Plastic Waste Reduction and Recycling Research Act

I 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION H. R. 2821 To provide for a coordinated Federal program to accelerate plastics waste reduction and support recycling research and development for the eco- nomic and national security of the United States, and for other purposes. IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES APRIL 22, 2021 Ms. STEVENS (for herself, Mr. GONZALEZ of Ohio, Ms. JOHNSON of Texas, and Mr. LUCAS) introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on Science, Space, and Technology A BILL To provide for a coordinated Federal program to accelerate plastics waste reduction and support recycling research and development for the economic and national security of the United States, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 3 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Plastic Waste Reduc- 4 tion and Recycling Research Act’’. 5 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 6 Congress makes the following findings: 7 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:24 Jun 16, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2821.IH H2821 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 2 •HR 2821 IH (1) It is estimated that global production of 1 plastic has increased from 2,000,000 tons of plastic 2 per year in 1950 to 400,000,000 tons per year 3 today, and of the 8.3 billion metric tons of plastic 4 ever produced globally, 6.3 billion metric tons has 5 become plastic waste. 6 (2) The United States has failed to invest in 7 the development of domestic recycling markets, tech- 8 nology and materials to make the recycling process 9 more available and efficient, and as a result, the 10 United States recycles only 9 percent of its plastic 11 waste. 12 (3) For more than 2 decades, the United States 13 and other developed nations sold and exported 14 106,000,000 metric tons of recyclable plastics to 15 China, but in 2018 China issued a ban on contami- 16 nated United States plastics. 17 (4) Following the 2018 China ban, more and 18 more United States communities are sending recy- 19 clable items to landfills or incinerators. 20 (5) As recycling programs have moved toward 21 single-stream curbside recycling, more recyclable 22 items are mixed with non-recyclable items, resulting 23 in fewer potentially recyclable items actually being 24 recycled and turned into new, valuable products. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:24 Jun 16, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2821.IH H2821 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 3 •HR 2821 IH (6) The resin identification coding system in 1 use today has not been substantially updated since 2 its creation in 1988. 3 (7) Characterizing the type and recyclability of 4 different types of plastics in use today requires up- 5 dated standards. 6 (8) Separating and processing the many dif- 7 ferent types of plastics as well as the heterogenous 8 materials containing multiple layers of different 9 plastic types commonly in use today will require new 10 sorting and recycling technologies. 11 (9) There are currently limited private or public 12 investments in research and development to improve 13 plastic waste reduction, recycling technologies, or 14 other technologies and processes to reduce the 15 amount and impact of plastic waste. 16 (10) The Federal Government can play an im- 17 portant role in supporting research and development 18 and facilitating standards, tools, and technologies 19 needed across the different stages of the plastics 20 production and recycling ecosystem. 21 SEC. 3. DEFINITIONS. 22 In this Act: 23 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:24 Jun 16, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2821.IH H2821 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 4 •HR 2821 IH (1) COMMITTEE.—The term ‘‘Committee’’ 1 means the Interagency Committee established or 2 designated under section 5. 3 (2) DIRECTOR.—The term ‘‘Director’’ means 4 the Director of the Office of Science and Technology 5 Policy. 6 (3) PARTICIPATING AGENCIES.—The term 7 ‘‘participating agencies’’ means the agencies under 8 section 5(c). 9 (4) PROGRAM.—The term ‘‘Program’’ means 10 the Plastic Waste Reduction and Recycling Research 11 Program established under section 4. 12 (5) MARINE DEBRIS.—The term ‘‘marine de- 13 bris’’ has the meaning provided in the Marine De- 14 bris Act (33 U.S.C. 1956). 15 SEC. 4. PLASTIC WASTE REDUCTION AND RECYCLING RE- 16 SEARCH PROGRAM. 17 (a) ESTABLISHMENT; PURPOSES.