Articles, Fact Sheets & Research Briefs
By Sandee LaMotte, CNN, Mon April 22, 2024
Another example of why we will not be able to recycle our way out of the plastics problem.
NRDC POLL RESULTS: U.S. Public Gravely Concerned about Plastics; Overwhelmingly Supportive of Measures to Reduce Plastic Production
ABOUT THE POLL
"Global Strategy Group conducted a survey with 1,608 registered voters nationwide between March 20 and 26, 2024. The survey also included two additional oversamples of 348 registered voters in Pennsylvania and 339 registered voters in Ohio. The margin of error for the nationwide sample at the 95% confidence level was +/- 3.1%. The margin of error on subgroups is greater.
Chemical Recycling is not Recycling — it is a
False Solution!
This report unmasks chemical recycling’s history of failure, its lack of viability, and its harms so that others, especially lawmakers and regulators, can see this pseudo-solution for what it is: smoke and mirrors.
Articles and Tools - including about Toxins in Plastic
Dispelling ‘silver bullet’ thinking in film recycling July 17, 2024, by Colin Staub - NEW!
Which foods have the most plastics? You may be surprised By Sandee LaMotte, CNN, Mon April 22, 2024 - NEW!
They 'lied': plastics producers deceived public about recycling, report reveals. Companies knew for decades recycling was not viable but promoted it regardless, Center for Climate Integrity study finds. Dharna Noor in The Guardian, February 15, 2024.
Reduce, reuse, redirect outrage: How plastic makers used recycling as a fig leaf. By Michael Copley for NHPR. Published February 15, 2024
New UN Report Says the World Can Cut 80% of Plastic Pollution by 2040 — Here’s How. By Ally Mauch for Nice News, May 17, 2023
Microplastics found in clouds could affect weather and global temperatures - Aliya Uteuova in The Guardian, November 16, 2023
Recycled plastic can be more toxic and is no fix for pollution, Greenpeace warns - Damien Gayle in The Guardian, May 24, 2023
Recycled and reused food contact plastics are ‘vectors’ for toxins – study - Tom Perkins in The Guardian, May 27, 2023
Strategies to Get Plastic Out of Your Life - 2-page handout from the Ecology Center
GARBAGE IN, TOXICS OUT They Promised “Advanced Recycling” for Plastics and Delivered Toxic Waste
New Hampshire welcomes ‘advanced recycling’ of plastics as some call for tighter regulations: A startup company’s plan to convert plastics into diesel fuel has so far failed to get off the ground in New Hampshire as skeptics continue to raise questions about the potential to create hazardous waste and air pollution. by Lisa Prevost, March 15, 2023
How to Quit Plastic: Ways to reduce this kind of waste—and its environmental impact—right now (Consumer Reports)
The Problem with Plastics in Our Environment (Dover Democrats and NH Network Plastics Work Group)
Eating, Drinking, and Breathing Plastic (Dover Democrats)
How Major Brands are Inviting Big Oil Into Your Kitchen (Greenpeace)
All the “Rs” of Solid Waste Management: Rethink Waste (NH Healthcare Workers for Climate Action)
In My Opinion: Looking beyond NWRA's MFR myopia (Susan Collins, Container Recycling Institute)
Commentary: Plastic pollution is a global problem – here’s how to design a treaty to curb it (by Sarah J. Morath as published in the New Hampshire Bulletin March 4, 2022)
Microplastic Research in the Ossipee Watershed (Presentation by Jill Emerson, hosted by NH LAKES, February 2022)
Zero Waste vs. Circular Economy — Your Guide to Getting in the Loop "While zero waste focuses on keeping waste out of the environment, a circular economy goes one step further by striving to regenerate the environment. .... We can also think of zero waste as a goal, and a circular economy as a means to get there."
In My Opinion: Plastic Pact’s next steps to build circularity by Emily Tipaldo, U.S. Plastics Pact in Plastics Recycling Update, April 6, 2022
Program leaders outline circular economy strategies by Marissa Heffernan in Resource Recycling News, February 15, 2022.
The Public Strongly Believes in the Effectiveness of Recycling, but Less So About a Prompt Ban on Single-Use Plastics By Julia Martinez for the Morning Consult, August 15, 2022.
What Are Bioplastics? Overview and Impacts: Bioplastics can be sustainable, but standards need to be established. By David M. Kuchta. Published November 29, 2022
Fact Sheets
The Fraud of Plastics Recycling: How Big Oil and the plastics industry deceived the public for decades and caused the plastic waste crisis. Center for Climate Integrity. February 2024. - NEW!
Reducing Plastics in Everyday Life Prepared by the New England College Climate Action Course
PFAS in New Hampshire: What you need to know from the NH Dept. of Environmental Services
Research Briefs and Reports
National Strategy to Prevent Plastic Pollution - November 2024 - NEW!
Microplastics Model Policy 2025 - from SaferStates - NEW!
Unlocking a reuse revolution: scaling returnable packaging from the Ellen MacArthur Foundation - NEW!
Breaking the Chain: Risks, regulations and roadmap for phasing out PFAS from food delivery packaging - NEW!
Turning off the Tap: How the world can end plastic pollution and create a circular economy. UN Report May 16, 2023.
Chemicals in Plastics: A Technical Report - UN 2023. United Nations Environment Programme and Secretariat of the Basel, Rotterdam and Stockholm Conventions (2023). Chemicals in plastics: a technical report. Geneva.
Northeast Resource Recovery Association's 2020 Annual Report
Northeast Resource Recovery Association's 2021 Annual Report
The Big Beverage Playbook for Avoiding Responsibility from clf
