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Appendix C: Legal Framework
Pages 217-236

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From page 217...
... , the Clean Water Act (CWA) , the Marine Debris Act as amended in 2018, the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act, the Microbead Free Waters Act of 2015, the Toxic Substances Control Act, and the Rivers and Harbors Appropriations Acts (G20 2021, Ministry of Environment, Japan 2020)
From page 218...
... These laws focus on cleanup, government coordination, outreach, grant making, and research but do not provide specific authority for any federal agency to regulate the production, transportation, or release of plastic waste. The most specific legislative action around plastic pollution in aquatic and marine environments was the 2015 Microbead Free Waters Act, which prohibits the manufacturing, packaging, and distribution of rinse-off cosmetics and other products, such as toothpaste, containing plastic microbeads.
From page 219...
... Debris Coordinating • Requires numerous scientific reports Committee (IMDCC) Amended in 2012 to require NOAA to and studies focusing on microfibers, address marine debris resulting from natural microplastics, plastic waste, circular disasters and severe weather events.
From page 220...
... identify, determine sources of, assess, US Department of State, to engage foreign prevent, reduce, and remove marine governments, especially those of high marine debris; debris source countries, to better address (2) conduct regional coordination; marine debris through strengthened solid (3)
From page 221...
... Defines the term "plastic microbead" as "any solid plastic particle that is -- 5 millimeters or less in size, and intended to be used to exfoliate or cleanse the body or any part of the body"c Solid Waste Disposal Act Stages 3–4, Waste RCRA charges U.S. EPAd to set national goals: Plastic waste, including pellets, currently (SDWA)
From page 222...
... (B) of RCRA: pollution control facility and other "any person may commence a civil action discarded material, including solid, liquid, against: any person .
From page 223...
... .h non-lethal effects on wildlife from • RCRA SMM Procurement Guidelines ingesting plastic pellets (U.S.
From page 224...
... EPA "with the Plastic waste is not currently defined as Environmental Research, Management authority to compel responsible parties a pollutant, contaminant, or hazardous Compensation, and to respond to, and remediate, releases substance under CERCLA. Liability Act (CERCLA)
From page 225...
... .p or nonpoint source runoff from certain U.S. EPA Water Quality Monitoring and industrial and municipal storm sewer Reporting: discharges.
From page 226...
... EPA Office of Research and monitoring, use of legal authority, and Development: currently conducting other appropriate measures to control the research on microplastics. quality of storm water discharged to the • Region 9: Developing water quality storm drains and thence to waters of monitoring methods and ASTM the United States."r In addition, a small standards for sampling microplastics.
From page 227...
... Settled; not navigable waters of the United States. adjudicated. f Clean Air Act Stage 4, Waste "CAA regulates ambient air quality by "Microplastics air emissions from ground (CAA)
From page 228...
... , radionuclides. and removing plastic waste, including • Also, monitoring for unregulated microplastics and microfibers, from contaminants (including perflurooctanoic drinking water." acid [PFOA]
From page 229...
... , as amended Monitoring • "Prohibits the ocean dumping of Prevention of Marine Pollution by Dumping by the Ocean Dumping municipal sewage sludge and industrial of Wastes and Other Matter of 1972) and Ban Act of 1988 and wastes, such as wastes from plastics and its successor, the 1996 London Protocol (in the Water Resources pharmaceutical manufacturing plants and effect starting 2006)
From page 230...
... flag vessels wherever they similar refuse cannot [be discharged] are located."ff in the navigable waters or in waters • Prohibits the "discharge of plastics, offshore inside three nautical miles including synthetic ropes, fishing nets, from the nearest land (some exceptions plastic bags, and biodegradable plastics, for emergencies)
From page 231...
... the coastal zone. Law provides states the • The Coastal Nonpoint Pollution Control assurance that federal activities (including Program (Section 6217 of the 1990 federally permitted activities)
From page 232...
... Office of Science and Technology Research Act of 2020; designed to address regional and national Policy Interagency Ocean Observation related research needs for ocean information"; authorizes Committee (consisting of 12 federal authorities. basic and applied research.
From page 233...
... scientific research and education. of ocean plastic and materials research NASA Organic Act 42 NASA is authorized to conduct scientific projects under a range of grant programs.
From page 234...
... proof of "injury" to meet a legally protected interest that is concrete Federal court remanded to state court "standing" requirements and particularized, and actual or imminent, 2021claims under not conjectural or hypothetical;" •  CA Consumers Legal Remedies Act   • "a causal relationship between the injury •  Public Nuisance and the challenged conduct, i.e., the injury •  Breach of Express Warranty can be fairly traced to the challenged action •  Strict Liability-Failure to Warn of the defendant, and has not resulted from • Negligence and Negligence–Failure to the independent action of some third party Warn"e not before the court;" and   • "a likelihood that the injury will be redressed by a favorable decision, which means that the prospect of obtaining relief from the injury as a result of a favorable ruling is not too speculative." •  Claims must be ripe and not moot. •  Necessary and indispensable parties.
From page 235...
... vSee https://www.epa.gov/vessels-marinas-and-ports/vessel-sewage-discharges-statutes-regulations-and-related-laws-and. wSee San Antonio Bay Estuarine Waterkeeper v.
From page 236...
... Presentation at an online meeting of the Committee on the U.S. Contributions to Global Ocean Plastic Waste, December 7.


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