Environmental Groups Sue to Defend California’s Groundbreaking Plastic Pollution Reduction Law
CalRecycle’s final regulations for SB 54, a landmark plastic reduction law, fall short
Press Release Date: June 4, 2026
Location: San Francisco
Contact:
Megan Jordan | email: mjordan@oceana.org | tel: 202.868.4061
Environmental groups filed a lawsuit this week against CalRecycle’s regulations to implement the state’s landmark single-use packaging and foodware law. Oceana, the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), and Californians Against Waste Foundation filed the lawsuit on June 2 in San Francisco Superior Court, arguing that CalRecycle’s final regulations failed to meet the requirements of the Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act (known as SB 54 for Senate Bill 54).
The groups argue that the regulations, finalized last month, create unauthorized carveouts that undermine the law’s recycling and plastic reduction mandates, impede effective implementation of the law, and leave Californians responsible for hundreds of millions of dollars in waste management costs every year. These loopholes include:
- Adding exclusions for large categories of plastic packaging;
- Allowing plastic producers to claim indefinite exemptions; and
- Failing to protect against harmful technologies as required by the law.
“While SB 54 remains a monumental achievement as the nation’s strongest single-use plastic reduction law, some of the final regulations implementing the statute undermine the law’s ambitions,” said Christy Leavitt, Oceana senior campaign director. “We are taking this action to ensure that the state continues to recognize the urgency of the plastic pollution crisis, acts according to the statute, and protects California’s coast and communities.”
SB 54 requires reductions of single-use plastic packaging and foodware, requires plastic producers to invest in reuse and refill systems, and mandates that all packaging and foodware are either recyclable or compostable. The law is designed to shift the burden and cost of managing packaging and foodware waste from the public to the producers responsible for putting those materials into the market. The state’s economic analysis estimates that implementation of SB 54 will save California consumers, businesses, and local governments more than $30 billion over the next 10 years.
Background
Plastic has been found in every corner of the world, and it’s one of the greatest threats facing our oceans today. An estimated 33 billion pounds of plastic enter the ocean every year — the equivalent of two garbage trucks full of plastic being dumped into the sea every minute. Plastic is in the air we breathe, the water we drink, and in our bodies. Plastic poses environmental and public health threats at every stage from extraction and production to use and disposal. It’s also one of the greatest contributors to climate change. In fact, if plastic were a country, it would be the fourth-largest emitter of greenhouse gases in the world.
A 2020 Oceana report revealed evidence of nearly 1,800 animals from 40 different species swallowing or becoming entangled in plastic in U.S. waters between 2009 and early 2020. Of those animals, a staggering 88% were from species listed as endangered or threatened with extinction under the Endangered Species Act.
Recycling will not solve the plastics crisis. In fact, less than 6% of plastic in the U.S. is recycled. To address the problem, companies must reduce the production and use of unnecessary single-use plastic and develop systems that refill and reuse packaging and foodware. Government policies must ensure that companies act.
In February 2025, Oceana released the results of a nationwide poll revealing that an overwhelming majority of U.S. voters support policies that reduce single-use plastics. Overall, 81% of U.S. voters support reducing the amount of plastic that is produced. The national online poll, conducted for Oceana by the nonpartisan polling company Ipsos using the probability-based KnowledgePanel®, surveyed 1,111 registered U.S. voters from December 13 to 15, 2024.
Included among the key findings:
- 85% of U.S. voters support increasing the use of reusable packaging and foodware.
- 80% of U.S. voters support requiring companies to reduce single-use plastic packaging and foodware.
- 82% of U.S. voters support protecting people in neighborhoods that are affected by pollution from nearby plastic production facilities.
To learn more about Oceana’s campaign to stop plastic pollution, please visit usa.oceana.org/plastics.
