesses like Echotopia are already making the switch away from plastic bags, and single-use plastics overall; it's time for all of Baltimore to follow.

Baltimore City Councilman Bill Henry, residents, and advocates in front of City Hall after the Plastic Bag Reduction Bill public hearing.

Baltimore's Plastic Bag Reduction Bill: public hearings and work sessions

August 12, 2019

On Tuesday, August 6, the Baltimore City Council's Judiciary Committee held its first public hearing on the Plastic Bag Reduction Bill. This important legislation bans plastic bags in stores in Baltimore, with exceptions for bags used for products like fresh meats, unpackaged fruits, or ice, and locations like farmers' markets and pharmacies. It also puts a 5-cent fee on paper bags - part of which will help the store meet the extra cost of buying and storing paper bags, and part of which can help the city distribute free reusable bags.

the ReThink Disposable Team at a celebration of the Alameda project

What the Unpackaging Alameda Project Means For The Future Of Source Reduction

August 9, 2019

We are proud that, with the Ocean Protection Council, we have successfully wrapped a two-year project to unpackage the city of Alameda. For two years, our team pounded the pavement in Alameda, talking to business owners about our project, meeting with local government, and recruiting student volunteers and community ambassadors for the project. We invested in understanding the rhythms of day-to-day life in this vibrant, interconnected city.