Break Free From Plastics - Fall

Advisor(s): Adrian Hill | Robert Cook

Team Members: Aidan McKean, Briana Fowler-Puja, Aliya Tuzhilin, Amy Calitz, Avery Kayle, Elise Birde, Evelyn Vivar, Linda Wang, Liza Roberts, Meredith Spector, Ranganath Srinivasan

Plastic pollution represents a growing environmental and public health crisis driven by unsustainable production and inadequate waste management systems. The United States generates more than 42 million tons of plastic waste annually, yet only about 9 percent is recycled, with the remainder landfilled, incinerated, or released into ecosystems where it accumulates and degrades into microplastics. Plastic production and disposal also disproportionately impact low-income communities and communities of color located near extraction, manufacturing, and disposal facilities, contributing to higher rates of respiratory illness and environmental health disparities. The Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act establishes a comprehensive national framework to reduce plastic waste, including bans on certain single-use plastics, recycling standards, and the creation of a national Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR) system that shifts waste management responsibility from consumers and municipalities to producers.

Successful implementation depends on establishing a coordinated federal program within the Environmental Protection Agency to oversee producer compliance and ensure accountability. The proposed system includes the creation of Producer Responsibility Organizations responsible for managing recycling, waste reduction, and reporting requirements funded directly by industry fees. Performance benchmarks—including recycling rate targets and requirements for recycled content in packaging—create incentives for sustainable product design and waste reduction. Early implementation priorities focus on developing federal oversight capacity, organizing producer participation, and establishing national data systems to track progress. Shifting financial and operational responsibility to producers improves transparency, strengthens recycling infrastructure, and creates market incentives for innovation. These reforms reduce environmental harm, improve public health outcomes, and support a transition toward a circular plastics economy.

Learn more about the MPA-ESP Workshop in Applied Earth Systems Management.