We will meet at the footbridge on the Dock Stree side of Van der Donck Park at 11:30 am on Thursday, May 23. It's just a couple minutes walk from the Metro North station. The news conference will begin at 12 noon. The message is to call on Senator Stewart-Cousins to put people over plastic by supporting, not weakening, the Packaging Reduction Act and bring it to the floor for a vote before the legislative session ends.
Please bring signs or other visuals for a photo op, such as plastic waste (bonus if you make a "plastic monster" costume - here's an example).
Register here.
Background
Right now, when New Yorkers buy products at a store or online, they have no control over the amount of packaging that those products come in. And, as taxpayers, we are all footing the bill to deal with the waste excess packaging creates. We're also all at risk from the many toxic chemicals used in plastic packaging that leech into our food and drink and enter our air, water and soil when discarded plastic is burned in incinerators like the one in Peekskill, NY.
The Packaging Reduction and Recycling Infrastructure Act (A5322/S4246) would require companies to cut their single-use packaging in half and redesign what’s left to make it recyclable, as well as to remove 19 of the most toxic chemicals and substances such as formaldehyde, PFAS, benzene, toluene, phthalates, bisphenols, and heavy metals from their packaging.
And when their packaging is discarded, the companies would be required to pay to collect, sort, and manage what's left, providing much-needed taxpayer relief and funding for our recycling programs and infrastructure.
Time is running out! ⌛We need Senate Majority Leader Stewart-Cousins to put people over plastic by supporting, not weakening, the Packaging Reduction & Recycling Infrastructure Act and pass it before session ends on June 6. Please bring signs and friends!