EPA Visitor Logs Reveal Parade of Plastics and Chemical Companies Prior to Agency Proposed Rollbacks
Beyond Plastics Found that 16 Industry Representatives — From ExxonMobil, Dow, LyondellBasell, and the American Chemistry Council — Were at EPA Headquarters Within Days of Each Other in February 2026
On March 20, EPA Buried a Proposal to Deregulate Chemical Recycling Pyrolysis Facilities in a Regulation on a Different Topic
For Immediate Release: March 31, 2026
Contacts:
Melissa Valliant — melissavalliant@bennington.edu, (410) 829-0726
Judith Enck — judithenck@bennington.edu, (518) 605-1770
Official U.S. Environmental Protection Agency visitor logs reviewed by Beyond Plastics show that 16 representatives of the plastics and fossil fuel industries — from such companies as ExxonMobil, Dow, LyondellBasell, and SABIC, as well as three representatives from the American Chemistry Council — visited EPA headquarters in Washington, D.C., over a two-day period on February 10 and 11, 2026. The visits come as the Trump administration has moved to weaken federal environmental rules, raising questions about corporate access to — and influence over — the nation's top environmental regulator.
Less than a month after these meetings took place, the EPA proposed a new regulatory proposal to exempt air curtain incinerators from Title V of the Clean Air Act. Air curtain incinerators are metal dumpsters with no air pollution controls that are used to burn wood waste and vegetative debris. Buried in the 17-page Federal Register notice on air curtain incinerators is one paragraph seeking public comment on removing Clean Air Act requirements for pyrolysis. This regulatory change has been pursued by the plastics and chemical industries for years because pyrolysis is a type of so-called “chemical recycling.”
“It is curious that such a major issue is buried in a Federal Register notice dealing with an entirely different topic. Did the EPA think no one would notice? We noticed and demand that this flimsy process not be used for such a major policy change,” said Judith Enck, former EPA regional administrator and president of Beyond Plastics. “It is not known what was discussed at the February meetings with the EPA and the companies and trade associations, but the March regulatory changes will result in more pollution and should be rejected.”
The proposed regulations were published in the Federal Register on March 20, 2026, and can be found here. The EPA has scheduled a virtual public hearing for Monday, April 6, 2026, on the air curtain incinerator regulatory changes and the one-paragraph proposed change for pyrolysis facilities. The deadline to register to testify at the EPA hearing is April 1, 2026.
According to the EPA visitor logs, on February 10, 2026, 13 industry representatives signed in at EPA headquarters in Washington, D.C.:
Kellie Alvarado, director of sustainability at Anchor Packaging
Melanie Bower, regulatory development manager for plastics circularity at ExxonMobil
Eloissa Wells, global director of circular products at ExxonMobil
Glenn Mersky, sales manager for recycling at Coperion
Mariane Maximous, VP of Americas feedstocks and mechanical recycling at LyondellBasell
Tamsin Ettefagh, chief sustainability officer and VP government affairs at PureCycle Technologies
Carla Toth, SVP corporate strategy and regulatory advocacy at Nexus Circular
Zach Muscato, director of sustainability and innovation at Plastics Ingenuity
Chris Rager, VP government affairs at Plastics Industry Association
Patrick Krieger, senior VP of sustainability and policy at Plastics Industry Association
Hodayah Finman, senior director for regulatory affairs at Plastics Industry Association
Colleen Tague, global director of public policy and plastics/circularity at Dow
Michael Blume, senior specialist for government relations at SABIC
Two days later, on February 12, 2026, three senior officials from the American Chemistry Council — the chemical industry's primary lobbying arm — also visited EPA headquarters:
Richard Becker, senior toxicologist at American Chemistry Council
Jessica Ryman, American Chemistry Council
Charlotte Bertrand, senior director of chemical management and regulatory policy and strategy at American Chemistry Council
"While communities across the country are dealing with the health and environmental costs of plastic pollution, the industry appears to have a direct line to the agency that is supposed to protect us,” Enck said. “These visitor logs are particularly concerning at a time when the Trump administration is rolling back environmental protections and is quietly proposing to remove Clean Air Act requirements from so-called 'chemical recycling' facilities. Why did the EPA bury such a major proposed change?”
“These were meetings with representatives of major polluters who consistently advocate for policies that are damaging to health and the environment. Our communities, our lungs, and our natural resources deserve better,” said Rita O’Connell, national plastics organizer with Beyond Plastics. “It is the EPA’s responsibility to ensure that major regulatory changes like this are visible to the public, so people can weigh in on policies that affect all of us — especially the most vulnerable communities near these sources of pollution.”
The coordinated nature of the February 10 visit — in which representatives of 10 different companies and trade associations signed in simultaneously — suggests an organized industry delegation rather than routine individual meetings.
About Beyond Plastics
Launched in 2019, Beyond Plastics pairs the wisdom and experience of environmental policy experts with the energy and creativity of grassroots advocates to build a vibrant and effective movement to end plastic pollution. Using deep policy and advocacy expertise, Beyond Plastics is building a well-informed, effective movement seeking to achieve the institutional, economic, and societal changes needed to save our planet and ourselves, from the negative health, climate, and environmental impacts for the production, usage, and disposal of plastics.
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