Biden-Harris Administration Announces National Strategy to Prevent Plastic Pollution

The EPA released the “National Strategy to Prevent Plastic Pollution,” outlining opportunities for action to protect communities from the impacts of plastic production and waste and detailing how government agencies, businesses, non-profits, and communities can take additional action to prevent plastic pollution. This strategy also aligns with the United States’ commitment to negotiating an ambitious international agreement with the aim of protecting public health and the environment by reducing plastic pollution around the world. The strategy is the third pillar of EPA’s “Building a Circular Economy for All” effort, following national strategies on recycling and reducing food loss and waste.

 

“EPA’s new strategy to prevent plastic pollution will have a profound impact on public health and our environment, especially in overburdened communities hit hardest,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “From reducing cancer-causing pollution from plastic manufacturing facilities, to increasing industry’s accountability to take back recycled plastic packaging, to capturing waste before it ends up in our bodies and the environment, this strategy lays out the path forward for EPA and our partners to tackle this persistent challenge.”

 

“Plastics have many uses but also create a huge impact on our environment,” said Rhode Island Department of Environmental Management Director Terry Gray. “’The National Strategy to Prevent Plastic Pollution’ presents an excellent road map to prevent these types of pollution by creating circular economies, returning these materials to supply chains for recycling and reuse. We recognize and appreciate the leadership by EPA in developing and finalizing this strategy, considering comments and feedback from thousands of stakeholders. It will have big benefits to our environment as we move forward to implementation.”

 

These actions are in addition to steps that are already underway to reduce plastic waste:

 

EPA is issuing this national strategy as the international community gathers in Busan, South Korea, for the final meeting of the International Negotiating Committee on Plastic Pollution,  to develop an international legally binding instrument on plastic pollution. The strategy will help inform the international community of the wide range of actions available and already taken in the United States.

 

In the bipartisan Save Our Seas 2.0 Act of 2020, Congress charged EPA with developing a strategy to reduce plastic waste and other post-consumer materials in waterways and oceans. EPA published the draft strategy in April of 2023 and received nearly 92,000 comments during the public comment period. Today’s updated strategy incorporates that feedback and affirms EPA’s commitment to eliminating the release of plastic waste into the environment by 2040. The opportunities for action in this strategy are designed to combat climate change through greenhouse gas emission reductions associated with the lifecycle of plastic products and to reduce public health impacts to communities overburdened by pollution.

 

EPA, with input from industry and trade organizations, national and community-based non-profit organizations, government agencies, Tribes, and private individuals, identified objectives and actions to address environmental and human health concerns by eliminating U.S. release of plastic into the environment and reducing exposure to plastic pollution.

 

The “National Strategy to Prevent Plastic Pollution” follows the “National Strategy for Reducing Food Loss and Waste and Recycling Organics” and builds on EPA’s “National Recycling Strategy” by identifying actions needed to reduce and recover plastic and other materials, as well as prevent plastic pollution from harming human health and the environment. These actions support a circular economy approach to the management of plastic products—an approach that is regenerative by design, ensuring resources retain value for as long as possible. It aligns with the White House’s 2024 Report: Mobilizing Federal Action on Plastic Pollution: Progress, Principles, and Priorities, which presents a plan for federal action.

 

The Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development projects that, without interventions, global plastic use and waste will almost triple by 2060. Because most plastic products are not reused or recycled, many will end up incinerated, disposed of in landfills, or “leaked” into the environment, negatively impacting human health and ecosystems. Plastic products also contribute to global greenhouse gas emissions, and there are significant human health concerns associated with plastic pollution across the lifecycle of plastic products. These concerns impact many fence line communities, disproportionally low-income and communities of color, near plastic, chemical and petrochemical processing facilities.

 

Micro- and nanoplastics have been found in many parts of the body. Studies show micro- and nanoplastics negatively impact fertility and reproductive health; potentially put people at a higher risk for heart attack, stroke, or death; and that some micro- and nanoplastics may contribute to the progression of colorectal cancer. In addition, some studies raise concerns about endocrine-disrupting effects from chemicals that leach out of plastic products, and whether some plastic polymers cross the blood-brain barrier. There are growing concerns associated with potential threats to children’s health from micro- and nanoplastics. Microplastics have been found in human placentas after birth, even following a plastic-free birthing protocol. Researchers have also found microplastics in human breastmilk.

