The funding created by the Inflation Reduction Act is supposed to be for climate solutions that benefit our families and communities. But the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) just announced a whopping $182 million will go to burning plastic waste.
This makes no sense. Burning plastic is not a climate solution.
Tell the Department of Energy: Protect Families From Burning Plastic Waste
The DOE money would fund a heavily polluting facility in Erie, Pennsylvania. The Erie facility would truck in plastic waste from a 750-mile radius. It would shred the plastic and recycle a portion. The leftover plastic trash would then be shipped to a community in Gary, Indiana, that is already overburdened with pollution. There it would be burned in a steel mill.
Burning plastic releases toxic chemicals into the air. These include dioxins, furans, and other hazardous substances that pose serious health risks to humans and animals alike. Breathing in these pollutants can lead to respiratory problems, cardiovascular issues, and even cancer. Children, whose little lungs are still developing, are most vulnerable.
Burning plastic also contributes to greenhouse gas emissions, including carbon dioxide and methane, which exacerbate global warming and threaten our children’s health and future.
Join us in asking the DOE to invest in real solutions to climate change, not use taxpayer dollars to bankroll a dangerously polluting plastic burning project.
Learn more about Moms’ work on petrochemical pollution.
Tell the Department of Energy: Protect Families From Burning Plastic Waste