The Ocean Conservancy is pushing states to step up actions against plastic pollution while the Trump administration works to reverse remaining progressive policies.
The environmental advocacy group released a report Tuesday rating how states stack up against one another on six benchmarks: single-use plastics, microplastics, reduce and reuse, producer accountability, recycling accesses, and recycling rates.
“Overall, the results are disappointing,” said Anja Brandon, the Ocean Conservancy’s director of plastics policy. “Four in five Americans consider plastic pollution to be the most pressing issue facing our ocean, yet only six states ranked as ‘good’ or above in our study.”
California was the only state to get at least four stars, in part due to its guardrails around contentious “chemical” or “advanced” recycling technologies and tiny plastic pellet disposal. Mississippi took last place at half a star, due to the state’s ban on plastic bag bans and lack of single-use plastics prohibitions.
