Plastics - Inside Climate News

Plastics Pollution Has Become a ‘Crisis,’ Biden Administration Acknowledges

By Marianne Lavelle — Fri, 19 Jul 2024 18:37:58 +0000

The White House strategy aims to cut pollutants, not cap production, and use government purchasing power to discourage single-use plastic.

By Marianne Lavelle

Single-use plastic would be phased out of all U.S. government operations by 2035 under a new federal plastics pollution strategy unveiled Friday by President Joe Biden’s administration, which cited a “crisis” of littered oceans and poisoned air due to plastics.

Declaring an Epidemic of ‘Toxic Litter,’ Baltimore Targets Plastic Makers and Packaging in the Latest Example of Plastics Litigation

By James Bruggers — Mon, 24 Jun 2024 21:44:18 +0000

“Every community has the same problem,” a lawyer representing Baltimore says about plastic waste. It’s one of the first cities to sue companies that create the waste.

By James Bruggers

Tired of potato chip wrappers and other single-use plastic waste clogging streams, littering public spaces and creating air pollution when burned, the city of Baltimore has gone to court to ask for relief.

Foes of New York Packaging Bill Used Threats of Empty Grocery Shelves to Defeat Plastics Bill

By James Bruggers — Fri, 14 Jun 2024 09:05:00 +0000

The Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act sought to remake waste management and recycling in New York. Advocates vow to keep trying.

By James Bruggers

In the end, it may have been fears that Kraft Heinz would remove plastic tubs of Cool Whip or individually wrapped processed cheese slices from grocery store shelves that defeated an ambitious packaging reduction and recycling bill in the New York State Legislature.

Lawsuits Targeting Plastic Pollution Pile Up as Frustrated Citizens and States Seek Accountability

By James Bruggers — Wed, 05 Jun 2024 09:10:00 +0000

New litigation from state AG offices raises the stakes in court battles focused on fighting greenwashing and misleading claims about recycling.

By James Bruggers

The plastic pellets washing up on beaches and in marshes around Charleston, South Carolina, became very obvious about five years ago.

Is Fungus Fabric Really Taking Off? Vegan Leather Could Help Reduce Waste, But May Be Struggling to Scale

By Kiley Price — Sun, 19 May 2024 18:46:33 +0000

Bio-based fabrics could help reduce emissions and waste from clothing, but may not address overproduction.

By Kiley Price

Earlier this May, celebrities gathered in New York City for the Met Gala, one of the biggest and most extravagant fashion events of the year. This year, the dress code was nature-centric, instructing guests to dress for “The Garden of Time.”

Q&A: Is Pittsburgh Becoming ‘the Plastic City’?

By Kiley Bense — Wed, 15 May 2024 09:00:00 +0000

With the new Shell plastics plant now operational in Beaver County, water quality advocates in the Pittsburgh region are concerned about increased pollution.

By Kiley Bense

Once a month for nearly two years, Evan Clark, the Waterkeeper at Three Rivers Waterkeeper, a water quality advocacy organization based in Pittsburgh, has traveled by boat along the Ohio River to Shell’s enormous new plastics plant in Beaver County.

Behind the Scenes: How a Plastics Plant Has Plagued a Pennsylvania County

By Kiley Price — Sun, 05 May 2024 17:12:42 +0000

From incessant noise to noxious odors, the Shell plastics plant has deeply impacted the residents of a western Pennsylvania county.

By Kiley Price

In 2022, the oil and gas company Shell began operations at its new plastics plant in Monaca, Pennsylvania, a town in Beaver County, about 25 miles northwest of Pittsburgh.

Headed Toward the Finish Line, Plastics Treaty Delegates ‘Work is Far From Over’

By James Bruggers — Wed, 01 May 2024 17:35:01 +0000

Some environmental groups see the United States, the global leader in oil production, as an obstacle to a robust plastics agreement.

By James Bruggers

The United States and other leading oil and gas producing countries that resist caps on future plastic production had a powerful effect on the latest round of United Nations talks aimed at achieving a global agreement to end plastic waste, observers said Tuesday.

A Plastics Plant Promised Pennsylvania Prosperity, but to Some Residents It’s Become a ‘Shockingly Bad’ Neighbor

By Kiley Bense — Tue, 30 Apr 2024 09:00:00 +0000

Shell’s new ethane cracker was supposed to be an economic “game changer” for Beaver County. But some of its neighbors are now fleeing its light, noise and air pollution–and the facility is facing two lawsuits.

By Kiley Bense

In 2014, when Jackie Shock-Stewart and her husband Matt Stewart first moved to Beaver County, Pennsylvania, they were only vaguely aware of plans to build a petrochemical facility in this largely suburban county on the western edge of the state.

As Plastic Treaty Delegates Head to Canada, A Plea From the Arctic: Don’t Forget Vulnerable Indigenous Peoples

By James Bruggers — Tue, 16 Apr 2024 12:00:00 +0000

Advocates hope a U.N. meeting can revive plastics pollution talks and meet a year-end goal for a global agreement.

By James Bruggers

Indigenous people from Arctic communities are calling for environmental protection in the runup to this month’s round of negotiations aimed at securing a global treaty to end plastic pollution.