[Senate Hearing 116-]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]


 
  STATE, FOREIGN OPERATIONS, AND RELATED PROGRAMS APPROPRIATIONS FOR 
                            FISCAL YEAR 2021

                              ----------                              


                         TUESDAY, JULY 21, 2020

                                       U.S. Senate,
           Subcommittee of the Committee on Appropriations,
                                                    Washington, DC.

    The subcommittee met at 2:00 p.m., in room SD-124, Dirksen 
Senate Office Building, Hon. Lindsey Graham (Chairman) 
presiding.
    Present: Senators Graham, Boozman, Leahy, Shaheen, Coons, 
Udall, Sullivan, and Whitehouse.

   REVIEW U.S. GOVERNMENT EFFORTS TO ADDRESS OCEAN PLASTIC POLLUTION

              OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR LINDSEY GRAHAM

    Senator Graham. Good afternoon. Hello, Senator Leahy. Sorry 
I'm late.
    So the day has arrived that we're talking about plastics in 
the ocean. Why are we having this hearing? So Senators Sullivan 
and Whitehouse will leave me alone.
    [Laughter.]
    Senator Graham. I'm telling you if we ever clean up 
plastics in the ocean, it will be because of these two folks 
and Senator Leahy and I will be willing co-conspirators.
    I'm just astounded by the problem mankind has created for 
the oceans. We can be better stewards of God's creation. What 
we're going to do is have a hearing today about some solutions, 
and Senator Leahy and myself are going to sit down and find a 
way to create some kind of fund that people can contribute to.
    I know they're doing it at the World Bank, but I like the 
Global Fund idea where the world comes together under American 
leadership to solve the problem.
    So to our two colleagues, thank you very much for your 
leadership.
    Senator Leahy.

             OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR PATRICK J. LEAHY

    Senator Leahy. Thank you very much, Mr. Chairman, and with 
all the joking that goes back and forth, I think it's safe to 
say that the Chairman and I feel very strongly about this and 
we do want to help.
    Senator Whitehouse and I were in Vietnam last year. We met 
with Vietnamese officials and scientists to discuss ocean 
plastic pollution. We had a good meeting, and Dr. Whitehouse, 
who is a marine biologist, was a star. Ocean plastic pollution 
is a serious problem for a country with a 2,000-mile coastline, 
and we--by that I mean all human beings--are causing 
potentially irreparable harm to the oceans and marine wildlife, 
which is the primary source of protein for billions of people 
in this world.
    Acidification from carbon emissions, oil spills, untreated 
sewage, and millions of tons of plastic waste are destroying 
life in the oceans. Rivers are emptying into the ocean with 
discarded plastic, beaches are littered with it, and the coral 
reefs are dying. From a personal point of view, my wife 
Marcelle and I are avid scuba divers and over the last 25 
years, we have seen more and more the damage such pollution has 
caused.
    We have seen a dead sea turtle choked to death by a piece 
of plastic--literally hanged by the plastic. We've seen reefs 
and other marine life disappearing, which, of course, harms the 
whole ecological system.
    They've found enough plastic debris to cover half a tennis 
court in the body of a single dead whale. Seals and sea birds 
are ingesting plastic.
    Even plankton are ingesting it. A lot of people say 
recycling is the answer and, of course, we wish that were true, 
but less than 10 percent of the world's plastic is recycled. 
Part of it is a lack of infrastructure and regulation, but some 
plastic, like plastic bags, can't be recycled. Even plastic 
that's recycled is only reused a couple times, then it's 
discarded.
    It is for these reasons that I co-sponsored Senator Udall's 
Break Free from Plastic Pollution Act. In my State of Vermont, 
we have a new law limiting plastic bags, foam food containers, 
and straws. We've also had a bottle deposit program since 1973, 
before you were born, Mr. Chairman.
    Senator Graham. Let the record reflect that.
    [Laughter.]
    Senator Leahy. And a whole year before I was in the Senate. 
I've also supported passage and enactment of the Microbead-Free 
Waters Act, to phase out the use of microbeads that were 
polluting, among other waters, Vermont's Lake Champlain.
    I don't want to go into all the things that I know Senator 
Sullivan and Senator Whitehouse can talk about in their States 
about coastlines, so I'll put my whole statement in the record. 
We often talk about the next generation, and I think of our 
children and grandchildren. This is not the world they should 
be inheriting. We need to do whatever we can to address this 
issue. I look forward to hearing from our witnesses.
    Thank you. Thank you for having this hearing.

    [The statement follows:]
             Prepared Statement of Senator Patrick J. Leahy
    Mr. Chairman, this is an extremely important issue and we have 
excellent witnesses here to discuss it. Senator Whitehouse and I were 
in Vietnam last year where we met with Vietnamese officials and 
scientists to discuss ocean plastic pollution, which is a serious 
problem for that country with a 2,000 mile coastline.
    We--and by that I mean human beings--are causing potentially 
irreparable harm to the oceans and marine wildlife, which are the 
primary source of protein for billions of the world's people.
    Acidification from carbon emissions, oil spills, untreated sewage, 
and millions of tons of plastic waste are destroying life in the 
oceans. Rivers that empty into the oceans carry enormous quantities of 
discarded plastic. Beaches are littered with it. Coral reefs are dying.
    Virtually every marine creature is ingesting plastic, from tiny 
particles to plastic bottles, bags, and other containers. Enough 
plastic debris to cover half a tennis court has been found in the body 
of a single dead whale. Seals and sea birds are ingesting plastic. Even 
plankton, so it makes its way up the food chain to the fish we eat.
    Many people assume recycling is the answer, and that is what the 
chemical companies and the companies that produce plastic containers 
want us to think. I wish it were true. Less than 10 percent of the 
world's plastic is recycled.
    Part of the reason is lack of infrastructure and regulations, but 
some plastic, like plastic bags, cannot be recycled. And even plastic 
that can be recycled can only be reused a few times. Then it is 
discarded.
    It is for these reasons that I have cosponsored Senator Udall's 
``Break Free From Plastic Pollution Act'', which, among other things, 
limits certain single-use plastics and requires manufacturers of 
plastic products to finance and organize the recycling of their 
products after consumer use.
    In my State of Vermont, a new law limiting plastic bags, foam food 
containers, and straws has recently taken effect. Vermont has also had 
a bottle deposit program since 1973 and former Senator Jim Jeffords 
repeatedly called for a nationwide bottle deposit bill.
    And I supported passage and enactment of the Microbead-Free Waters 
Act of 2015, to phase out the use of microbeads that were polluting 
Lake Champlain and other waters. But more must be done--in Vermont, and 
in every State and country.
    Not only have we been far too lax about this problem, it is 
projected to get exponentially worse if we and other countries don't 
act with a greater sense of urgency.
    One can cite many causes. The greed of corporations that are doing 
whatever they can to produce and sell more plastic, while they pay lip 
service to the environment and public health. The failure of 
governments to treat this problem with the gravity it deserves. The 
complacency of consumers, who by following some simple steps could 
significantly reduce the use of single use plastic bags, bottles, and 
other containers.
    And we cannot ignore the fact that a lot of the plastic that is in 
the rivers and littering the beaches and coast lines of other 
countries, and that ends up in the ocean, came from the United States 
and China. We have been producing and using more and more plastic bags, 
bottles, wrapping, and other items, and shipping our plastic waste and 
other garbage overseas for decades, with no regard to what was done 
with it.
    So it's no surprise that the Plastics Industry Association says 95 
percent of plastic in the ocean comes from 10 rivers in Asia and 
Africa. That purposefully obscures the fact that it didn't just 
miraculously end up in Asian and African rivers. A lot of it came from 
here.
    I hope our witnesses will give us concrete recommendations for what 
we can and should do to help other countries reduce plastic pollution 
and protect the oceans for all of us.

    Senator Graham. Well, thank you. Well said, Senator Leahy, 
we're going to do something about this.
    I mean, I know the average American thinks we've all lost 
our mind up here, but there's a lot we do agree upon and 
getting plastics out of the oceans should be something we can 
come together on.
    With that, I'll turn it over to Senator Sullivan.

               OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR DAN SULLIVAN

    Senator Sullivan. Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman and Ranking 
Member Leahy, for the opportunity to talk about this important 
issue.
    I want to say, as always, it's great to be here with my 
fellow friend and colleague, Senator Whitehouse. He and I have 
spent a lot of time on this issue together and the good news is 
we're making progress.
    I'm not going to brag too much about Alaska, but when we're 
talking about coastlines, we're particularly aware of this 
challenge. Some of you might know the statistic that my State 
has more coastline than the rest of the Lower 48 States 
combined and we, unfortunately, have--when we have beach 
cleanups, which is often, it's a mix of plastic pollution, 
ghost fishing gear trash, that it's so much that it's measured 
in tons, not in pounds.
    Mr. Chairman, as you know, the vast majority of this 
actually comes from overseas. We're not perfect in our country, 
but this is a problem that really demands an international 
element to address it.
    Senator Whitehouse and I worked on the Safe our Seas Act in 
the last Congress, was passed, and we had a very useful signing 
ceremony with the President, who is quite motivated on these 
issues. That led to our Save Our Seas Act 2.0, which passed the 
Senate in January and is under consideration in the House. 
Senator Murphy, who's here, and Senator Coons, Van Hollen, 
Merkley, they were all co-sponsors. Mr. Chairman, you were, as 
well, of that bill.
    It's not a silver bullet, but CRS did call that the most 
comprehensive ocean cleanup legislation ever to pass the United 
States Senate and so we're proud of that bill, doesn't solve 
everything but, as I mentioned, Mr. Chairman, that has a lot of 
provisions, the Save Our Seas Act 2.0, to tackle this problem 
globally.
    I won't go through all the elements of it, but it's working 
internationally. It prioritizes State Department, USAID, I know 
you're going to hear from them today, on the United States 
being the leader in marine debris efforts globally.
    I think you're starting to see that, Mr. Chairman. You saw 
in the USMCA, for example, there's a provision on ocean debris. 
There's an entire chapter on sustainable fisheries that I had a 
little bit to do with, but this is, I think, it's a challenge, 
but at the end of the day, this is a good news story.
    Why is it a good news story? Because it's an environmental 
issue that we can target and we can solve. The estimates are 
some 70 percent of all the world's global plastics marine 
debris comes from 10 rivers in Asia and Africa. We can solve 
this and here's the other good news element about it.
    You are seeing all the key stakeholders, Democrats, 
Republicans, in the Congress, the Trump administration, which I 
think really wants to play an important constructive and 
leadership role, the key ocean environmental groups, industry. 
Senator Whitehouse and I were at the launch of the Alliance to 
End Plastic Waste. This is a group of nearly 50 of the top 
companies in our country that have pledged over 1.5 billion to 
clean up the oceans and that's the key, Mr. Chairman.
    Key stakeholders all working together on an environmental 
issue we can solve and that's why this hearing is important. 
That's why our work together, we think, has made progress and 
we're very honored, Mr. Chairman, Senator Leahy, that you are 
holding this hearing to continue our leadership efforts, 
bipartisan, with the United States leading on an issue that 
people are coming together on and we can solve.
    So we want to thank you for holding this hearing.
    Senator Graham. Thank you for all you've done to bring this 
to my attention and to work with Senator Whitehouse.
    Senator Whitehouse.

