State Senator Jason Lewis joined his colleagues in the state Senate to pass the Massachusetts Plastics Reduction Act, comprehensive legislation to reduce and eliminate single-use plastics that threaten our environment and human health. The bill passed with a bipartisan vote of 38-2. Senator Lewis, along with Representative Michelle Ciccolo, co-founded and co-chairs the Zero Waste Caucus in the state legislature. This group of state lawmakers works together to reduce and eliminate waste through legislative action, education, state and local collaboration, and public outreach. Addressing the single-use plastics crisis is one of the Caucus’s top priorities.
“The Massachusetts Plastics Reduction Act is the most far-reaching legislation ever passed in the state legislature to tackle the scourge of single-use plastics,” said State Senator Jason Lewis, who serves as Co-chair of the Zero Waste Caucus. “I’m very grateful to the Plastic Free Mass coalition and the many constituents who have advocated for Massachusetts to prioritize this issue and become a national leader in reducing and eliminating single-use plastics from our communities.”
“It’s time Massachusetts made a bigger commitment to tackle the plastic pollution crisis in our state,” said Nancy Downes, Oceana Field Campaigns Manager. “We applaud the Massachusetts Senate for passing S. 2830 which would protect our environment and coast by banning single-use plastic bags and reducing other single-use plastics across the state. Statewide polling by Oceana reveals that nearly 9 in 10 voters in Massachusetts are concerned about single-use plastic and support state and local policies to reduce it. Plastics are inundating our oceans, impacting the climate, and harming marine wildlife. We must stop the problem at its source by reducing the amount of single-use plastic produced and moving to reuse and refill systems. We call on the House to pass this much-needed bill.”