California's landmark single-use plastic law is already facing pushback from pretty much every side.

As The Los Angeles Times reported, only days after California's single-use plastic law took effect, environmental groups, anti-waste advocates, and packaging industry representatives all said the state's approach could create serious new problems for residents, local governments, and the environment.

What's happening?

California's single-use plastic law, signed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2022, was intended to require packaging producers to use less plastic and to make all food packaging recyclable or compostable by 2032. But the final regulations released on May 1 are now drawing criticism from both environmental advocates and industry groups.

According to the Times, anti-plastic organizations say the new rules weaken the law because they include exemptions that benefit plastic makers. 

Avinash Kar, senior director of the toxics program at the Natural Resources Defense Council, told the publication, "These new rules create huge loopholes for plastic packaging that violates the law."

One of the biggest complaints is that the regulations could permit some forms of "chemical recycling" when facilities are properly permitted, even though the law was written to bar recycling methods that create significant hazardous waste. 

Advocates for reduced plastic have also said that some foodware products and federally regulated packaging may avoid timely review, creating what they see as long-term loopholes.

"Californians were promised a system where producers take real responsibility for the waste they create," said Nick Lapis, advocacy director for Californians Against Waste, per The Times. "When regulations introduce broad exemptions and redefine key terms, that promise starts to erode."

Industry groups, meanwhile, have said the law could be too costly, too difficult to follow, and legally vulnerable. As the Times noted, the National Association of Wholesaler-Distributors has already challenged a similar law in Oregon, and spokesperson Matt Clarke said the group sees many of the same issues in California. Because of the state's size, he warned, the costs could be even greater.

Why is California's single-use plastic law important?

Those concerns are surfacing in a state that already generates an enormous amount of throwaway plastic. As The Times pointed out, a state analysis found that California sold or distributed 2.9 million tons of single-use plastic and 171.4 billion single-use plastic components in 2023 alone.

Some anti-waste campaigners are also concerned that consumers could end up paying more if producers pass compliance costs on to them through higher prices. 

A report from Circular Action Alliance, the industry-backed group helping implement the law, estimated disposal-related costs for some common products could rise sharply.

Plastic pollution can take decades, or even centuries, to decompose. As it does so, it sheds microplastics, which have been found in every corner of the Earth, even in our brains. 

Long before plastic ends up in our environment, it's produced using oil and gas, which adds to the carbon pollution that is warming our planet and fueling more intense extreme weather events.  

What can you do about single-use plastics? 

Whether or not there is a law in place, you can still bring reusable bags to the store. A few tote bags can prevent hundreds of plastic bags from coming home with you. 

Other reusable products, such as water bottles, coffee tumblers, and food containers, can significantly reduce single-use plastic waste in your life and save you money. One reusable water bottle is way cheaper than the hundreds of plastic bottles you would buy over the life of that one bottle.

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