            OPENING STATEMENT OF SENATOR SHELDON WHITEHOUSE

    Senator Whitehouse. Thank you, Chairman Graham, for hosting 
this. It is, first of all, a treat to be here and see you and 
Ranking Member Leahy, who work together so well on so many 
issues. It's a good sign for the Senate, the relationship that 
you two have, and it gives me confidence that we will make real 
progress as a result of this hearing.
    It's also a great privilege to be here with my compadre on 
all things ocean plastics, Dan Sullivan. As he said, we do 
beach cleanups with trash bags. He does beach cleanups with 
frontend loaders, dumpsters, and barges. So it's a real problem 
for Alaska but it's a problem for the entire world because 
plastic pollution and marine debris befoul all our oceans and 
hurt global coastal communities.
    About 8 million metric tons of this trash goes into the sea 
every year. If you stack grocery bags full of plastic trash on 
every square foot of shoreline in the world and kick it into 
the ocean, that's the scale of what we're doing every year and 
at this rate, there will be more plastic by weight in the ocean 
than fish by weight in the ocean by 2050.
    It's a health issue, an unexplained health issue because 
plastic breaks down into teensy-tiny microscopic pieces and 
infiltrates the marine food chain with harm we still need to 
understand to fish, wildlife, and human health.
    So we are not doing a very good job at handling this as a 
country and as a world. We only manage a fraction of the 
plastic waste that we produce. Much of what we fail to manage 
goes into the ocean.
    International efforts will help us combat this ocean 
plastic pollution and we can make positive changes here at home 
because our waste and water infrastructure needs improving as 
does our recycling system. But we must reduce new plastic waste 
and create economic incentives to clean up the plastic waste 
already befouling our seas.
    Save Our Seas, mentioned by Dan, and Save Our Seas 2.0 show 
bipartisan support to address marine debris and ocean plastic 
pollution. Save Our Seas is already law and this year, the 
Senate passed Save Our Seas 2.0 by unanimous consent and we 
hope for House action to pass it into law in this Congress. 
These bills do the two basic things we need to do: boost 
international engagement to clean up ocean plastics and 
strengthen our domestic response.
    So what's out there right now? PROBLUE, an Ocean Trust Fund 
at the World Bank, already helps address the threat of marine 
pollution and ocean plastics, and it raises awareness. It 
integrates international efforts. It promotes public and 
private sector investment.
    The United States should step up on combating ocean plastic 
pollution as we traditionally have in fisheries management and 
in ocean conservation, both by contributing to this fund and 
perhaps by establishing our own to support it and vindicate our 
own policies.
    We should strengthen the Department of State and USAID's 
ocean plastic pollution work. They support international 
efforts to address marine debris. There's no reason for the 
U.S. to be laggards in this space.
    Studies already underway at the National Academy of Science 
to evaluate the types, sources, and geographic distribution of 
our own plastic waste, where we export it, whether there's 
adequate waste management infrastructure there, and what 
environmental conditions result. Supporting a global fund can 
help us build on this research and act on its findings.
    Ocean plastic pollution is a global problem with bipartisan 
support for action in Congress and strong statements, as 
Senator Sullivan said, from the President, the Secretary of 
State, and our Trade Representative. There's no reason not to 
move forward. It will take an international response because so 
much of the problem is overseas. Powering up the Department of 
State and USAID's work and launching funding for global ocean 
plastic reduction through PROBLUE or through our own or both 
would ensure that the United States is an acknowledged leader 
in this space.
    There's no reason not to move forward, Mr. Chairman, and 
there's every reason to move forward for the sake of our 
coastal communities and blue economies, for the sake of human 
health, and for the sake of a healthy, beautiful, and clean 
ocean.
    I know you are an advocate for the Atlantic shore of South 
Carolina, as I am for our beautiful, sparkling shore and bay in 
Rhode Island, and I appreciate very much that you and that 
famous scuba diver, our Ranking Member Patrick Leahy, are such 
enthusiasts. So I appreciate it.
    Thank you.
    Senator Graham. Senator Jacques Cousteau over here.
    Senator Leahy. Marcelle is the better diver.
    Senator Graham [continuing]. Before you leave, I know 
you're busy, thank you both. I'm not joking. I did not realize 
the scope of the problem. It's just mind-boggling that we've 
done this to our oceans and the good news is there's a way out 
of this mess. There is a way. We've just got to follow your 
leadership and where money helps, we'll put money. So thank you 
both.
    Senator Sullivan. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
    Senator Graham. Our other two witnesses are USAID Assistant 
Administrator for the Bureau for Economic Growth, Education, 
and Environment, Michelle Bekkering. Good to see you. Thank 
you. And Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of State for the 
Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and Scientific 
Affairs, you must have a big door, Jonathan Moore.
    Mr. Moore, the floor is yours.
STATEMENT OF HON. JONATHAN MOORE, PRINCIPAL DEPUTY 
            ASSISTANT SECRETARY, BUREAU OF OCEANS AND 
            INTERNATIONAL ENVIRONMENTAL AND SCIENTIFIC 
            AFFAIRS, DEPARTMENT OF STATE
    Mr. Moore. Mr. Chairman, thank you very much. Thank you for 
the opportunity and the invitation. Ranking Member Leahy and 
other esteemed Members of the subcommittee.
    It's an honor to be here with you today, together with my 
distinguished colleague from USAID, Michelle Bekkering, to 
discuss our role in addressing the important issue of marine 
debris.
    While working on and through the COVID-19 pandemic, the 
State Department continues to address marine debris and many 
other issues around the world, collaborating with the 
interagency to leverage American resources and expertise.
    As we just heard from Senators Sullivan and Whitehouse, 
marine debris does not respect borders. It is a global problem 
with global consequences. It results from mismanaged waste, 
usually starting on land and then entering the ocean.
    The American people see this on the coasts of the Atlantic, 
Pacific, and Arctic Oceans, and on the shores of lakes and 
rivers. It's estimated that the direct economic impact of 
marine debris on APEC economies, and that includes our economy, 
is over $10 billion a year. It harms ecosystems and fishing 
industries through economic losses due to abandoned or lost 
fishing gear, known as ghost gear. Floating debris also poses 
navigational hazards.
    Though marine debris includes glass, metal, cloth, and 
rubber, one of the most common materials is plastic. Exactly as 
Senator Whitehouse noted, current estimates indicate that there 
are more than 150 million tons of plastic waste in the ocean 
with another 8 million tons added each year. To use a different 
way of describing that, that works out to a full garbage 
truck's worth of plastic entering the ocean every minute.
    I must note, Mr. Chairman that the People's Republic of 
China is the biggest offender, responsible for nearly 30 
percent of plastic waste, far more than any other country. The 
PRC must address its own waste management issues, both land-
based and sea-based, and do so with its own resources.
    Marine debris affects environmental and food security, 
economic stability, resource management, and potentially human 
health. The challenge is immense.
    Our approach focuses on promoting environmentally-sound 
waste management, recycling, sustainable materials management, 
innovation to prevent waste from entering the environment, and 
debris removal efforts.
    The United States has a wide array of means to help. The 
State Department, EPA, National Science Foundation, and the 
Department of Energy are highlighting U.S. expertise and 
innovation to combat marine debris through new technologies, 
materials research, and other cutting edge solutions.
    We are dedicating to supporting and highlighting the best 
available scientific information and data collection methods 
necessary to inform policymakers and private industry about the 
economic, environmental, and health implications and identify 
hot spots.
    The bipartisan Save Our Seas Act of 2018 directed the State 
Department to take a comprehensive approach on marine debris. 
The department, through our Bureau of Oceans and International 
Environmental and Scientific Affairs, is working with 
interagency, private sector, academic, industry, and non-
governmental stakeholders, in addition to Congress, to engage 
multilaterally, regionally, and bilaterally around the world.
    We also partner with EPA, NOAA, USAID, the National Science 
Foundation, Commerce, Energy, the Coast Guard, and the U.S. 
Trade Representative to work with international stakeholders 
and underscore the importance of public and private 
cooperation.
    We are engaging with private sector-led initiatives, 
including the Alliance to End Plastic Waste and Circulate 
Capital, mobilizing billions of dollars to help countries 
improve their waste management and recycling systems, and to 
create a value chain for recycled plastics.
    In international fora, contrasting the balanced approaches, 
we face calls for bans on single-use plastics, legally-binding 
agreements on plastics, and measures that would inhibit the 
market for recycled goods.
    Barriers, bans, and trade restrictions often do not 
consider negative environmental and economic trade-offs and 
could actually reduce recycling by lowering the value of 
commodities, risking even more waste entering the environment.
    Instead, we need innovation in materials and design, 
changes in behavior, and significant improvements in waste 
management systems to reduce the amount of marine debris and 
plastic pollution. These solutions should reflect regional and 
national contexts as well as local practices and realities.
    Importantly, the challenge of tackling marine debris 
presents opportunities for U.S. business. The American waste 
and recycling industry generates an estimated $100 billion in 
annual revenue. The global waste management market is expected 
to reach over $530 billion by the year 2025.
    Broadening markets would yield benefits to American 
companies as well as for countries with undeveloped waste 
management infrastructure, a win all around.
    Our embassies are vital in helping U.S. business navigate 
ever-changing national and local conditions and identifying 
potential opportunities.
    Over the past 5 years, the State Department has managed 
over $5.8 million in grants. For example, we gave a nearly $1 
million grant to the Ocean Conservancy to aid the 
implementation of Vietnam's National Action Plan on Marine 
Debris and worked with local NGOs there.
    Senator Leahy, thank you very much for mentioning our 
cooperation with Vietnam.
    We promote behavior change, including through demonstration 
projects, workshops, and public awareness campaigns. We also 
plan to combat sea-based sources, particularly of ghost gear. 
These are just a few examples of what we're doing.
    As the Save Our Seas Act recognizes, addressing marine 
debris is impossible without close domestic and international 
coordination.
    Congress has been an invaluable partner for this and we 
greatly appreciate your support and interest.
    Thank you again for the opportunity to appear before you 
today.

