Addressing the root causes of Delaware's Plastic Pollution

Delaware HOUSE BILL 22 - RIGHT TO REPAIR

Delaware House Bill 22 was pre-filed in December 2020 to be worked in the coming 2021 Delaware legislative session. It is a bi-partisan bill under Prime Sponsor Ruth Briggs King. HB22 was assigned to the House Economic Development Committee and is expected to be on the agenda there in March.. Once enacted, the Right to Repair bill will serve to support small businesses in Delaware and provide local skilled jobs, while reducing the amount of electronics that prematurely become landfill fodder, and reducing carbon emissions by increasing the longevity of consumer products.

Right to Repair Talking Points

Right to Repair is legislation that would…

Guarantee that individuals have property rights over their electronics, so that they can repair them if they want to.
Ensure equal access to critical repair information (schematics and manuals) and fair and reasonable access to parts and tools.

Right to Repair is critical to waste prevention:

E-waste is the fastest growing waste stream in the world.
Researchers estimate that e-waste is made up of 20% plastic, which is hard to recycle.
416,000 cell phones are thrown out every day in the U.S.

If consumers had the right to repair their devices, the reuse of devices would reduce demand for natural resources.

Americans purchase 161 million new smartphones each year, meaning our cell phone habit takes 23.7 million tons of raw material to satisfy. That’s like consuming an Empire State Building equivalent in material every six days.
An iPhone 6 takes 295 lbs of raw minerals – 75 lbs of ore and 220 lbs water – to produce.

Right to Repair would help mitigate climate change by reducing the energy consumed in the manufacturing phase of production.

85% of the emissions impact of a smartphone comes from production.
If we held unto phones one more year on average, the emissions reductions would be equivalent to taking 636,000 cars off the road.
One desktop uses up to 30 times its weight in fossil fuels.

Right to Repair would reduce the flow of toxic waste into landfills and incinerators.

E-waste accounts for 2% of the waste stream but 70% of it's toxicity.
E-waste contains heavy metals such as lead, mercury and cadmium.

Electronics recycling has not alleviated the problem of e-waste.

Only 36% of e-waste in the U.S. was recycled in 2017.

While informal recycling of e-waste recycling has been linked to increased cases of cancer and other illness, even formal e-waste recycling can lead to increased exposure to health-threatening toxic metals.

Delaware SENATE BILL 24 to address balloon releases

SENATE BILL 24 introduced by Senator Stephanie Hansen in January 2021

Senate Bill 24, to clarify that balloon releases are a form of illegal littering, was introduced in January 2021 by prime sponsors Senator Stephanie Hansen and Representative Deb Heffernan.

It mirrors SB208 which was introduced in 2020 and made it through Senate committee before being waylaid by Covid-19. Accompanied by testimony by Plastic Free Delaware representatives, the League of Women Voters Delaware, Delaware Audubon Society, and DNREC, it was successfully passed out of the Senate Health and Social Services Committee.

This year, SB224 is anticipated to be heard in Senate committee in March 2021.

ACTION: Please email or call your state senator and representative to ask for their support.

CLICK HERE FOR MORE INFO

THE HISTORY OF DELAWARE LEGISLATION ON PLASTIC BAGS

History of legislation on plastic bags in Delaware

Thanks to a decade of advocacy by Plastic Free Delaware and many other volunteers, as well as the leadership of State Rep. Valerie Longhurst, Rep. Gerald Brady, and Sen. Trey Paradee, as of January 1, 2021, "single use" plastic carryout bags less than 2.25 mls thick cannot be sold or distributed by large retailers in Delaware. Large retailers must also continue to offer the recycling bins for plastic bags and film as despite the new law these will not evaporate from our lives.

2019 - House Bill 130

Passed and signed into law, making Delaware the fourth state in the U.S. to pass a law to address plastic bag pollution. Went into effect 1/1/2021. The new law impacts large retailers (more than 7,000 sq.ft or ones with three or more locations of 3,000 sq.ft. or more). Only addresses thin plastic bags less than 2.25 mls thick. Time will tell if this new law significantly addresses the problem, or if it needs to be strengthened further.

2017 - House Bill 215

Made the current law regarding recycling bins at large retailers permanent (deleted the sunset clause), and added a reporting requirement for large retailers to report annually the # of single-use carryout bags they distribute.

2015-2016 - House Bill 202 (DID NOT PASS)

Would have placed a 5 cent fee on plastic carryout bags at large retailers. Had widespread bipartisan support. Passed House Natural Resources Committee unanimously.

2013 - House Bill 198

Extended Sunset for 2009 law for three more years

2009 - House Bill 15

On August 17, 2009, Delaware’s Governor Jack Markell signed a new law that was aimed at promoting the recycling of plastic bags across the state. It created requirements for large retailers (7,000 sq.ft. or those with three or more locations of 3,000 sq.ft or more) to provide recycling bins for plastic carryout bags and plastic film in prominent locations, and educational signage. Championed by Rep. Valerie Longhurst, the law went into effect on December 1st, 2009. Stores were also required to provide reusable bags for purchase and include a message encouraging customers to recycle their plastic bags. With this, Delaware was the third state to pass a mandatory plastic bag recycling program, behind California and New York. Yet over the subsequent years, plastic bags continued to cover our landscapes, pollute our watersheds, clog our storm water systems and our recycling facilities, causing blight in our communities, added taxpayer expense, and delay/expense in our recycling system.

2009 - Legislation by Rep. Valerie Longhurst established the at-store plastic bag and film recycling program.

Bag Laws Elsewhere

It is estimated that more than 54% of the world's population is now covered under laws either completely banning plastic bag or laws placing fees on bags which greatly reduces their use but provides shoppers options and simply externalizes an existing cost.

In the U.S., California has passed a statewide law and Hawaii is fully covered by county laws. Several other states are considering laws. Many other counties and cities also have laws banning or placing fees on single use plastic bags, including Washington D.C., Boston and Chicago.

HERE is a list of state and local laws in the U.S. And THIS SITE and THIS SITE also keep track of existing laws.

Map of U.S. bag laws

2021 ADVOCACY WATCH

DELAWARE HOUSE BILL 22 Right to Repair

DELAWARE SENATE BILL 24 Balloon Releases