 

The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency has fined Transporte Rodríguez Asfalto, Inc. (TRA) in $80,000 for violations of the Clean Water Act after discharging stormwater pollutants into the Cañas River during construction activities in Aguada, Puerto Rico.

 

“We are holding TRA accountable under the Clean Water Act which is designed to protect waterways like the Cañas River and prevent pollution that threatens public health and the environment,” said EPA Regional Administrator Lisa F. Garcia. “Construction activities, if not properly managed, can cause long-term damage to local rivers and ecosystems. In the future, TRA will have to get a construction permit, use better practices, and avoid future discharges in the river.”

 

The EPA found that TRA began construction on a 13-acre site near PR-2 and PR-48 roads in September 2023. TRA did not secure the necessary permits or install required erosion and sediment controls. As a result, stormwater runoff from the site entered the Cañas River, carrying harmful pollutants and affecting water quality.

 

In response to the violations, the EPA issued an administrative order requiring TRA to pay the $80,000 penalty and take corrective actions, including:

 

TRA will be required to submit bimonthly reports to the EPA to demonstrate ongoing compliance with the order.

 

The Clean Water Act prohibits discharging pollutants into U.S. waters without a valid permit.

 

 

The U.S. Department of Labor has entered into a settlement agreement with a Mississippi steel pipe manufacturer with a long history of safety failures to correct recent conditions that led to a 25-year-old employee's fatal injuries in January 2024 in Bay Saint Louis.

 

An investigation by OSHA found Jindal Tubular USA LLC had not established safe practices for storing and stacking pipes, resulting in a tragic incident where 2,000-pound pipes collapsed, fatally injuring one worker and causing life-altering injuries to a 20-year-old laborer, who subsequently lost both legs.

 

OSHA cited the company for failing to ensure stacked pipes were stable and secure against collapse. Inspectors also identified three repeat violations that included failing to provide machine guarding, inspect or test electrical insulating protective gloves periodically, and prevent slipping hazards. In addition, the company was cited for 26 serious violations that included failing to ensure guardrails or covers were in place at open pits to protect employees from fall hazards, allowing accumulation of combustible dust on surfaces and failing to label exit doors to facilitate safe egress in the event of a fire.

 

"Jindal Tubular's repeated failure to provide employees with a safe workplace has been truly disturbing," said OSHA Area Office Director Courtney Bohannon in Jackson, Mississippi. "We hope this settlement signals a new willingness to make employee safety the centerpiece of its operations."

 

As part of the agreement negotiated by OSHA and the Office of the Solicitor, Jindal Tubular USA will withdraw its challenge to the citations and pay $442,815 in penalties. In addition, the employer is obligated to do the following:

 

With the latest violations, Jindal Tubular USA has been cited for 46 OSHA safety violations in the last five years. The company manufactures and coats large diameter steel pipes at its 155-acre facility in Bay Saint Louis. Incorporated in 2014, the company has more than 400 employees.

 

 

The EPA announced a settlement with McWane Inc., dba AB&I, over claims of Clean Air Act violations at its iron foundry in Oakland, CA. The company will pay a $274,000 fine and has since closed the Oakland foundry, ending its operations in late 2022.

 

“Excess and untested air emissions from facilities like this have caused harm to our East Bay communities,” said EPA Pacific Southwest Regional Administrator Martha Guzman. “EPA will continue to pursue and fine facilities that do not comply with federal clean air laws.”

 

In April 2022, EPA issued a Finding and Notice of Violation to AB&I over five violations between 2018 and 2020 of its facility’s operating permit and the National Emission Standards for Iron and Steel Foundries.

 

In December 2019, EPA inspectors observed smoke coming from an asphalt coating line and exhausting into the foundry building. Inspectors detected no inward draw into the control system, and also detected chemical resin odors. This violation was corrected after investigation into the causes.

 

Additionally, for nearly one year the facility failed to continuously monitor and record multiple baghouse leak detection events (a baghouse works to remove harmful particulate matter). Detection systems ensure that excess emissions from the baghouses do not go undetected and must include an alarm to alert facility staff. However, the facility installed incorrect monitors that were not capable of meeting their compliance requirements. Two other baghouses operated for at least 16 days without compliant monitors.

 

Other violations include:

 

Particulate matter contains microscopic droplets that can be inhaled and cause serious health problems. Some particles less than 10 micrometers in diameter can get deep into the lungs and some may even get into the bloodstream. These particles are also the main cause of reduced visibility (haze) in parts of the United States.

 

 

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