    [The statement follows:]
              Prepared Statement of Hon. Jonathan M. Moore
                              introduction
    Good afternoon Chairman Graham, Vice Chairman Leahy, and other 
esteemed Members of the subcommittee on State, Foreign Operations, and 
Related Programs. It is a pleasure to be here with you today and I very 
much appreciate the opportunity to discuss the State Department's role 
in addressing the increasingly important issue of marine debris. Even 
during this time of incredible uncertainty, we continue to address this 
complex challenge around the world. The State Department works closely 
with our interagency partners to leverage our combined resources and 
expertise in our global marine debris engagement.
    Marine debris is a global problem with global consequences. Marine 
debris originates from mismanaged waste leaking into the environment, 
usually starting on land and then entering the ocean. The American 
people see this on the coasts of the Atlantic, Pacific, and Arctic 
Oceans, and on the shores of lakes and rivers. Reliable estimates put 
the direct economic impact of marine debris on Asia Pacific Economic 
Cooperation Forum (APEC) economies (including the United States) at 
over $10 billion annually. A component of the tourism sector is hit 
particularly hard by lost revenue from tourists who choose to spend 
their vacations away from polluted marine environments, forcing local, 
State, and national governments to spend millions of dollars cleaning 
beaches. Marine debris also harms marine ecosystems and fishing 
industries through economic losses due to abandoned or lost fishing 
gear, commonly referred to as ``ghost gear.'' Ghost gear continues to 
capture fish and other marine life for as long as it drifts, depleting 
seafood stocks and ultimately reducing regional food security. Floating 
debris also poses major navigational hazards for ocean-going vessels, 
for example by entangling ship drives.
    Though marine debris includes various materials, such as glass, 
metal, cloth, and rubber, one of the most common materials comprising 
marine debris is plastic. Current estimates indicate that there are 
more than 150 million tons of plastic waste in the ocean with another 8 
million tons added each year; that works out to a full garbage truck's 
worth of plastic entering the ocean every minute. By 2050, there could 
be more plastic than fish (by weight) in the ocean.
    Plastics are a vital societal asset and tradable commodity in the 
global economy. Their durability and non-biodegradable properties that 
are so valuable for food safety and other applications, can also lead 
to plastic accumulation on land and in the marine environment when 
plastic waste is not managed in an environmentally sound manner. 
Plastic can take hundreds of years to decompose naturally, if it 
decomposes at all. In many cases, plastic degrades into smaller harmful 
``micro and nano-plastic'' fragments that are impossible to retrieve, 
but which enter the food chain when consumed by sea life. Moreover, 
micro and nano-plastic are transported across the globe, including by 
ocean currents and jet streams, and can now be found from the deepest 
parts of our oceans to the ice and snow of our highest mountains.
    Marine debris does not respect international boundaries and the 
problem cannot be solved by one country alone. Combatting marine 
debris, including marine plastic litter, requires collaborative efforts 
from all stakeholders, public and private. We welcome and actively 
support efforts by all U.S. stakeholders to work with governments and 
other actors globally to address this problem.
                           global engagement
    Marine debris is a far-reaching issue that impacts environmental 
and food security, economic stability, resource management, and 
potentially human health. The size and complexity of the challenge is 
immense, especially in developing economies that may not have the 
appropriate infrastructure or policy apparatus to take effective 
action. Our international approach focuses on promoting environmentally 
sound waste management, supporting recycling and recycling markets, 
promoting sustainable materials management, encouraging innovation to 
prevent mismanaged waste from entering the environment, and supporting 
debris removal efforts. The United States has a wide array of 
technology and expertise to assist countries in improving their waste 
management and recycling systems. We are working closely with 
colleagues from the Environmental Protection Agency, National Science 
Foundation and the Department of Energy to highlight U.S. expertise and 
innovation to combat marine debris through new waste management 
technologies, materials research, and other cutting-edge solutions. We 
also engage with countries to understand the scale and scope of the 
problem, supporting efforts to combat land and sea-based sources of 
marine debris, promoting government and stakeholder outreach to 
positively influence cultural and societal norms, encouraging a more 
sustainable approach to plastic use and disposal, and fostering 
dialogue to expand research into more recyclable materials and 
alternatives. We are dedicated to supporting and highlighting the best 
available scientific information and data collection methods necessary 
to inform policy makers and private industry about the economic, 
environmental, and health implications of marine debris and identify 
pollution hot spots.
    The People's Republic of China (PRC) is the biggest offender, 
responsible for 30 percent of waste, far more than any other country. 
Our approach to the PRC is to hold it accountable for addressing its 
own waste management issues, both land-based and sea-based, and to do 
so with their own resources. Prioritizing our efforts on improving 
waste management infrastructure and practices in other major source 
countries will yield results, but cultural norms also need to shift to 
effect permanent change and solve the longer-term issue. Increased 
efforts to curb ghost gear, enhance cross-sectoral collaboration (e.g., 
connecting financial institutions with innovators and entrepreneurs), 
and promote innovation throughout product lifecycles will also aid in 
solving the marine debris and plastic pollution problem.
    As you know, the bipartisan Save our Seas Act of 2018 (Public Law 
115-265) directed the State Department to take a comprehensive approach 
to its international engagement on marine debris. The Department of 
State, through the Bureau of Oceans and International Environmental and 
Scientific Affairs, is working with interagency, private sector, 
academic, industry, and non-governmental stakeholders to engage 
multilaterally, regionally, and bilaterally with partners around the 
world to address marine debris.
    The Department of State works with interagency partners in the EPA, 
NOAA, USAID, NSF, DOC, DOE, USCG, and USTR to bring together diverse 
international stakeholders and underscore the importance of global 
cooperation--from the public and private sectors--to prevent and reduce 
marine debris. The United Nations has increased its focus on marine 
debris in recent years as we have worked extensively to elevate the 
issue in bilateral and multilateral fora. In June 2012, U.N. 
Environment Programme (UNEP) launched the Global Partnership on Marine 
Litter. Since then, nations, including the United States, have worked 
in concert to prevent and reduce marine debris worldwide, while 
mitigating its impact on economies and human and animal health. The 
Department of State leads interagency engagement as contributing 
members of the U.N. Environment Program's Ad Hoc Open-Ended Expert 
Group on Marine Litter and Microplastics where we promote the United 
States' holistic vision for combatting marine debris. The outputs from 
the Expert Group will provide key inputs to policy discussions at the 
fifth session of the United Nations Environment Assembly, planned for 
February 2021.
    We have also advocated for solution that recognize the important 
role of the private sector as a key stakeholder that can contribute 
towards pragmatic solutions. We continue to engage with private sector-
led initiatives, including the Alliance to End Plastic Waste and 
Circulate Capital, which are mobilizing billions of dollars to assist 
countries to improve their waste management and recycling systems and 
to create a value chain for recycled plastics.
    We also work in the G7 and G20 fora to tackle marine debris. In the 
G7, we promote better coordination of various country-level initiatives 
supporting additional research on microplastics and their impact on 
human health, improved scientific monitoring, and advocating for better 
use of resources to recover, reduce, recycle and repurpose waste. In 
2019 at the G20 Leaders meeting, we worked closely with Japan's G20 
Presidency to help develop the Osaka Blue Ocean Vision 2050, which aims 
to reduce additional marine plastic litter pollution to zero by 2050. 
We also supported the development and adoption of the G20 
Implementation Framework for Actions on Marine Plastic Litter and the 
G20 Resource Efficiency Dialogue aimed at increasing mutual 
understanding regarding activities and best practices on marine plastic 
litter.
    We also support working through the existing Regional Seas Programs 
and other regional initiatives to address marine debris and marine 
plastic litter. The United States is a member of two Regional Seas 
Programs that engage neighboring countries to collaborate on preventing 
pollution from entering the ocean. Through the Caribbean Environment 
Program, created in connection with the Cartagena Convention, we led an 
effort to make marine debris reduction a priority. We worked jointly 
with EPA launching an initiative in partnership with U.N. Environment 
Programme and the Peace Corps to develop community-based trash 
reduction projects and create effective solid waste management 
policies. Projects in Jamaica and Panama helped those countries to 
advance their efforts to keep waste from entering the Caribbean.
    Our work in APEC has yielded significant public and private action. 
For example, following the success of several workshops in meetings 
held in the Asia-Pacific region over the last several years, the 
Department of State and our interagency partners at NOAA spearheaded 
the establishment of a marine debris sub-fund with nearly a million 
dollars in seed funding for projects to combat land-based sources of 
marine debris in the APEC region. The estimate of direct economic costs 
that I cited earlier--exceeding $10 billion annually in the APEC region 
alone--is from a report \1\ that the United States commissioned to 
enhance regional and global understanding of the true cost of the 
problem. We were also successful in leading an interagency effort with 
the Republic of Korea to establish an APEC Roadmap on Marine Debris 
that now serves as the guiding document for the organization's efforts.
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    \1\ Report available at: https://www.apec.org/Publications/2020/03/
Update-of-2009-APEC-Report-on-Economic-Costs-of-Marine-Debris-to-APEC-
Economies
---------------------------------------------------------------------------
    In the Pacific Islands, we provide financial and technical support 
under the Convention for the Protection of the Natural Resources and 
Environment of the South Pacific Region, also known as the Noumea 
Convention. The Department of State is partnering with the U.S. Coast 
Guard to enhance Pacific Islands' capacity to combat marine pollution. 
Our work has also extended to the Arctic Council, OECD, the IMO, the 
ASEAN Regional Forum, Regional Fisheries Management Organizations, and 
a wide array of other international entities now tasked with working to 
address marine debris.
    The United States leadership on addressing marine debris, 
specifically ghost gear, is also exemplified by our recent joining of 
the Global Ghost Gear Initiative (GGGI). GGGI is the preeminent 
international initiative working to address the problem of ghost gear 
and convenes a broad coalition of members, including 15 other countries 
and 13 U.S.-based fishing and seafood companies. While our membership 
with GGGI only became official a few weeks ago our close collaboration 
with GGGI and it's parent organization, the Ocean Conservancy, date 
back years as evident by ongoing Department of State grants in the 
Indo-Pacific and Caribbean regions.
Supporting U.S. Economic Interests
    In international fora, the Department has seen increasing calls for 
stopgap solutions to global waste issues, including implementation of 
bans on single-use plastics, support for negotiating a legally binding 
international agreement on plastics, and the development of measures 
that inhibit the global market for recycled goods. Barriers, bans, and 
trade restrictions can reduce recycling by lowering the value of 
commodities, and often do not consider negative environmental and 
economic trade-offs associated with alternative materials.
    Beginning in 2018, the PRC implemented its National Sword policy, 
banning the import of 24 types of solid waste and scrap material, 
including a variety of plastics and unsorted mixed papers. The policy 
disrupted a number of the waste management and recycling streams across 
the United States and elsewhere that were previously structured for 
export to China. These disruptions in the global movement of recycling 
commodities continues to reduce market prices and alter trade 
relationships and markets. There are also concerns that the National 
Sword Policy and similar restrictions will divert waste to countries, 
in particular developing countries in Southeast Asia, with 
comparatively weaker waste management systems and high rates of waste 
leaking into the environment.
    More recently, in May 2019, the Conference of the Parties to the 
Basel Convention on the Control of Transboundary Movements of Hazardous 
Wastes and Their Disposal amended the Convention to make most non-
hazardous plastic waste and scrap exports subject to the prior informed 
consent of the importing country. Beginning on January 1, 2021, the new 
plastic waste amendments will prohibit the 187 Basel parties from 
trading most plastic waste and scrap with the United States, a non-
Party, except under the terms of a separate agreement or arrangement 
with us that provides for environmentally sound management. We 
anticipate these amendments will significantly disrupt the global 
movement of plastic scrap and potentially cut off U.S. exports and 
imports of certain non-hazardous plastic scrap.
    This challenge and the broader issue of tackling marine debris 
presents opportunities for U.S. businesses. Plastic and other materials 
that are recovered can generally be recycled and often traded as 
recyclable commodities, creating sustainable supply chains and green 
jobs across a diverse set of industrial sectors if we work together to 
find the solutions.In 2018, the U.S. solid waste management and 
recycling industry generated an estimated $100 billion in revenue. The 
global waste management market size is expected to reach $530 billion 
by 2025, with the Asia-Pacific region expected to see the highest 
compound annual growth rate, at about 6 percent during the period from 
2018 to 2025. Expanding overseas markets for U.S. waste management and 
recycling services and technologies would yield benefits to American 
companies and countries with underdeveloped waste management 
infrastructure; a win all around. Our Embassies are vital in helping 
U.S. businesses navigate ever-changing national and local conditions, 
including market-enabling environmental policies and regulatory 
developments, and identifying potential opportunities for U.S. waste 
and recycling firms, and the State Department continues to connect U.S. 
businesses with our Embassies to provide on-the-ground advice and 
information.
                          programmatic efforts
    We are also working bilaterally with key source countries. For 
example, the Department of State is working closely with the 
interagency and civil society partners to support the Indonesian 
government's recently stated ambitious goal of reducing its marine 
litter by 70 percent by 2025. As part of that effort, we sponsored a 
renowned American marine debris expert, Dr. Jenna Jambeck of the 
University of Georgia, as a U.S. Embassy Speaker. With Embassy support, 
Dr. Jambeck met with students, academia, civil society, and government 
officials in South Africa, Japan, Vietnam, Philippines, China, and 
Indonesia. The Department of State has also developed an outreach 
campaign called Face the Waste to provide educational materials on 
environmentally sound waste management techniques and technologies and 
highlight the expertise of agencies like EPA, USAID, the Department of 
Commerce, USTR, and NOAA. In addition, U.S. Embassy Public Diplomacy 
sections regularly conduct outreach events to engage and educate the 
host country's public on marine debris, as well as inform exporters of 
U.S. environmental technology and services about opportunities in 
foreign countries.
    Over the past 5 years, the Department of State has developed and 
managed over $5.8 million dollars in grants to combat marine debris and 
plastic pollution. We provided a nearly one million-dollar grant to the 
Ocean Conservancy to aid the implementation of Vietnam's National 
Action Plan on Marine Debris, to support the informal waste management 
sector, and advance additional research into waste pathways into the 
marine environment. We also worked with local NGOs in Vietnam to reduce 
marine debris via social change in Ly Son Island. The project 
established a local steering committee on environmental protection, 
conducted training with community leaders, engaged in coastal clean-
ups, and trained households on the proper methods for waste sorting and 
recycling and provided reusable shopping bags. We continue to support 
the Ocean Conservancy's annual International Coastal Clean-up 
activities. We regularly highlight and promote this event, aimed at 
building awareness and gathering data around the impact of marine 
debris on coastlines. Our embassies also sponsor coastal clean-ups on 
Earth Day around the world and participate in the annual International 
Coastal Clean-up serving to highlight U.S. commitment to the issue.
    Our grant work has a global reach to conduct coastal clean-up 
activities and host community outreach events. We also collaborate with 
industry to develop and implement alternative materials for fish boxes 
tested by the fishing industry to reduce polystyrene marine debris. In 
Panama and Costa Rica, our NGO partner provided technical assistance to 
six coastal cities that reduced waste, trained municipal officers, 
developed local government solid waste management plans, and instituted 
a public information plan to incentivize actions that reduce marine 
debris. To date, that campaign has reached roughly 1.9 million people. 
Grants we implemented in Indonesia and the Philippines aim to reduce 
marine debris by building effective waste management and plastic 
recycling economies and reduce land-based leakage of plastic waste 
through engagement with local governments in over 80 cities to promote 
zero-waste systems and product redesign.
    Other grants have included work to curb the prevalence of ghost 
gear in Peru's coastal waters by collecting and recycling end-of-life 
fishing gear. This project has managed to collect more than 220 tons of 
end of life fishing nets for recycling annually. In Jamaica and 
Grenada, another grant program incentivizes good fisheries management 
practices through an insurance product and developed innovative fishing 
gear and gear marking technologies to prevent ghost gear from occurring 
while facilitating gear recovery.
    Currently, the Department is developing a program to support 
municipalities in West Africa to improve environmentally sound 
management of plastic waste and encourage innovation along the plastic 
supply chain to reduce plastic waste leakage into the environment.
    As has already been shown, our embassies have been engaged on the 
issue as well. Embassy Green Teams develop and support environmentally 
friendly activities ranging from promoting the use of reusable water 
bottles and packaging at the Embassy to working with host country 
partners to reduce local waste generation. For example, Embassy Bangkok 
worked closely with the hospitality industry in Phuket, Thailand to 
establish a successful waste reduction program in hotels by promoting 
reusable container use.
    We need innovation in materials and design, changes in behavior, 
and significant improvements in waste management systems to reduce the 
amount of marine debris and plastic pollution. These solutions should 
also vary according to regional and national contexts. For example, 
work by manufacturers on automated, high-throughput sorting 
technologies to efficiently categorize plastic materials by physical 
and chemical characteristics is necessary for nations with well-
established material recovery facilities. But this solution sometimes 
does not translate to developing nations where many consumers are 
forced to use single-use plastic sachets of daily goods like soap and 
detergent, simply because they cannot afford to buy larger containers. 
We need different solutions to fit the local realities.
    With that in mind, we plan to continue efforts to work in major 
source countries to combat land-based sources of marine debris via 
development of improved waste management infrastructure, support 
recycling and markets for recycled material, encourage innovative 
product lifecycle design, promote debris removal, and promote behavior 
change, including through demonstration projects, workshops, and public 
awareness campaigns. We also plan to combat sea-based sources of marine 
debris, particularly ghost gear, by promoting gear-making guidelines 
and workshops to share best practices with key target countries. We 
will also support the contributions of our interagency partners to 
international scientific initiatives, studying the environmental and 
economic impact of marine debris globally through monitoring programs, 
micro- and nano-plastics research, assessments of land-based sources, 
as well as workshops and scientific exchanges with U.S. researchers to 
promote U.S. expertise, methodologies, and technologies.
                               conclusion
    These are just a few examples of the State Department's wide-
ranging international engagement on marine debris, working together 
with our interagency colleagues, private sector stakeholders, and 
international partners. As the Save Our Seas Act of 2018 recognizes, 
addressing marine debris is impossible without close coordination both 
domestically and internationally. American leadership is critical to 
advancing the global effort to combat marine debris by focusing on 
effective solutions that are grounded in innovation, environmentally 
sound waste management, sustainable materials management, and support 
for recycling and recycling markets.
    Congress has been an invaluable partner in our efforts and we 
greatly appreciate your support and interest in this critical topic. 
Thank you again for the opportunity to appear before you today and I 
would be pleased to answer any questions that you might have.