—The Director, 18 acting through the Committee and each of the partici- 19 pating agencies, shall establish and implement a program 20 to be known as the ‘‘Plastic Waste Reduction and Recy- 21 cling Research Program’’. The purposes of the Program 22 shall be to— 23 (1) improve the global competitiveness of the 24 United States plastics recycling industry; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:24 Jun 16, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2821.IH H2821 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 5 •HR 2821 IH (2) ensure United States leadership in plastic 1 waste reduction, reuse, and recycling research and 2 innovation; 3 (3) support United States leadership in the de- 4 velopment of national and international standards 5 for sustainable plastics design and plastic recycling 6 infrastructure, technologies and processes; and 7 (4) mitigate any harmful effects of plastic waste 8 and plastic waste recycling on the environment. 9 (b) PROGRAM ACTIVITIES.—In carrying out the Pro- 10 gram, the Director, acting through the Committee and 11 each of the participating agencies, shall carry out activities 12 that include the following: 13 (1) Supporting research, development, and dem- 14 onstration of plastics technologies optimized for 15 recyclability, plastics recycling technologies, plastic 16 reusability, bio-based plastics, biodegradable plastics, 17 remediation, including bioremediation of plastic 18 waste, recyclability and remediation of plastic-based 19 textiles, and environmental impacts of plastic waste. 20 (2) Supporting and facilitating public-private 21 partnerships to leverage knowledge and resources to 22 accelerate research, development, and demonstration 23 in plastic waste reduction, including plastics recy- 24 cling, plastics reusability, plastic waste remediation 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:24 Jun 16, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2821.IH H2821 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 6 •HR 2821 IH and other areas consistent with the purposes of this 1 Act. 2 (3) Interagency planning and coordination of 3 Federal research and development of plastic waste 4 reduction and recycling technologies and plastic 5 waste remediation. 6 (4) Promoting research collaboration with inter- 7 national partners, as appropriate. 8 SEC. 5. COORDINATION BY INTERAGENCY COMMITTEE. 9 (a) INTERAGENCY COMMITTEE.—Not later than 180 10 days after the date of enactment of this Act, the Director, 11 acting through the National Science and Technology 12 Council, shall establish or designate an Interagency Com- 13 mittee to coordinate Federal programs and activities in 14 support of plastic waste reduction and recycling and plas- 15 tic waste remediation research and development under the 16 Program. 17 (b) CO-CHAIRS.—The Committee shall be co-chaired 18 by the Director of the Office of Science and Technology 19 Policy or designee and a representative from an agency 20 participating in the Committee, as selected by the Director 21 of the Office of Science and Technology Policy. 22 (c) AGENCY PARTICIPATION.—The Committee shall 23 include representatives from— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:24 Jun 16, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2821.IH H2821 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 7 •HR 2821 IH (1) the National Institute of Standards and 1 Technology; 2 (2) the National Science Foundation; 3 (3) the Department of Energy; 4 (4) the Environmental Protection Agency; 5 (5) the Department of Transportation; 6 (6) the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Ad- 7 ministration; 8 (7) the Department of Agriculture; and 9 (8) any other Federal agency as considered ap- 10 propriate by the Director of the Office of Science 11 and Technology Policy. 12 (d) RESPONSIBILITIES.—The Committee shall— 13 (1) provide for interagency coordination of Fed- 14 eral plastics reduction and recycling and plastic 15 waste remediation research, development, and dem- 16 onstration, standards development, and education 17 and training activities and programs of Federal de- 18 partments and agencies undertaken pursuant to the 19 Program; 20 (2) develop definitions for the following terms 21 to guide the activities of the Program— 22 (A) recycle; 23 (B) recyclability; 24 (C) remediation; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:24 Jun 16, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2821.IH H2821 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 8 •HR 2821 IH (D) advanced recycling; 1 (E) advanced plastics; 2 (F) biobased plastics; 3 (G) biodegradable plastics; 4 (H) microplastic; 5 (I) nanoplastic; and 6 (J) pyroplastic; 7 (3) develop and update every 3 years a strategic 8 plan, to be made publicly available, for plastic waste 9 reduction and recycling and plastic waste remedi- 10 ation that— 11 (A) establishes goals, priorities, and 12 metrics for guiding and evaluating the activities 13 of the Program; and 14 (B) describes— 15 (i) how the Program will determine 16 and prioritize areas of plastic waste reduc- 17 tion and recycling and plastic waste reme- 18 diation for Federal research investments; 19 (ii) the Program’s support for long- 20 term funding for interdisciplinary plastic 21 waste reduction and recycling research, de- 22 velopment, demonstration, standards devel- 23 opment, education, and public outreach ac- 24 tivities; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:24 Jun 16, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2821.IH H2821 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 9 •HR 2821 IH (iii) how Federal agencies partici- 1 pating in the Program will collaborate with 2 industry and with local governments, as 3 appropriate; and 4 (iv) how the program will help move 5 the results of research out of the labora- 6 tory and into commercial or municipal ap- 7 plication; and 8 (C) with respect to the previous 3 years, 9 provides a summary of— 10 (i) federally funded plastic waste re- 11 duction and recycling and plastic waste re- 12 mediation research, development, and dem- 13 onstration; 14 (ii) the adoption of improved plastic 15 waste reduction and recycling technologies 16 by Federal, State, and local governments 17 and private entities; and 18 (iii) other related activities for the 19 previous 3 years; and 20 (4) consider input from universities, State and 21 local governments, scientific societies, and public, 22 private and nonprofit plastic recycling manufactur- 23 ers and organizations in the development of the 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:24 Jun 16, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2821.IH H2821 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 10 •HR 2821 IH goals, priorities and metrics required under para- 1 graph (3)(A). 2 (e) TERMINATION.—The Interagency Committee 3 shall terminate 10 years after the date on which the Com- 4 mittee is established under subsection (a). 5 SEC. 6. NATIONAL INSTITUTE OF STANDARDS AND TECH- 6 NOLOGY. 7 As part of the Program, the Director of National In- 8 stitute of Standards and Technology shall— 9 (1) establish a science program for character- 10 ization of plastic properties before, during, and after 11 recycling and manufacturing, development of classi- 12 fication systems, and creation of new data tools, 13 techniques, and processes to advance plastics engi- 14 neering and post-consumer plastic recycling and 15 manufacturing; 16 (2) develop innovations for effective and effi- 17 cient measures for processing plastics, including 18 films and textiles, collected for recycling, while con- 19 sidering existing waste streams and future new ma- 20 terials; 21 (3) provide the metrology basis for standards 22 development for plastic sorting infrastructure, proc- 23 essing technologies, classification systems, including 24 for biobased plastics, and recycling by design; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:24 Jun 16, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2821.IH H2821 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 11 •HR 2821 IH (4) develop a clearinghouse to collect and sup- 1 port dissemination of tools, guidelines and standards 2 developed under this section; 3 (5) consult with appropriate stakeholder groups 4 to promote adoption and implementation of such 5 guidelines and standards, including diverse manufac- 6 turing and industry groups, such as packaging, in- 7 cluding food packaging, agriculture, transportation, 8 textile and fashion; 9 (6) support plastics recycling research collabo- 10 ration and coordinate standards development, as ap- 11 propriate, with other agencies, State and local gov- 12 ernments, nonprofit organizations, academia, private 13 sector, and international partners; and 14 (7) establish a program for measurements, 15 methods and standards to assess the environmental 16 impacts of plastics waste, including marine debris, 17 and plastic particles and fibers. 18 SEC. 7. NATIONAL SCIENCE FOUNDATION. 19 As part of the Program, the National Science Foun- 20 dation shall— 21 (1) support multidisciplinary basic research on 22 advanced plastics that are designed for recyclability 23 or biodegradation, on plastic waste remediation, on 24 improving recycling technologies for different plas- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 06:24 Jun 16, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\H2821.IH H2821 pbinns on DSKJLVW7X2PROD with BILLS 12 •HR 2821 IH tics, and on composting and compostable plastics, 1 and on plastic waste valorization; 2 (2) support multidisciplinary research on the 3 environmental and biological effects of plastic waste, 4 and particularly the formation, transport and bio- 5 accumulation of nano- and micro-plastics relevant to 6 plastics recycling and plastic waste remediation; 7 (3) support research on social, behavioral, and 8 economic barriers to the plastic recycling system and 9 development, adoption, and expansion of plastic re- 10 cycling; 11 (4) support, as appropriate, development of 12 interdisciplinary undergraduate and graduate cur- 13 riculum and instructional materials relevant to plas- 14 tics recycling and plastic waste remediation; 15 (5) support research experiences for under- 16 graduate students relevant to plastics recycling and 17 plastic waste remediation; and 18 (6) support plastics recycling research collabo- 19 rations, as appropriate, with other agencies, State 20 and local governments, no [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]