Authors: Dr. Anna Reade, Avinash Kar, Dr. Veena Singla
California’s SB 54 was a big step forward on plastics last year—it addressed our ever-growing piles of plastic waste and the fact that very, very little (less than 9% according to estimates) was getting recycled. Negotiated between industry, environmental advocates, and legislators, it represented significant progress on addressing waste and making the companies that generate waste responsible for dealing with it. BUT . . . it did not address another important dimension of the plastics crisis we face—toxic chemicals. That’s where Assemblymember Rivas’ AB 1290 comes in. It would phase out a number of unnecessary and problematic plastics in packaging, particularly those associated with health harms.