    Senator Graham. Ms. Bekkering.
STATEMENT OF HON. MICHELLE BEKKERING, ASSISTANT 
            ADMINISTRATOR OF THE BUREAU FOR ECONOMIC 
            GROWTH, EDUCATION AND ENVIRONMENT, UNITED 
            STATES AGENCY FOR INTERNATIONAL DEVELOPMENT
    Ms. Bekkering. Chairman Graham, Ranking Member Leahy, and 
distinguished Members of the subcommittee, thank you so much 
for this opportunity today to testify about the important role 
the U.S. Agency for International Development plays in 
preventing and reducing ocean plastic pollution. It's truly an 
honor to be with you here today.
    I'd really like to thank Congress for your strong 
bipartisan support and leadership on this issue. I'd also like 
to specifically express my gratitude that you have held today's 
hearing to shine a spotlight on this development challenge, one 
that has been amplified by the current COVID-19 pandemic.
    USAID is pleased that the Save Our Seas Act of 2018 set the 
stage for increased U.S. Government efforts internationally and 
we have appreciated the close cooperation with Members of this 
subcommittee and the authors of the Save Our Seas 2.0 Act, 
Senators Whitehouse, Sullivan, and Menendez.
    I also want to note my colleague and friend, Jonathan 
Moore, from the Department of State who is joining me here 
today.
    This topic truly symbolizes the importance of collaboration 
between State and USAID in recognizing the strong linkages 
between diplomacy and implementation. The scope, as you've 
already heard this afternoon, of ocean plastics is profound. 
Marine debris, it's estimated that 80 percent of this debris is 
plastic and an estimated 8 million metric tons of plastic enter 
the ocean every year. Notably, 80 percent of that plastic comes 
from land-based sources.
    Much of this plastic comes from cities and developing 
countries that lack the capacity to effectively manage their 
waste. In low-income countries, approximately 90 percent of 
waste is disposed of in unregulated dumps or just openly 
burned.
    As the world's premier international development agency, 
USAID is well positioned to support our developing country 
partners. We focus on locally-led solutions and advance their 
journey to self-reliance.
    Our programs reflect the fact that solving this problem 
requires involvement and action on the part of all stakeholders 
with a role in waste management, national, local governments, 
civil society and the private sector.
    USAID's Municipal Waste Recycling Program launched in 2016 
has provided grants to 30 locally-led NGO projects with 
innovative and sustainable solutions in Indonesia, the 
Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam.
    In Vietnam, which we are so pleased that you had the chance 
to visit, our grantees have helped inform a new national action 
plan on marine plastics debris management. Launched last year, 
our flagship global program, Clean Cities, Blue Ocean, builds 
upon our initial set of four partner countries in Asia while 
expanding to Latin America by adding Maldives, India, Peru, and 
the Dominican Republic.
    In addition to providing grants to these local 
organizations, Clean Cities, Blue Ocean is providing 
specialized technical expertise to enable private sector 
engagement, investment in infrastructure while ensuring greater 
government transparency and improved local enforcement of 
regulations.
    USAID also recognizes that the resources and innovations of 
the private sector are needed to achieve greater impact. This 
year, USAID launched a partnership with the Alliance to End 
Plastic Waste. This coalition of 47 multinational companies has 
committed $1.5 billion to the mission of ending plastic waste 
in the environment.
    USAID also recently launched a blended finance partnership 
with impact investors Circulate Capital. This leverages more 
than $100 million from multinational companies, such as 
PepsiCo, Dow, Proctor & Gamble, and Coca-Cola, to catalyze 
investments in the recycling value chain in Southeast Asia.
    I'm pleased to report that Circulate Capital recently 
announced their first investment deal, a loan to a woman-owned 
recycling startup company in Indonesia.
    In closing, while the challenge of preventing ocean 
plastics is daunting and it is significant, we are seeing 
success through our programs and our partnerships. To date, our 
efforts have diverted more than 3,000 metric tons of plastic 
from entering the environment and with interest and missions 
all around the world eager to engage, USAID is well placed to 
support the U.S. Government in confronting ocean plastic 
pollution and achieving sustainable results.
    Thank you for your time, and I look forward to answering 
your questions.

