Caption: NYS Assembly Member MaryJane Shimsky and Ryan Castalia, of Sure We Can, one of the 20 co-sponsors.
On Sunday, April 27th, a capacity crowd flocked to the Yonkers Riverfront Library for a screening of the award-winning documentary, “Plastic People.” The film investigates how microplastics pose hidden dangers to our air, water, soil, bodies – and — even to the unborn. Organized by Beyond Plastics, the event was co-hosted by 20 other nonprofits to boost awareness and to take action.
The audience of concerned citizens included Assemblymembers MaryJane Shimsky and Nader Sayegh. Speakers included Liz Silverstein, co-chair, Lower Westchester Chapter of Beyond Plastics, who introduced the film; Ryan Castalia of Brooklyn-based Sure We Can, who spoke in support of the Bigger, Better, Bottle Bill; Asssemblymember Sayegh, who expressed strong support for pending environmental legislation, and Dobbs Ferry High School freshman and climate activist, Cleo Reisinger, who discussed how addiction to plastics is impacting young people.
Ellen Prior of Tarrytown was shocked to learn that petroleum companies have flooded the market with plastics as a strategy to compensate for a projected loss in demand for fossil fuels. (Plastics production doubled between 2000-2019, fossil fuels make up 99% of plastics, and the International Energy Agency predicts that global fossil fuel demand will peak before 2030.) The anticipated growth in plastic waste exceeds our ability to mitigate plastic pollution.
Charlotte Bins of Irvington was distressed to learn that microplastics are everywhere in our bodies and that we have the equivalent of five plastic bottle caps in our brains. Although research is still inconclusive, strong evidence links microplastics to neurological, reproductive, and developmental disorders as well as cancer and infertility; Many chemicals used in plastic production are carcinogens and endocrine disruptors. Members of the audience were amazed that only 5-9% of “recyclables” are recycled. Most plastic waste ends up in landfills, which are rapidly filling up. NY’s largest landfill, Seneca Meadows, in the Finger Lakes, will reach capacity by the end of 2025. Incinerators, like the antiquated Wheelabrator in Peekskill, represent the worst method to dispose of trash because they spew tons of toxins into the air into surrounding (often-marginalized) communities.
“Aren’t we on a collision course if we produce more and more plastic waste but have nowhere to put it?” asked Haven Colgate of Hastings-on-Hudson. “Why isn’t someone doing something about it? “
Fortunately for New Yorkers, we are doing something about it. We have pending legislation, sponsored by State Senator, Pete Harckham, and Assemblymember Deborah Glick: the NYS Packaging Reduction and
Recycling Infrastructure Act, PRRIA. The bill would reduce plastic packaging by 30% over 12 years, shift the fiscal responsibility for waste management from taxpayers to the polluters, and ban 17 of the most toxic chemicals.
As an added benefit, the bill is estimated to produce $1.3 billion in revenue over ten years for make improvements to make New York’s municipalities more sustainable.
The challenge is that we are up against the corporate interests in a David and Goliath-style confrontation. Many activists will be going to Albany on May 7th to lobby for the bill. But the most important thing we can each do is to call our State Senators and Assemblymembers to urge them to support PRRIA.
Contact your state representatives
Harriet Cheney
Beyond Plastics, Lower Westchester Chapter
