U.S. will limit single use plastics in federal purchasing

U.S. will limit single use plastics in federal purchasing.

Following criticism from environmental organizations, the Biden administration took the first move on Wednesday toward reducing single-use plastic in government procurement.

The U.S. government’s action might speed up attempts to discover alternatives to a significant source of U.S. waste, given that the government spends more than $650 billion annually on goods and services,

The General Services Administration, which looks after the federal property and works as the government’s buying agent, said in a public notice that it was looking for feedback on the use of plastic in shipping and packing and other federal contracts applications. 

It said it intended to utilize the data to create guidelines and reporting systems to reduce the usage of single-use plastic.

Before deciding on a proposed regulation, the GSA will consider public opinions for 60 days.

The GSA said in the notice that “examining this is a natural step for the agency to take given that single-use plastics are a substantial contributor to the worldwide plastic pollution crisis.”

The initiative was launched five months after 180 environmental and community organizations petitioned the GSA to ban federal agencies from purchasing single-use plastics. 

They contend that plastics, produced using fossil fuels, cause environmental pollution, damage human health, and contribute to climate change.