    [The statement follows:]
             Prepared Statement of Hon. Michelle Bekkering
                        ocean plastic pollution
    Chairman Graham, Ranking Member Leahy, Distinguished Members of 
this subcommittee: Thank you for the opportunity to testify about the 
important role the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) 
plays in preventing and reducing ocean plastic pollution. It is an 
honor to be here with you today. USAID is grateful for the ongoing 
collaboration with this subcommittee as we work to align our 
programming in this area with the scope and complexity of the 
challenge.
    the problem of ocean plastic pollution and the developing world
    The scope of the marine debris challenge is profound. An estimated 
80 percent of this debris is plastic, and by 2050 there may be more 
plastic than fish by weight in the ocean. Dr. Jenna Jambeck's 
pioneering study from 2015 estimated that eight million metric tons of 
plastic enter the ocean every year, 80 percent of which comes from 
land-based sources. This same study highlighted that the developing 
world is at the heart of this global challenge. Solving this problem 
requires a strategy that employs a holistic approach to solid waste 
management that creates a financially sustainable value chain for 
recyclable materials. Recognizing that plastic is an important and 
unique component of the waste stream, lasting prevention and reduction 
of ocean pollution is only accomplished when all components of the 
solid waste stream are managed effectively.
    The speed and scale of population growth, urbanization, and 
economic expansion in the developing world has led to an unintended 
consequence: a dramatic increase in waste. By 2050, waste generated in 
low-income countries alone is expected to triple. Yet while solid-waste 
management often comprises 20 percent or more of municipal budgets in 
developing countries, less than half of all waste is collected. The 
waste-collection that does happen often depends on the urban poor, who 
serve as ``waste-pickers'' in the informal sector. In low-income 
countries, approximately 90 percent of waste is disposed of in 
unregulated dumps, or is openly burned.
    The result is that much of the plastic that enters the ocean each 
year comes from cities and municipalities in developing countries that 
lack the systems, policies, infrastructure, and innovations necessary 
to manage their waste effectively.
    Exacerbating an already-challenging situation, these local systems 
have little resilience to external shocks. The current pandemic, for 
example, is stressing waste-management systems in many countries. 
Responding to COVID-19 has resulted in an increase in the amount of 
waste generated--particularly disposable plastic products like masks 
and take-out food containers--while simultaneously disrupting the 
essential services provided by informal waste-collection workers.
    Addressing waste-management at the municipal level is also 
particularly challenging because there is no one-size-fits-all 
solution--any solution has to be tailored to the local context, and 
what works in one community might not work in another. It requires 
convening all stakeholders involved in local waste-management: 
governments--especially city and municipal ones--as well as civil 
society; local communities; and, most important, the private sector, 
including local grocery stores, restaurants, shopping malls, national 
and multinational companies in the plastics value-chain, and investors. 
Governments also often lack capacity: to develop appropriate policies 
and regulations; to find sustainable financing solutions; to implement 
the enforcement, transparency and accountability needed to attract the 
private sector; and to encourage and sustain behavior change in the 
public.
    USAID recognizes that public resources alone will not solve these 
challenges. Developing countries need the financial resources, 
technical expertise, and global networks of the private sector to help 
drive innovation, catalyze investment in needed infrastructure, and 
create more sustainable business models. To that end, USAID is forging 
innovative partnerships with businesses--large and small; local and 
multinational--across waste-management and recycling value-chains 
around the world.
    USAID is pleased with the strong bipartisan support in Congress, 
especially the Members of this subcommittee, to increase international 
engagement to prevent ocean plastic pollution. We also are pleased the 
Save Our Seas Act of 2018 acknowledged the complexities of addressing 
this challenge globally. The law set the stage for increased U.S. 
Government efforts, and encouraged USAID to expand our programming on 
this issue. USAID appreciates the close cooperation with the Members of 
this subcommittee and the authors of the Save Our Seas 2.0, which makes 
it clear that improved capacity underlies a lasting solution to this 
challenge.
         usaid's approach to addressing ocean plastic pollution
    Waste-management is almost always the responsibility of local 
governments and communities. So solutions to the challenge of ocean 
plastics must start at the local level in the cities and towns where 
most ocean plastic pollution originates.

    That is where we typically focus our efforts at USAID:

  --Working with local governments to improve waste-management services 
        so that less plastic ends up in the water;
  --Working with local schools and community groups to change behavior 
        around recycling and the proper disposal of waste disposal;
  --Working with local companies to promote new innovations and 
        business models; and
  --Working with informal waste-collectors, who are often women, and 
        form an essential part of the waste-management system in the 
        countries where we work.

    In other words, we work on locally led solutions to help 
communities in target countries solve their own development 
challenges--what we call the Journey to Self-Reliance, which is our 
guiding approach as an Agency.
    Ocean plastic pollution is an important issue for USAID, because, 
if not addressed, mismanaged waste can undermine USAID's core 
development objectives in the environment, governance, economic growth, 
and health. In support of the U.S. Government's efforts to combat 
marine debris and improve plastic waste management, USAID focuses on 
three pillars of action:

  --Build national capacity for the management of solid waste and the 
        ``3Rs'' (reduce, reuse, recycle);
  --Incentivize recycling in collaboration with the private sector, 
        while empowering women and protecting workers; and
  --Promote innovation and investment in locally appropriate business 
        models, technologies, and infrastructure.

    Much of our work focuses in Asia, which is home to the top five 
largest ocean-plastic polluting countries, who collectively produce an 
estimated 23 percent of the world's waste. We are also increasingly 
expanding our efforts in Latin America in countries like the Republic 
of Peru and the Dominican Republic and exploring programming options in 
Haiti through an assessment of solid-waste management.
    We are implementing this strategy through a suite of programs and 
collaborations:
                    usaid's clean cities, blue ocean
    Launched last year, our flagship, 5-year, $48 million global 
program, Clean Cities, Blue Ocean (CCBO), has an initial set of eight 
partner countries in Asia and Latin America: the Dominican Republic; 
the Republics of India, Indonesia, Maldives, The Philippines, and Peru; 
the Democratic Socialist Republic of Sri Lanka; and the Socialist 
Republic of Vietnam. Implemented by Tetra Tech, CCBO offers state-of-
the-art international technical expertise and sustainable, locally led 
solutions through its local-grants program. CCBO is organized around 
four primary objectives to achieve between 2019 and 2024:
    First, promote reducing, reusing, and recycling--the ``3Rs''--and 
strengthen markets for recycled plastic. The ``3Rs'' and improved 
waste-management systems are effective ways of reducing the volume of 
plastic that flows into our oceans and waterways, but rely on strong, 
incentivized recycling markets, supportive infrastructure, and a 
suitable enabling environment. To accomplish this, CCBO works to 
identify and establish incentives for strengthened markets for reuse 
and recycling, improve infrastructure through locally relevant 
innovative technologies, and enhance service-delivery models for 
increased efficiency and revenues. The program prioritizes locally 
centered strategies that empower individuals, provide increased 
economic opportunity for women and men, and address sectoral health and 
safety challenges.
    Second, improve local implementation and enforcement of laws, 
policies, and regulations. Although many countries have local- and 
national-level laws to safeguard public health and the environment, 
regulate the management and reduction of waste, and even incentivize 
and strengthen markets for recycling and reuse, implementation and 
enforcement often suffers from limited support, resources, and systemic 
complexity. CCBO supports partners in the eight focal countries to 
develop, implement, and enforce regulatory measures that address local 
challenges; improve financing options; and enhance the livelihoods of 
the millions who work in, or are otherwise affected by, the sector.
    Third, build social and behavior change for the ``3Rs'' and 
sustainable solid-waste management. CCBO works to shift ingrained 
behaviors around recycling and the disposal of solid waste in 
households, businesses, and governments. The program uses a 
participatory approach, by working hand in hand with community members, 
local organizations, women, youth, and independent waste-collectors, 
with support from both the public and private sectors.
    Fourth, forge new private-sector partnerships for improved impact, 
sustainability, and forward-looking commitments. Around the world, 
momentum and interest in combating ocean plastics pollution is rapidly 
increasing; however, we cannot solve this problem alone. Success 
depends on strong partnerships, good coordination, and improved 
evidence about what solutions are most effective, and in which 
contexts. CCBO works to build sustainable partnerships, increase the 
capacity and knowledge of those that can offer support, and garner 
commitments from the public sector, multi-stakeholder alliances, and 
intergovernmental organizations for continued progress--within and 
beyond the program's lifetime.
    In collaboration with global, regional, national, and local 
stakeholders, CCBO will test, scale, and share inclusive and 
sustainable solutions to promote ``3R'' practices, improve the 
management of waste, and combat plastic pollution in key countries at 
the heart of the crisis of ocean plastic pollution.
    CCBO is dedicated to identifying local challenges, opportunities, 
and practices to develop locally relevant solutions tailored to 
individual public- and private-sector actors, local realities, 
community members, and waste value-chains.
               usaid's municipal-waste recycling program
    The Municipal-Waste Recycling Program (MWRP), launched by USAID in 
October 2016, has provided grants to 30 locally led projects with 
innovative and sustainable solutions in Indonesia, The Philippines, Sri 
Lanka, and Vietnam. According to the 2015 Jambeck report, these four 
nations are the top source countries of ocean plastics after the 
People's Republic of China: in total, they contribute more than 3.4 
million metric tons of mismanaged plastic waste each year.

