The collective advocacy efforts of groups across Virginia has stalled SB 1164, the bill to classify chemical conversion (chemical recycling aka burning plastic to create more plastic to burn) as a manufacturing process. Tomorrow, this bill will be heard by the Senate Agriculture, Conservation, and Natural Resources Committee . This action alert is going to be short and sweet; you can read our blog on this bill and chemical conversion here. For more in depth information on chemical conversion you can read Deception by the Numbers from Greenpeace and All Talk and No Recycling from the Global Alliance for Incinerator Alternatives.

In short, the American Chemistry Council- the lobbying arm for DowDupont, Exxon, and Bayer among others- is attempting to change Virginia’s laws to enable dangerous, polluting, carbon intensive chemical conversion facilities to proliferate across the Commonwealth. Chemical Conversion is not economically or environmentally sustainable and this bill is being used to kill HB1902 to ban expanded polystyrene (Styrofoam) food and beverage containers. The solution to the plastic pollution crisis is reducing waste at its source, not dangerous downstream approaches. You can access opposition talking points for SB 1164 here. 

We have until tomorrow afternoon to let the Senate Agriculture, Conservation, and Natural Resources Committee know that this bill is bad for Virginia!

Here is how you can help stop this today!

Contact YOUR elected state Senator tonight or tomorrow morning and tell them why you oppose allowing corporate polluters to influence our state’s laws. 

Virginia Grassroots provides access to an excellent spreadsheet with all the contact information for Virginia’s elected officials. Follow this link to get their email address, phone number, Twitter handle, and Facebook page information. You can sign up to speak at the hearing by following this link! 

Here are some sample Tweets

“Please vote no on SB 1164, don’t sell Virginia’s future to the petrochemical industry. Protect vulnerable communities!”

“Would you put a chemical conversion facility in your district? Then vote no on SB 1164 which is a sneaky way of allowing this sort of thing with minimal permitting”

Here is a sample email

“Good afternoon XXXX,

I am your constituent at (insert address). I oppose SB 1164. Virginians have worked extremely hard to ensure our future is not intertwined with fossil fuels. Enabling fossil fuel facilities to expand in Virginia is not only a danger to our air and water quality, fossil fuel facilities around the country disproportionately impact the most vulnerable communities”