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Trash Free Waters

  • EPA Announces Release of National Strategy to Prevent Plastic Pollution for Public Comment

    The draft National Strategy to Prevent Plastic Pollution, together with EPA’s National Recycling Strategy, identifies how the Agency can work collaboratively with U.S. organizations to prevent plastic pollution and reduce, reuse, recycle, and capture plastic and other waste from land-based sources.

  • Where the Rubber Meets the Road: Opportunities to Address Tire Wear Particles in Waterways

    EPA’s Trash Free Waters program announces the publication of “Where the Rubber Meets the Road: Opportunities to Address Tire Wear Particles in Waterways.”  The emergence of tire wear particles as a significant category of microplastics found in waterways prompted EPA to convene two roundtable discussions in Spring 2022. This report highlights the challenges & potential solutions discussed.

  • Release of Stormwater and Solid Waste Management Project Summary Report

    TFW partnered with the National Municipal Stormwater Alliance, KCI Technologies and the American Chemistry Council to explore the status, challenges, and potential solutions to address aquatic trash in the context of stormwater and solid waste programs. The partners have just released a summary report of learning from several stakeholder engagements held on this topic - “Reducing Aquatic Trash Though Stormwater and Solid Waste Management: Project Summary Report.”

  • Report on Priority Microplastics Research Needs: Update to the 2017 Microplastics Expert Workshop

    The EPA Trash Free Waters Program has updated the 2017 Microplastics Expert Workshop (MEW) report to assist the scientific research and funding communities in identifying information gaps and emerging areas of interest within microplastics research. Read the Report on Priority Microplastics Research Needs: Update to the 2017 Microplastics Expert Workshop

Most of the trash that pollutes our rivers, lakes, estuaries, and oceans comes from sources on land.  Plastic trash, in particular, threatens human health, aquatic ecosystems, and the economy. EPA’s Trash Free Waters program is reducing the volume of trash entering our waters by working with partners to implement collaborative solutions that target land-based sources. View the EPA Trash Free Waters Brochure (pdf) (3.03 MB)   or Trash Free Waters Program Factsheet (pdf) (6.8 MB, May 2022, EPA-842-F-22-001)  to learn more. 

Join the Trash Free Waters Email List: Sign up and gain access to Trash Free Waters newsletters, updates, and event invitations.

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Last updated on April 26, 2023
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