    Managed by a small business, Development Innovations Group, MWRP's 
grants have focused on three key topics:

    1.  Strengthening local actors and their collaboration to render 
urban systems more effective in managing solid waste and reducing 
marine plastics pollution;
    2.  Applied research to identify locally appropriate technology and 
improve decisionmaking processes related to the recycling and 
management of urban solid waste; and
    3.  Enabling the private sector to develop and implement market-
driven solutions to marine plastics pollution and strengthen the 
recycling value-chain.

    MWRP grantees have supported governments, national and local, of 
the four target countries in reviewing, revising, and strengthening 
enforcement of existing laws and regulations and introducing new 
regulations. More than 40 local governments across Indonesia, the 
Philippines, Sri Lanka, and Vietnam have committed to combating plastic 
waste. The accomplishments of the 30 MWRP grantees include creating 
more than 1,300 jobs in solid-waste management, more than half of which 
have gone to women; recycling more than 3,100 metric tons of plastic 
waste; improving working conditions for more than 2,500 independent 
waste-collectors; and engaging more than 96,000 youth and more than 
163,000 households, businesses, and schools on improving their waste-
management behaviors.
    MWRP is developing valuable lessons learned from these grant 
projects that inform not just USAID's broader efforts on this issue, 
but also those of the global community, including other donors, non-
governmental organizations (NGOs), and national governments. USAID is 
sharing these lessons actively in various national, regional and 
international fora, such as the Fisheries and Chemical Working Groups 
of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum. USAID also has 
shared lessons learned in Asia with other regions, such as with the 
Workshop on Marine Debris held under the Dominican Republic-Central 
America-United States Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA-DR).
                       private-sector engagement
    USAID firmly believes that private enterprise is the single most-
powerful force for lifting lives, strengthening communities, and 
accelerating self-reliance. As such, working collaboratively with the 
private sector is central to USAID's approach to combating ocean 
plastic pollution. USAID's development expertise helps private-sector 
solutions to flourish by addressing foundational issues, like improving 
governance, supporting policy and regulatory reforms, and incentivizing 
innovation and behavior change within host countries.
    This year, USAID launched a partnership with the Alliance to End 
Plastic Waste, a coalition of more than 40 leading companies that have 
committed to invest $1.5 billion towards solutions to end plastic 
waste. This partnership is exciting because it brings together 
companies from across the globe involved in all stages of the plastics 
value-chain--including businesses that make, use, sell, process, 
collect, and recycle plastics, as well as retailers and consumer-goods 
and waste-management companies. Through CCBO, USAID and the Alliance 
will deploy innovative, locally appropriate technologies, 
infrastructure, and business models to improve waste-management and 
recycling in cities and communities at the heart of the crisis in ocean 
plastics pollution. Our partnership will also work to improve the 
livelihoods, health, and safety of waste workers--both formal and 
informal.
    USAID also recently launched a blended-finance partnership with 
impact investor Circulate Capital to catalyze investment in the 
recycling value-chain in South and Southeast Asia. To incentivize and 
de-risk additional lending in this sector, USAID is providing a $35 
million, 50-percent loan-portfolio guarantee through the U.S. 
International Development Financing Corporation (DFC). The partial loan 
guarantee is a tool designed to attract private capital to a blended-
finance fund and offer protection to investors by lowering the downside 
risk of loss, which makes investment in developing markets more 
appealing. As a result, Circulate Capital has been able to raise more 
than $100 million from multinational companies such as PepsiCo, Procter 
& Gamble, Dow, Coca-Cola, Chevron Phillips, Danone, and Unilever to 
invest in much-needed recycling businesses and infrastructure.
    I am pleased to note that, in April2020, Circulate Capital made its 
first loan backed by this guarantee to Tridi Oasis, an Indonesia-based, 
women-owned recycling company. Tridi Oasis recycles plastic bottles 
into new packaging and textiles that are made of recycled plastic. This 
investment will enable the company to set up a larger recycling 
facility and expand operations to recycle additional types of plastic, 
and is particularly meaningful because it aligns with another priority 
for USAID: women's economic empowerment.
                      women's economic empowerment
    While the challenge of ocean plastics is clear, one important 
aspect of the solution is often overlooked--the role of women. From 
waste-pickers to recycling entrepreneurs, educators to advocates, women 
play a crucial role in improving the systems, policies and practices 
for how we manage plastic waste.
    I am proud that all of our programs and partnerships have a strong 
focus on empowering women as entrepreneurs and decision-makers in the 
traditionally male-dominated waste-management sector, like the Tridi 
Oasis investment under Circulate Capital. Women also play an important 
role in household decisionmaking. For example, in Sri Lanka, our local 
partner is working with 17 community-based organizations to train women 
leaders in household waste-management, recycling and composting. These 
community organizations are, in turn, training thousands of their 
neighbors in separating waste at the source and linking them to 
independent waste-collectors that are operating in their communities.
    In Vietnam, our local partner collaborated with the Women's Union 
in Da Nang city to recycle more than 42 metric tons of plastic waste 
that previously went uncollected. Engagement with female neighborhood 
leaders helped gain community buy-in to improve the management of solid 
waste.
                    results from selected countries
    There is no one-size-fits-all solution to the challenge of ocean 
plastics. Achieving progress requires local solutions tailored to the 
unique contexts of each country and region. Understanding the unique 
dynamics, constraints and opportunities in each locality is essential 
for successful programming. For that reason, I would like to provide 
some additional detail on promising results from a few key countries of 
interest.
Vietnam
    Vietnam is the fourth-largest source of ocean plastics pollution. 
Its growing urban populations and demand for consumer goods with 
increased plastic packaging continue to outpace its waste system's 
capacities, which has led to environmental leakage. With rapid 
urbanization, especially in the last decade, Vietnam's urban population 
is expected to surpass its number of rural residents by 2050.
    Vietnam has a coastline of more than 2,100 miles and sits astride 
the Mekong and Red Rivers, which pick up plastics from communities 
along their paths and ultimately flow through to the ocean. To address 
the already crisis levels of plastics in marine and other natural 
environments and prepare for continued urban growth, Vietnam must shift 
to a more robust waste-collection, recycling, and disposal system with 
enhanced infrastructure, more sustainable production and consumption 
habits, and strengthened or alternative markets for recycled and 
reusable products.
    In Vietnam, USAID's grantees have helped inform a new National 
Action Plan on the Management of Marine Plastic Debris, issued in late 
2019. The national plan includes efforts to scale good practices in the 
collection, separation, transportation, and treatment of plastic waste 
in coastal and marine areas; facilitate the development of suitable 
facilities to collect and store solid waste; mobilize international and 
private-sector partnerships to produce alternative products, increase 
recycling, and shift to a circular economy and green growth; and 
research, develop, apply, and transfer technologies and techniques to 
treat and minimize ocean plastics. USAID's CCBO program will aim to 
build on MWRP's successes and support Vietnam's National Action Plan. 
CCBO will focus work in Phu Quoc, Da Nang, Bien Hoa, and Hue City.
    MWRP's grantees in Vietnam have engaged in private-sector 
partnerships to reduce plastic waste, empowered women and independent 
waste-collectors, created local models of cleaning up cities that can 
be scaled, and developed effective local and national policies. An MWRP 
grantee in Ho Chi Minh City improved the livelihoods, health, and 
working conditions of more than 1,900 independent waste-collectors, 
including by successfully advocating to double fees paid by households 
to these collectors. Empowering women and independent waste-collectors 
helped initiate the segregation of waste in more than 68,000 households 
and establishments across all MWRP's target cities in Vietnam and 
diverted more than 1,100 metric tons of plastic waste from the ocean.
The Philippines
    The Philippines--composed of more than 7,500 islands--is the 
world's third-largest plastic polluter of the marine environment. 
Keeping waste out of the ocean is a challenge because of rising 
consumer consumption--with the country generating 2.7 million tons of 
plastic waste annually--and ineffective waste-management systems. Much 
of the country's solid waste ends up in open dumping sites, which allow 
leakage to waterways and threaten livelihoods in key sectors such as 
tourism and fishing.
    National laws, such as the Republic Act (RA) 9003/Ecological Solid 
Waste Management Act of 2000, and local regulations around the 
management of solid waste have been in place in the Philippines for 
many years. However, local government units that are responsible for 
waste-management have inadequate financial resources, limited 
capacities for enforcement, and low public awareness of the harmful 
impacts of plastics in the environment. Across the Philippines, local 
governments struggle to keep pace with the volumes of waste being 
generated, including the more than 163 million single-serving plastic 
``sachets'' bought especially by the urban poor for their daily needs 
like shampoo, coffee, and oil.
    In the Philippines, CCBO seeks to develop, test, and implement new 
models that promote the ``3Rs'' and enhance the management of solid 
waste; facilitate partnerships and investment around key needs, such as 
infrastructure; and strengthen local systems to build the Philippines' 
resiliency and self-reliance. CCBO will focus work in Metro Manila, 
Batangas City, and Iloilo City.
    MWRP's grantees in the Philippines worked to support the cleanup of 
Manila Bay, achieve impact through private-sector partnerships, 
introduce the innovative delivery and scaling of zero-waste approaches, 
and develop effective policies and infrastructure. For example, SM 
Supermalls, which owns and operates 74 malls nationwide that welcome 
4.3 million visitors a day and, through social media, reach an 
additional four million people, worked with an MWRP grantee to carry 
out information and communication initiatives in 50 malls around Manila 
Bay. Through exhibits, movies, and social media, millions of mall 
tenants and customers are learning about the issue of mismanaged 
plastic waste. In Bacolod City and nearby towns on the Visayan island 
of Negros in the center of the country, an MWRP grantee is reducing 
plastic packaging from consumer products by establishing eight zero-
waste convenience stores (called Wala Usik--``Nothing Wasted''--in the 
local language of Hiligaynon) where consumers buy bulk products by 
using their own reusable containers.
Indonesia
    Research shows that Indonesia contributes as much as 1.29 million 
metric tons of plastic waste to the ocean annually, which makes it the 
world's second-largest polluter by total mass of mismanaged plastic 
debris. The Government of Indonesia is pursuing national-level 
strategies and policies for the management of solid waste and is 
implementing a national action plan to address ocean plastic pollution. 
Local governments, though, often lack the funding needed to implement 
city-level initiatives. As the fourth-most populous nation in the world 
and a nation with a massive coastal population, Indonesia represents a 
critical opportunity to confront the challenge of ocean plastic 
pollution.
    MWRP's grantees in Indonesia have focused on establishing 
partnerships with the private sector, bolstering sustainability and 
self-reliance in their communities, developing scalable models for 
effective and inclusive waste-management, and using geospatial data and 
technology in innovative ways to confront the challenge of ocean 
plastic pollution. For example, one of the MWRP's grantees is providing 
geospatial data to the city government of Denpasar, crowdsourced by 
youth volunteers through a mobile app that helps the city map transfer 
points and illegal dumping sites. These data are helping build the 
capacity of the municipal government and the private sector to improve 
the collection and recycling of plastic waste. Also, in Semarang in 
Central Java, an MWRP grantee launched a public-private partnership 
between local authorities; 54 local waste banks that are serving more 
than 6,500 households; and companies, including the major food-
manufacturing company PT Indofood. The partnership with PT Indofood 
specifically focuses on increasing the recycling of low-value plastics, 
such as noodle wrappers, to reduce the leakage of plastic waste into 
the city's waterways. In Kepulauan Seribu (the ``Thousand Islands''), 
north of Jakarta, an MWRP grantee is expanding recycling services by 
connecting the informal sector to recycling companies. The MWRP 
grantee, with the private sector, is also promoting bulk sales in 
stores where customers can refill reusable containers with daily 
household products to reduce plastic packaging waste, which is 
especially important on small islands where the first step is to reduce 
the volume of plastic waste to manage.
                            looking forward
    Throughout all our activities, USAID identifies and pilots 
innovative approaches; employs rigorous evaluation and metrics to 
identify what works and what does not work; and gathers and shares the 
evidence with partners, other donors, and the private sector to scale 
up programs that are effective and efficient.
    While the challenge is daunting, there are tremendous 
opportunities. USAID has significantly increased our work to address 
these challenges, and we will continue to expand our investments in 
this area using well-designed, sustainable approaches at the national 
and sub-national levels to make progress on the ground and reduce 
waste. With Missions around the world eager to engage, USAID is well-
placed to support the USG in playing a leading role to confront ocean 
plastic pollution.
    Thank you for your time. I look forward to answering your 
questions.

