O’Connell to Lead Organization’s Grassroots Efforts to Block Chemical Recycling Facilities in Various States.
A new report from Beyond Plastics reveals that in 2025, over 100 businesses — including Amazon, McDonald’s, ExxonMobil, and Coca-Cola — lobbied to block the New York Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (S1464 / A1749), outnumbering supporters’ lobbyists by a margin of 4 to 1. Titled “Follow the Money: The David vs. Goliath Battle to Pass the New York Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act," the report found that 107 registered businesses lobbied to defeat the packaging-reduction bill, and only 23 registered organizations lobbied to pass it.
New York environmentalists and community leaders from across the state rallied outside the state Capital building in Albany on Saturday, September 13 in support of the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (Assembly Bill 1749). The bill passed the New York state Senate the last two years but has not yet been brought to the New York state Assembly floor for a vote.
Alterra Energy has withdrawn its proposal for a plastic pyrolysis facility in Sugarloaf, Pennsylvania, sparking relief from community members. Obtained from a public records request, a letter from Alterra Energy to the Sugarloaf Township Board of Supervisors officially withdrew the company’s proposal for a so-called “chemical recycling” facility.
In celebration of Plastic Free July, Beyond Plastics is rolling out a robust slate of resources and activities to help all of us take concrete steps toward a plastic-free future. With Beyond Plastics’ help, individuals can participate in 31 days of simple, effective actions — one for every day of the month — to reduce reliance on plastic.
For the second year in a row, the Democratic supermajority- controlled New York State Assembly failed to vote on the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (A1749 Glick) despite having enough votes to pass. Judith Enck, Beyond Plastics president and former U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regional administrator, issued the following statement.
“President Trump has launched an unprecedented assault on environmental protections. New Yorkers didn’t vote for any of this, yet at the eleventh hour the Assembly Speaker still has not brought up for a vote this widely popular environmental and public health measure that would pass major cost savings onto municipalities and taxpayers. As has been reported for weeks, the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act has enough votes to pass. It’s unbelievable that we’re in this position for the second year in a row. Assembly Speaker Heastie needs to bring the bill to a vote immediately.”
Yesterday, the New York State Conference of Mayors and Municipal Offices, the New York State Association of Counties, and the New York Association of Towns issued a joint statement urging the Assembly to pass the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (A1749 Glick).
As the petrochemical industry and its allies lobby against the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (S1464 Harckham/A1749 Glick) and falsely claim the legislation would raise grocery prices, Beyond Plastics is correcting the record.
This morning, the national Sierra Club executive director and former NAACP executive director Ben Jealous sent a letter to New York State Assembly Speaker Carl Heastie and Assembly Member Michaelle Solages, chair of the Black, Puerto Rican, Hispanic and Asian Legislative Caucus, urging them to pass the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act.
Today, Sharon Lavigne (founder, CEO, and director of Rise St. James and one of TIME’s 2024 most influential people) joined state legislators at a news conference at the New York state capital. Lavigne visited from St. James Parish, Louisiana, where she lives among the nation’s highest concentrations of pollution from plastics production in “Cancer Alley.” Lavigne and allies urged the New York State Assembly to pass the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (A1749 Glick) following the bill’s passage through the Senate on May 28.
More than 90 organizations — including Beyond Plastics, Plastic Pollution Coalition, Californians Against Waste, Surfrider, and California Nurses for Environmental Health and Justice — have sent a letter to California Governor Gavin Newsom calling for him to enforce the statewide ban on polystyrene foam food service products that went into effect on January 1, 2025. Despite the ban being in place for five months, these items remain widely available in stores and online.
As the final weeks of the New York state legislative session begin, the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act continues to gain momentum despite the plastics and chemical companies spending millions lobbying against the bill. Over the weekend and after the Senate passed the legislation, the Buffalo News editorialized in favor of it, calling for passage of the bill with teeth.
