Coast & Ocean Legislation

Ways to take action:

Below is our bill tracker so you can quickly see where these bills are and what actions you can take to support them. We will keep this updated with opportunities to sign in Pro, submit testimony, and other ways to engage in this year's legislative session. Throughout session, you can always call the Legislative Hotline or contact your electeds:

1. You can email or call your legislators at any time - check out District Finder to find your elected and how to contact their offices directly. Your message should be simple and concise - "Please help eliminate plastic pollution in Washington by supporting the ReWRAP Act and Extended Producer Responsibility in Washington during the 2024 Legislative Session."

2. Speak with your electeds in person during Plastic Free Washington Coalition's Advocacy Day in Olympia on January 15th. If you are interested in coming to Olympia to meet with your legislators, email psteelquist@surfrider.org.

3. Call the Legislative Hotline at any time during session at 1-800-562-6000 to leave a voice message for your Representative and Senator in support of HB 2049 (the ReWRAP Act) and HB 2144 (Bottle Bill)

4. Follow Surfrider Washington's social media and keep an eye on our newsletter for action alerts about other ways you can stop plastic pollution at its source.

Last year the WRAP Act failed to pass the House of Representatives, but this year we are reintroducing similar legislation thanks to our bill's sponsor and champion, Rep. Liz Berry. The Re-WRAP Act will do a number of things to reduce litter and improve recycling rates and access across the state:

Incentivize producers to make reusable, recyclable, or compostable packaging
Reduce pollution causing climate change - higher use of recycled content in packaging materials means fewer emissions and less energy
Provide universal recycling services for Washingtonians - all residents who currently have curbside garbage pickup will receive curbside recycling service
Reduce confusion and contamination by developing a clear list of universally recycled products
Reduce packaging and increase reuse - targets will be developed for increased recycling rates as well as reuse and refill
Support Washington’s economy and the creation of new, green jobs by building local supply chains and recycling businesses

What about HB 1900? HB 1900 is a bill for "Implementing strategies to achieve higher recycling rates within Washington's existing solid waste management system." While this sounds good, this bill doesn't do nearly enough to update our recycling system. As such, we are not supporting this competing bill. You can find a comparison chart of these two bills here.

A complimentary bill to the ReWRAP Act is HB 2144, which would implement a bottle return program (also known as Deposit Return System, or DRS) in Washington similar to what they have in Oregon. Studies show that states with DRS in place have significantly higher recycling rates than those without.

Some stats from a recent report about bottle bills across the US:

- 9 of the 10 states with the highest recycling rates have Recycling Refunds
- While states with Recycling Refunds only account for 27% of the U.S. population, they account for 47% of all packaging recycled, 51% of all aluminum cans and glass bottles recycled, 61% of all PET bottles recycled, 66% of all beverage containers recycled in a closed loop.
- States with Recycling Refunds recycle 34% of packaging, excluding fibers and flexible plastics (FFP), through closed-loop end markets (i.e., can-to-can or bottle-to-bottle) compared to 7% for non-Recycling Refund states.
- Enacted together RR+EPR - states will achieve higher recycling rates, maximize closed-loop recycling (i.e. bottle-to-bottle and can-to-can) and thereby deliver the best social, environmental, and economic outcomes for the U.S.
In Washington:
- RR programs have up to 84% less littered beverage containers than states without a RR. Reduce overall litter by up to 65%.
- RR Enables Reuse and Refill Opportunities
- Together RR+EPR will aid in reducing packaging rated emissions by 70%
- Together RR+EPR will increase beverage container recycling from 30% today to 94%
- Together RR+EPR will increase closed-loop recycling rates from 20% to 78%

Coast & Ocean Legislation

Ways to take action:

Plastic Pollution

Support the ReWRAP Act

Support a bottle return system