    Senator Graham. Senator Leahy, you can lead us off. I'll 
just go at the end.
    Senator Leahy. I'm worried about the amount of resources 
USAID allocates for ocean plastic pollution programs. USAID is 
planning to spend $12 million on waste recycling and ocean 
plastic pollution programs in fiscal year 2020. That's $12 
million for the whole world. We probably spend that much in my 
small State of Vermont.
    If Congress gave you double or triple those resources, how 
would USAID use them to more effectively address ocean plastic 
pollution?
    Ms. Bekkering. Well, Senator Leahy, thank you for the 
question and----
    Senator Leahy. And tell Senator Graham, too, because we're 
going to write the bill together.
    Ms. Bekkering. Well, then I'll tell Senator Graham, as 
well.
    No, really, and first of all, I can't overestimate we 
really are so thankful for the strong support we have gotten 
from this subcommittee specifically for the resources we have 
to date.
    Senator Graham, you know a gentleman named Mark Green, and 
I know you have heard this from him in many testimonies over 
the last couple years. There's never going to be enough money 
in our public resources to meet all of our development 
challenges.
    What I think we have been very good at doing is being very 
strategic in targeting our investments specifically to the four 
biggest offenders of contributing to plastic waste.
    Senator Graham. Well, the question was if you had more 
money, could you wisely use it?
    Ms. Bekkering. Absolutely.
    So what we would do is definitely increase our footprint. 
That will be the biggest challenge.
    You heard earlier right now Asia is the largest 
contributor. Latin America and Africa are close on its heels 
and by 2050 we're going to see the amount triple. We would 
increase our footprints, working with our missions and partner 
countries on this.
    We would also increase the amount of work we're doing with 
local stakeholders. We need to invest more money in working to 
build the capacity of the local governments to make sure these 
results are sustainable.
    So these investments actually need to cross sectors. We 
need to look at more of how this affects livelihoods as well as 
food security and, finally, we need to increase our engagement 
in partnerships with the private sector to harness their 
capital.
    Senator Leahy. Well, let's talk about joining with other 
countries. I'd direct this question to the Ambassador, too.
    What kind of international agreements on ocean pollution is 
the U.S. party to now, and do those international agreements 
allow us to advocate for stronger controls along the lines of 
what you just discussed?
    Ms. Bekkering. So I would have to defer that question to my 
colleague at the State Department.
    Before I do that, what I will say is USAID's unique role in 
that is working with the local and subnational governments on 
action plans so that (1) they're mobilizing their own resources 
to invest in waste management systems and, secondly, to make 
sure they are actually providing regular waste disposal and 
recycling.
    So our work is more focused on individual countries, but 
I'll defer----
    Senator Leahy. Well, a lot of our waste has been sorted for 
recycling and sent to poorer countries that don't know how to 
handle it. There's a lot more we have to be doing here, too, to 
stop producing so much waste.
    But I want to focus on the basic question. What 
international associations or agreements are we involved in 
that would give us a voice and a responsibility in reducing 
ocean pollution?
    Mr. Moore. Well, Senator, thank you for the question. One 
international agreement that we are tracking closely on this 
issue and it relates, as well, to the important issue of trade 
in recycled materials between the United States and its 
immediate neighbors, including Vermont's neighbor to the north, 
Canada, is the Basel Convention and its amendments on plastic 
waste that does regulate the matter of trade in plastic waste.
    The United States, however, is not a party to the Basel 
Convention. One direct consequence of that is that as of 
January 1, 2021, there will be changes that will make it much 
more difficult for the United States to export plastic scrap. 
So we do have to deal with the countries who are part of the 
Basel Convention. Although the Convention dates from about 30 
years ago, we're not actually a party to it.
    In terms of discussions in different multilateral fora and, 
of course, with any number of countries bilaterally, we are 
trying to deal with these issues and we have many embassies 
actively engaged and, of course, USAID.
    Senator Leahy. Would it help if we were party to the Basel 
Convention?
    Mr. Moore. The Administration does not have a view on that. 
That is something that would require a tremendous amount of 
domestic implementing legislation. We are certainly prepared to 
be part of that discussion.
    Senator Leahy. Okay. I have follow-up questions, but I'll 
submit them for the record, Mr. Chairman.
    Senator Graham. Thank you, Senator Leahy.
    Senator Boozman.
    Senator Leahy. Thank you both for being here. Every one of 
us here wishes we could wave a magic wand and make the 
situation better. I know we can't, but I think we all agree 
that we and the rest of the world need to work together to deal 
with this.
    Mr. Moore. Thank you, Senator.
    Senator Graham. I agree.
    Senator Leahy. Thank you, Lindsey.
    Senator Graham. Thank you, sir.
    Senator Boozman.
    Senator Boozman. Thank you, Mr. Chairman and Ranking Member 
Leahy, for holding this important hearing.
    We appreciate you all being here, appreciate all of your 
hard work.
    Myself and Senator Carper are co-chairs of the Recycling 
Caucus which is very, very active. I'm on lots of caucuses. I 
think that's probably one of the most active in the Senate and 
really is doing a lot of good work.
    Ms. Bekkering, again, you know, recycling is such a no-
brainer. It's a win-win situation. What a lot of people don't 
realize is that it also creates a lot of good jobs in relation 
to recycling. So you get the benefit of cleaning up the oceans, 
cleaning up and so many other things, which we all want, but it 
also is a big economic engine.
    Can you talk a little bit about that?
    Ms. Bekkering. Absolutely. And again thank you for your 
leadership on the issues specifically with recycling.
    So to your point, so when I look at the Municipal Waste 
Recycling Program, to date we have created 1,300 jobs and 50 
percent of those jobs have actually been for women, so offering 
them, you know, just a vital source of economic empowerment.
    But it is primarily an issue. So when we look at the 
countries in the developing world and we specifically look at 
where in many local communities and especially rural areas, 
there is not regulated waste services or management--there we 
see. We see the informal sector.
    So what we have done is (1) provide safety training and 
livelihood training for what we call these informal waste 
pickers. We've also worked in countries like Indonesia to 
create what we call waste banks, so that these informal waste 
collectors can collect plastics, deposit them at this waste 
bank and then, much like here where in some States you get a 
deposit for each piece, they get paid for what they deposit in 
this waste bank and then we connect that, of course, to a 
larger facility so there's economy of scale.
    So it really can't be overestimated specifically noting how 
much of this is done by really the urban poor in many 
countries. This is an area where we really have seen results in 
supporting this economic livelihoods aspect.
    Senator Boozman. Very good. I know another key is industry 
and Walmart Headquarters is probably about three or four miles 
from where I live. So I know that in their case, they got very 
active with wanting to reduce fuel consumption, which is great 
for the environment, but also wanting to reduce the packaging.
    So it turned out that when they looked at what the trucks 
were hauling, it wasn't weight that was the limiting factor, it 
was the capacity on the truck, and so they basically said, we 
sell a lot of your products, make the packages smaller, and as 
a result that came about and then others followed in with that. 
So that was certainly a win-win situation.
    I know the Every Bottle Back Initiative is a great 
initiative which has resulted in plastic bottles being 100 
percent recyclable, including bottle caps that consumers may 
still be throwing in the trash, which will give them a little 
bit of education, which we all need.
    But tell us, to your knowledge, how industry can be helpful 
particularly in places like Asia.
    Ms. Bekkering. It's a great question and it's honestly why 
we have focused really one of our three pillars under this on 
working with the private sector and working with industries.
    You know, the public sector cannot solve this problem on 
its own. We really do need to work with the private sector and 
to your point, using the Walmart example, one of the things we 
see by working with the private sector is we can really harness 
not only their resources but their innovations and those 
innovations are fantastic.
    It's working with them as partners. So in a case like that, 
it's reducing the amount of packaging or it's making sure that 
we can provide more than, you know, single-use packets of any 
sort of item.
    We recently, as I mentioned earlier, signed an MOU last 
month with the Alliance to End Plastic Waste and I think what's 
been such a success story is seeing that a lot of these leading 
companies in the plastics value chain, they're committed to the 
same outcomes we are, which is making sure this plastic does 
not end up in the ocean, and again by harnessing their 
innovations and their resources, we're really multiplying our 
impact.
    Senator Boozman. Very good. Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
    Senator Graham. Senator Coons.
    Senator Coons. Thank you, Mr. Chairman and Ranking Member.
    I just want to thank you for your leadership in addressing 
issues that are bipartisan, that are global, that have an 
impact on development and on the human condition, and to 
Senator Boozman for working so well with my senior Senator on 
recycling when he was governor. My senior Senator was known for 
interrupting meetings to get up, walk over and pull a plastic 
bottle out of the trash can and sort of berate everyone. He is 
quite passionate about it. I'm glad you are, as well, and your 
focus on working with a global leader like Walmart on helping 
them change packaging is just the kind of example of a positive 
personal engagement with the private sector that it's going to 
take to make progress on this. So thank you.
    To our witnesses today, thank you for what you're doing to 
deliver engagement and leadership at State and AID on this 
critical issue.
    As I'm sure you both are abundantly aware, this is a global 
issue that knows no boundaries and is going to require 
significant increase in American leadership, engagement, and 
investment in order to bend the curve.
    I am the co-sponsor of a bill called The Sustainable 
Chemistry Research and Development Act. I trained as a chemist. 
I worked in industry for years. Senator Collins and I have been 
working on this for awhile and part of the goal is just to do 
more of the work, coordinate more of the work between Federal, 
academic, and private sector research around the chemistries 
that are needed to develop plastics that degrade in the marine 
environment, among many other changes.
    I also think Save Our Seas 2.0, which was addressed by 
Senators Sullivan and Whitehouse, who were here before I 
arrived, would be a significant step forward in terms of 
increasing our investment.
    Let me ask two questions of you, if I could. PROBLUE is a 
World Bank Initiative that supports the sustainable development 
of coastal resources and my impression is they're emerging as a 
large player in the fight against ocean plastic pollution.
    How important do you think this initiative is or could be 
to the global effort, and how do you think the U.S. can best 
support PROBLUE? If you would, Ms. Bekkering, and then 
Ambassador Moore.
    Ms. Bekkering. Great. Well, again, thank you for your 
leadership and thank you for your participation in today's 
hearing.
    So the PROBLUE Fund, we know of it. We coordinate with it 
at USAID, and it is definitely one way to increase donor 
coordination and pool resources.
    I would just mention, though, that USAID has gift 
authority, which actually allows us to accept and pool funding 
from other donors as well as other multilateral platforms, and 
when it comes to something like, let's say, a global fund like 
this, especially a multilateral fund, the one thing I would say 
is I think, you know, at USAID, we're really targeted at 
looking what part of the challenge can be best served by the 
work we're doing on the ground with our partners directly, also 
recognizing, frankly, that it gives us more oversight over how 
we're spending our taxpayer dollars than if we put it in a 
pooled fund that's managed by an IFI (International Financial 
Institution).
    So again working with them, but I would say outside of even 
something like PROBLUE, we are able to do this type of work and 
we are working and we're constantly in, you know, 
communications with our other partners, like the U.K., Japan, 
Norway, to see what more can be done and how we can----
    Senator Coons. So if there were a significant increase in 
U.S. taxpayer investment to create a global fund, would you 
instead suggest it be housed at USAID in order to accomplish 
the oversight of the funds, the coordination that you were just 
referencing?
    Ms. Bekkering. I think in such a fund we could definitely, 
yes, see maximum impact and a multiplier effect of the great 
work we're already doing with limited resources.
    Senator Coons. Ambassador Moore.
    Mr. Moore. Senator, thank you for the question. From a 
State Department perspective, the World Bank PROBLUE Fund 
currently supports a variety of ocean fisheries-related 
activities and some of them are related exactly to the question 
we're discussing today.
    Sort of an initial thought on this. We're a little 
concerned with their advocacy to reduce upstream production and 
use of plastics that could undermine the growing recycling 
market. We look forward to working with them, though, as we 
work with the World Bank in a variety of levels.
    As a possible alternative, the Global Environmental 
Facility would be a strong alternative to PROBLUE. The GEF is 
uniquely positioned to advance U.S. priorities on marine litter 
pollution and we're a member of the GEF Council. We've had a 
long history of shaping its programming to advance U.S. 
interests. So that might be a way of looking at it.
    The bottom line is we're in discussions with the World Bank 
about PROBLUE. There's a little bit of skepticism, including on 
the issues back and forth about the potential for recycling and 
what's produced, but we are tracking that initiative.
    Senator Coons. Well, as we've worked to address things like 
global hunger or global pandemics, global funds have often been 
a tool used and some of them are structured in ways that really 
ensure American leadership, engagement, and direction. Some of 
them are engaged in ways that recognize that there are limits 
to where we can go.
    There are certain countries where our engagement in hunger 
relief isn't welcomed and so it's got to be done through a U.N. 
entity and we've got our own direct support and there's global 
partnerships.
    In pandemic work, there's also a very constructive, I 
think, feedback loop between what philanthropy is doing, what 
the U.S. Government is doing, and what the private sector is 
doing, and what the world community is doing.
    Let me ask specifically, if I could, about ghost gear. My 
father spent 25 years in the commercial fishing industry and 
fishing gear that's discarded at sea that keeps having negative 
impacts, as you talked about at length, is closely associated 
with other problems that illegal, unreported, and unregulated 
(IUU) fishing cause.
    I thought it was great that you signed on to the Global 
Ghost Gear Initiative, but I'd be interested in hearing what 
more you think State and USAID can do with partners in the 
international fishing community to both address this key part 
of ocean pollution but also to strengthen our coordination 
around IUU fishing.
    Mr. Moore. Senator Coons, thank you for that question, as 
well.
    I was very happy to sign on to the Global Ghost Gear 
Initiative recently on behalf of the State Department and the 
United States. We are in these early days learning what their 
best approaches are for dealing with this issue. It's something 
else that we're learning about, as well.
    As you mentioned, it relates to IUU fishing. It creates 
hazards for navigation. It's a very comprehensive issue. These 
nets are out there catching fish that are not being consumed 
and further damaging the environment.
    It's an international coalition that we're pleased to be 
part of and as they develop these ideas, we're working with, of 
course, our colleagues in the interagency, Fish and Wildlife 
Service, and NOAA, as well, to better understand the scope of 
the problem and the impact that ghost gear is having.
    It is something that is sort of new for us to be taking on. 
So exactly speculating on the scope of how we can best play a 
role, I'm not in a position to do that today. I'm prepared to 
follow up with you or your staff after today with further 
information and to take the question for more detail.
    Senator Coons. I just will close, if I could, by saying how 
pleased I was to see just the range of engagement from UNEP and 
the Peace Corps doing community-based activities all over the 
world and littoral communities to what you were testifying 
about in terms of Circulate Capital and what impact investors 
are doing, to what some of the largest, most globally-
integrated companies that have an American footprint are doing.
    So please note my passionate interest in the field and my 
interest in working with both of you and with your offices to 
help advance it and with the Chairman.
    Mr. Chairman, thank you for holding this hearing today and 
for your interest in this important subject.
    Senator Graham. Well, thank you. You've been terrific to 
work with on this.
    So, Senator Shaheen, I'll be very quick. Here's my take-
away. Is it $12 million that we allocate for this?
    Ms. Bekkering. Yes.
    Senator Graham. Okay. That's going to end. So we're going 
to give you a lot more money.
    Ms. Bekkering. Okay.
    Senator Graham. Okay.
    Ms. Bekkering. The answer is yes.
    Senator Graham. We're going to give you a lot more money.
    The Basel Agreement Convention, is that what you said, Mr. 
Moore?
    Mr. Moore. Yes, Mr. Chairman.
    Senator Graham. Okay. How old is that?
    Mr. Moore. It dates from around 1989 or 1990.
    Senator Graham. Don't you think we need a new one?
    Mr. Moore. We'd be happy to have a further discussion on 
that. No Administration since that time has chosen to join the 
Convention.
    Senator Graham. Well, so if we don't like that one, let's 
create a new one.
    Mr. Moore. I don't want to speculate, Mr. Chairman, but to 
find a way forward, we're certainly happy to discuss that 
directly with you.
    Senator Graham. Okay. It seems to me this would be an issue 
that the world should come together on. I know there's probably 
business interests in different countries that feel put upon, 
but I'd like you to report back to us about why no 
Administration joined this Convention, you know, give me a page 
or two, and what would you do to replace it, because being left 
out is not a good place to be, right? Maybe there's a good 
reason nobody's joined it, but somebody needs to join 
something, you know.
    We're the biggest like fish in the sea, no pun intended, 
and we need to get in the game here.
    So the global fund idea, I really think the subcommittee is 
very inclined to put some money in a global fund and we need 
your feedback as to how we can control it and entice other 
donors. It's worked, you know, in dealing with AIDS and malaria 
and I think this is a good place for this subcommittee to lay 
down a new marker, and put some money in that would entice 
others.
    As to the PROBLUE Multi-Donor Trust Fund, what's the 
average contribution of Canada, the U.K., Germany, and France? 
Do you know?
    Mr. Moore. Mr. Chairman, I do not.
    Senator Graham. Okay.
    Mr. Moore. I can find out.
    Senator Graham. Okay. If you would, I'd appreciate it.

