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.
March 4, 2021
Given that there was no opportunity to testify, below are Clean Water Action's comments about S2515. Clean Water Action supports the post-consumer recycled content bill with a few remaining concerns.
Clean Water Action first and foremost advocates for programs that prevent waste before it is created. We promote reusables over single-use disposables whenever possible. The bag, foam, and straws bill (S864) signed into law in November was a critical first step. Thank you Senator Smith for leading that effort.
Since November, Baltimore County has been convening a Solid Waste Work Group has been meeting to review how trash is managed in the county and make recommendations for improvements. Their final meeting is this Thursday, March 4, and the County's consultant, GBB (a company selected by the Northeast Maryland Waste Disposal Authority), will be presenting 18 Proposed Tactical Plan Strategies, followed by a public hearing.
NJ's statewide ban on single-use carryout bags and polystyrene foam containers was a huge victory made possible in part by the 50 plus local ordinances banning these and other single-use disposables. This just goes to show how powerful local policies can be in creating larger change. So what else can municipalities do?