Merkley, Colleagues Urge Biden Administration to Curb Plastic Pollution at National Parks

Washington, D.C. – Oregon’s U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley—the chairman of the Senate Appropriations Subcommittee that funds the U.S. Department of the Interior and the National Park Service—is leading an effort today to push the Biden administration to take crucial steps to curb plastic pollution at America’s national parks.

“Nearly 11 million metric tons of plastic waste enter the ocean every year—from land-based sources alone. Without any action, this flow is expected to triple to nearly 29 million metric tons by 2040. Single-use plastics, such as disposable water bottles, account for at least 40% of the plastic produced every year. Public lands are not only threatened directly from plastic litter, recent studies have found that national parks and wilderness areas are accumulating microplastics from the rain and wind, causing unknown impacts on critically important ecosystems,” the senators wrote in their letter to U.S. Secretary of the Interior Deb Haaland.

“As the agency tasked with promoting public stewardship through education and engagement, we believe the NPS can play a critical role in educating the public about the threat of plastic pollution and can lead by example in reducing plastic pollution to protect the health of our public lands for future generations of the American public. We thank you for your continued leadership and look forward to working with you on this critical issue,” they continued.

In their letter, the senators requested that the National Park Service reinstate a policy—which was instituted in 2011 but rolled back during the Trump administration—to allow parks to voluntarily establish disposable plastic water bottle sale elimination programs. The policy had previously diverted between 1.3 and 2 million disposable water bottles, a savings of up to 111,743 pounds of plastic and 141 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions. Additionally, the senators suggested a requirement that all park units establish a program to eliminate the sale of disposable plastic water bottles, as well as new recycling requirements, where feasible, and plastic reduction strategies in concession contracts.

The senators were joined in their requests by over 300 environmental and environmental justice organizations and businesses, who wrote to Secretary Haaland last month to call for the elimination of single-use plastics in National Parks.

The letter is the latest from Merkley in a years-long fight to tackle the plastic pollution crisis. Earlier this year, Merkley led the Senate introduction of the Break Free from Plastic Pollution Act—the most comprehensive plan ever introduced in Congress to address the plastic pollution crisis that is poisoning our air, water, and land, and disproportionately impacting communities of color and low-income Americans.

Merkley was joined in sending the letter by U.S. Senators Dianne Feinstein (D-CA), Kirsten Gillibrand (D-NY), Chris Van Hollen (D-MD), Ron Wyden (D-OR), Alex Padilla (D-CA), Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), Richard Blumenthal (D-CT), Chris Murphy (D-CT), Cory Booker (D-NJ), Ben Cardin (D-MD), and Edward J. Markey (D-MA).

Full text of the letter is available here and follows below.

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Dear Secretary Haaland,

We write to you to share our strong support for protecting our environment and our ocean from the devastating impacts of plastic pollution. Plastic pollution is more than just an environmental impact problem – it is a human health, environmental justice, and climate change crisis. The ability to properly handle these materials is overwhelming and the impact is past a crisis tipping point, which is why we are writing to urge the National Park Service (NPS) to reduce the sale or distribution of single-use plastics in our national parks.

Nearly 11 million metric tons of plastic waste enter the ocean every year – from land-based sources alone.[1] Without any action, this flow is expected to triple to nearly 29 million metric tons by 2040.¹ Single-use plastics, such as disposable water bottles, account for at least 40% of the plastic produced every year.[2] Public lands are not only threatened directly from plastic litter, recent studies have found that national parks and wilderness areas are accumulating microplastics from the rain and wind, causing unknown impacts on critically important ecosystems.

The impacts of plastic extend far beyond harming wildlife and polluting our land – plastic production and waste management are directly contributing to climate change. The greenhouse gas emissions linked to this production are estimated to reach 1.3 billion tons by 2030, equivalent to 300 coal-fired power plants.[3] We cannot tackle the issue of climate change or environmental justice without addressing plastic waste.

In 2011, the National Park Service Director issued Policy Memo 11-03 that allowed parks to voluntarily establish disposable plastic water bottle sale elimination programs to reduce single-use plastics in our nation’s parks. A 2017 NPS report found that this policy diverted between 1.3 and 2 million disposable plastic water bottles, a savings of up to 111,743 pounds of plastic and 141 metric tons of greenhouse gas emissions.[4] This policy was rolled back in 2017.

We urge you to direct the National Park Service to reinstate this policy. We also urge you to require that all park units establish a program to minimize the sale of disposable plastic beverage containers. We further urge you to ensure that each National Park unit institute recycling requirements, where feasible, and plastic reduction strategies in concession contracts. We are joined in this request by over 300 environmental and environmental justice organizations and businesses who wrote to you earlier this month calling for the elimination of single-use plastics in our National Parks.

As the agency tasked with promoting public stewardship through education and engagement, we believe the NPS can play a critical role in educating the public about the threat of plastic pollution and can lead by example in reducing plastic pollution to protect the health of our public lands for future generations of the American public. We thank you for your continued leadership and look forward to working with you on this critical issue.

Sincerely,