House passes National Recycling Strategy amendment

The House of Representatives has unanimously passed an amendment to develop a national recycling strategy. Rep. Haley Stevens of Michigan introduced the amendment in H.R. 3055, the Commerce, Justice, Science, Agriculture, Rural Development, Food and Drug Administration, Interior, Environment, Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, Transportation and Housing and Urban Development Appropriations Act. Rep. Kim Schrier of Washington co-sponsored the amendment.

The amendment instructs the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to prioritize funding to develop a national recycling strategy to ensure the long-term economic and environmental viability of local recycling programs.

“After learning about the rising costs and challenges of maintaining local recycling programs in southeast Michigan, I have been working to bring attention to the recycling crisis that is unfolding in communities around the country,” Stevens says. “Our federal government cannot ignore this issue. Plastic use is skyrocketing, and our domestic recycling infrastructure is unequipped to keep up, especially in light of China’s new policy to ban the import of most postconsumer recyclable materials, including plastics, which the U.S. and other developing countries have been shipping there for the past 25 years. I look forward to working with the EPA and other federal agencies to create a national strategy to ensure long-term stability for local recycling programs.”