Yesterday, the New York State Senate voted 33-25 to pass the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (S1464 Harckham/A1749 Glick). Today, 130 faith leaders from across New York sent a letter to the New York State Assembly urging them to pass the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (S1464 Harckham/A1749 Glick).
The Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act Reduces Single-Use Plastic Packaging by 30%, Bans 17 of the Most Toxic Chemicals and Materials in Packaging, and Saves Taxpayers $1.3 Billion. Attention Now Shifts to Assembly
Following Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act’s Passage Through Senate Finance Committee, Beyond Plastics Announces New Digital Ad Campaign.
With the budget finally finished and five weeks of the New York state legislative session remaining, the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (S1464/A1749) has gained considerable momentum and emerged as this year’s top environmental priority.
Group Will Build on Growing Momentum for Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act and Bigger Better Bottle Bill
This afternoon, the New York State Assembly’s Codes Committee voted to pass the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (S1464 Harckham / A1749 Glick).
This morning, NY Focus published a new story digging into the massive spending and lobbying against the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (S1464 Harckham/A1749 Glick). According to the story, “the bill was Albany’s most lobbied-on outside of the budget.” The American Chemistry Council spent $930,000 against the bill in 2024, and has already spent $797,000 this year.
This week, the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act picked up even more support, securing a majority of Assembly members (76) as co-sponsors. The legislation is picking up momentum in the Senate too, with 29 co-sponsors.
73% of NY Residents Think Big companies Should Be Required to Reduce Packaging on Their Products; 61% Want the Soda, Beer, and Water Container Deposit Increased From 5 to 10 Cents
A new report from Beyond Plastics estimates that New Yorkers could save $1.3 billion over just one decade if the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (PRRIA) is adopted. The report outlines substantial cost savings, reduced packaging waste, and higher recycling rates from adoption of the bill into law.
Residents of Erie, Pennsylvania; Gary, Indiana; and environmental organizations are applauding the April 3 announcement from International Recycling Group (IRG) that it is canceling its proposed plastic waste facility. The facility would have operated in Erie, Pennsylvania, collecting plastic waste from a 750-mile radius and turning it into smaller pieces of plastic that would be burned in steel mills. With Erie and Gary already overburdened by pollution, residents of both cities were concerned about the damaging impacts of this false solution to plastic waste.
Today, U.S. Vice President JD Vance and U.S. Small Business Administration administrator Kelly Loeffler are touring plastics manufacturer Vantage Plastics in Bangor Township, Michigan. The White House announced that, following the tour, Vance and Loeffler will deliver remarks “highlighting America’s industrial resurgence.” In response to the announcement, Beyond Plastics released the following statement from president and former EPA regional administrator Judith Enck.
Today, the New York State Senate’s Environmental Conservation Committee passed the Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (S1464 Harckham / A1749 Glick) after the Assembly Environmental Conservation Committee passed the bill last week. Judith Enck, president of Beyond Plastics and former U.S. Environmental Protection Agency regional administrator, issued the following statement in response.
Beyond Plastics, NYPIRG Show Side-by-Side Comparisons of Findings of 1990 ‘Plagued By Packaging’ Report and 2025 in Call for New York State to Pass Packaging Reduction Bill
The Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (A5322B Glick / S4246B Harckham) passed through the Assembly Environmental Conservation Committee today by a vote of 22-8.
Leading environmental groups held a news conference at the New Jersey State Capital in Trenton, New Jersey, urging the state legislature to pass the Packaging Product Stewardship Act (S3398/ A5009), introduced by Senator Bob Smith and Assemblywoman Alixon Collazos-Gill. The news conference immediately followed a New Jersey Senate Environment and Energy Committee meeting.
On December 2, The New Press will release “The Problem With Plastic: How We Can Save Ourselves and Our Planet Before It’s Too Late” by Judith Enck and Beyond Plastics with Adam Mahoney. The book, which is currently available for pre-order, provides a powerful investigation into plastic’s impact on human health and the environment, a searing indictment of the plastics industry that created this mess, and a playbook for how we can fight back.