Ma
rch 17, 2025
The Honorable Catherine Blakespear
Chair, Senate Environmental Quality Committee
1021 O Street, Room 3230
Sacramento, CA 95814
R
E: SB 45 (Padilla and Blakespear) – Tethered Caps on Plastic Beverage Containers –
COALITION SUPPORT
Attachment 1
Dear Senator Blakespear,
The attached coalition of stakeholders is proud to support Senate Bill 45, which mandates that plastic beverage containers up to 2 liters feature caps that remain attached during use. This legislation marks a crucial step towards eliminating plastic waste, enhancing material recovery, and protecting both marine and terrestrial ecosystems.
Plastic pollution, particularly from small and lightweight items like bottle caps, poses a severe threat to both terrestrial and marine ecosystems. California generates over 15 billion plastic beverage containers annually, but while the recycling rate for PET plastic containers exceeds 70%, the recovery rate for plastic caps is significantly lower—estimated at less than 40%. This gap in recycling results in an enormous volume of plastic caps being discarded in landfills or entering the environment as litter.
Data from California’s Annual Beach Cleanup further underscores the severity of the problem.
Plastic beverage container caps consistently rank among the top five most littered items on the state’s beaches, being found at nearly twice the rate of plastic beverage containers themselves.
These caps pose a deadly risk to wildlife, as they are frequently ingested by birds, fish, and marine mammals, leading to starvation, digestive blockages, and bioaccumulation of toxic substances.
Additionally, even when caps do enter the recycling stream, their small size makes them difficult to process. They often escape recycling machinery at Material Recovery Facilities (MRFs) and reclaimer facilities, leading to high levels of residual waste. In total, it is estimated that more than 16,600 tons of plastic beverage caps fail to be recycled each year, adding significantly to California’s plastic pollution problem.
Requiring bottle caps to remain tethered to their containers is a simple yet highly effective solution to this issue. Tethered caps ensure that caps stay attached to bottles throughout their lifecycle—from purchase to disposal—dramatically reducing the lik elihood of caps becoming litter and improving their chances of being recycled along with the container.
This policy is not without precedent. The European Union adopted a similar requirement in 2019, with implementation beginning in July 2024. The EU’s policy ensures that over 45 billion plastic beverage containers sold annually now include tethered caps, significantly reducing cap- related litter. By adopting SB 45, California would align itself with proven international best practices and continue its leadership in plastic pollution reduction.
The technology for tethered caps is readily available and already used on some plastic beverage containers in California. Implementing this requirement would not necessitate major changes in manufacturing capabilities, as many beverage producers have already begun transitioning to this design in response to international regulations. Furthermore, while education campaigns can promote cap recycling, they cannot guarantee that caps are effectively processed. Tethered caps, Attachment 1
however, provide a structural solution that ensures caps are not lost in the recovery and recycling process.
For these reasons, we urge your support for SB 45 and are grateful for your attention to this pressing matter.
Sincerely,
Mark Murray
Californians Against Waste
Felipe Melchor
ReGen Monterey
Michael Caprio
Republic Services
Martin Bourque
The Ecology Center
Kim Scheibly
Marin County Hazardous and
Solid Waste Management
Authority (Zero Waste Marin)
Jackie Nuñez
Plastic Pollution Coalition
The Last Plastic Straw
Jason Toro
TRI-CED Recycling
Andria Ventura
Clean Water Action
Charles Moine
Wilmington Recyclers
Paul Relis
CR&R Inc.
Melissa Jung
Upstream
Jason Wu
Capital City Recycling
Sophia Markowska
Defenders of Wildlife
Jeff Donlevy
Ming’s Recycling
Jennifer Savage
The Surfrider Foundation
Patty Garbarino
Marin Sanitary Service
Alison Waliszewski
5 Gyres
Darby Hoover
Natural Resources Defense
Council
Sam Pearse
The Story of Stuff Project
Melissa Romero
CA Environmental V oters
Shira Lane
Atrium916
Leslie Lukacs
Zero Waste Sonoma
Tim Dewey-Mattia
Napa Recycling
Joanne Brasch
California Product
Stewardship Council
Evelyn Wendel
WeTap
Ali Mariko Dressel
Climate Action Campaign
Katie McCammon
350 Sacramento
Jim Lindberg
Friends Committee on
Legislation in California
Leslie Tamminen
7th Generation Advisors
Evan Minton
V oices for Progress
Pauline Seales
Santa Cruz Climate Action
Network
Marilyn Price
Sustainable Mill Valley
Bailey Hall
Northern California
Recycling Association
Attachment 1
Maya Rommwatt
Defend Our Health
Maddalena Bearzi, Ph.D.
Ocean Conservation Society
Scott Webb
Resource Renewal Institute
Lindsay West
Courage California
Nickolaus Sackett
Social Compassion in
Legislation
Wesley Reutimann
Active San Gabriel Valley
Dan Silver
Endangered Habitats League
Mackenzie Wieser
Sacramento Splash
Katie Thompson
Save Our Shores
Tomas Valadez
Azul
Kristin Kusanovich
tUrn Climate Action
Heidi Sanborn
National Stewardship Action
Council (NSAC)
Ashley Eagle-Gibbs
Environmental Action
Coalition of West Marin
Makayla Marquez
San Francisco Baykeeper
Vanessa Forsythe
California Nurses for
Environmental Health & Justice
Rebecca Aguilar
Oceanic Preservation Society
Mackenzie Bolger
San Gabriel Valley Council of
Governments
Katie Drews
Alliance of Mission-Based
Recyclers (AMBR)
Emily Parker
Heal the Bay
Christina Pestoni
Waste Connections
Teresa Bui
Pacific Environment
Christina Hanson
SWANA Legislative Task
Force
Alejandra Warren
Plastic Free Future
Ruth Abbe
Zero Waste USA
Laura Anthony
Save the Albatross &
Zero Waste San Diego
Kathi King
Community Environmental
Council
Emily Wanous
Algalita Marine Research and
Education
Veronica Pardo
Resource Recovery Coalition
of California
Jack Gonzalez
Stop the Caps
Jacie Leavitt
Simply Recycle
Ivan’s Recycling
Julie Wedge
ReThink Disposable
Scott Cassel
Product Stewardship Institute
Darcie Goodman Collins,
Ph.D.
League to Save Lake Tahoe
Garen Kazanjian
Recology, Inc.
Gabriela Facio
Sierra Club California
Catherine Dodd, RN
Families Advocating for
Chemical and Toxics Safety
(FACTS)
Attachment 1
Mayor Larry Klein
City of Sunnyvale
Andrew Keller
Chico Bag
Ben Stapleton
U.S. Green Building Council
California
Jack Eidt
SoCal 350 Climate Action
Cheryl Auger
Ban Single-Use Plastics
Joe LaMariana
Rethink Waste
Erin Pang
Save the Bay
Kelly Shannon McNeill
Los Angeles Waterkeeper
Wanda Redic
Oakland Recycles
Tim Dewey-Mattia
Napa Recycling
Belén Bernal
Nature for All
Attachment 1