This Giving Tuesday let’s move beyond plastic

The United States is the world’s single biggest plastic polluter. PIRG is working to change that, are you with us?

Beyond plastic

Large pile of single-use plastic bottles
Huguette Roe | Shutterstock.com
Matt Casale

Former Director, Environment Campaigns, PIRG

Every single year, the United States generates an unbelievable 42 million metric tons of plastic waste. We’re the world’s single biggest plastic polluter.

PIRG is working to change that.

We’re campaigning to ban the worst single-use plastics, hold producers responsible for the pollution their products are designed to become, and convince major corporations to get rid of the plastic packaging they just don’t need.

PIRG has decades of experience standing up for the public interest, and we know that we have what it takes to tackle a challenge as big as the plastic waste crisis. With your help, here’s how we’re going to get it done.

Getting rid of single use plastic packaging

We’re calling on major retailers, including Whole Foods, Costco and Amazon, to get rid of unnecessary single-use plastic packaging. Earlier this year, we helped convince Coca-Cola to commit to an important first step in reducing its plastic waste.

Banning the worst types of plastic

We’re working to ban some of the worst single-use plastics at the state level, and to hold companies responsible for the waste their products are designed to become.

And we’re building support for federal action to tackle the plastic waste crisis, including the Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act. After our national network mobilized activists to send tens of thousands of messages to decision makers, the Biden administration committed to important first steps to phase single-use plastic out of our national parks.

We’re making steady progress, but there’s still so much more work to be done, and we’re up against fierce opposition every step of the way.

Building the citizen support it takes to win

As a citizen-funded organization, PIRG doesn’t take donations from corporations. Instead, we rely on the support of people like you who know that commonsense solutions exist to problems that we should no longer tolerate — problems like our growing plastic waste crisis.

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Matt Casale

Former Director, Environment Campaigns, PIRG

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