    [The information follows:]

    As of July 2020, the PROBLUE fund has secured donor commitments 
worth $109,347,387. The U.K. is not a current donor.

    Current PROBLUE donors include:

 
 
 
Canada.................................  $46,436,210
Sweden.................................  $31,261,420
Norway.................................  $20,861,385
Germany................................  $5,472,810
Denmark................................  $2,956,437
Iceland................................  $1,400,000
France.................................  $959,125
 


    Senator Graham. What I want to find out is why we're not 
participating. There may be a good reason, but it seems to me 
that we need to join something, but we're not joining anything. 
So we've got $12 million. I'm not blaming you. This has been 
going on for a long time. So what I'd like to have happen is 
for us to start joining things or create new things for others 
to join that we lead, have the Congress more involved in terms 
of a global fund that would attract investors, and I want to 
know why we don't participate in the PROBLUE Trust Fund. Can 
you give me a 30-second answer why we don't?
    Mr. Moore. There hasn't been a decision to fully 
participate because of some of the speculation, as I understand 
it, that the PROBLUE Fund has focused more on what should or 
shouldn't be produced rather than dealing with what actually 
has been produced and constitutes the plastic waste.
    Senator Graham. Well, it seems to me you might need to do 
both, right?
    Mr. Moore. Yes, Mr. Chairman.
    Senator Graham. So I would encourage you to try to join 
this thing, unless there's just really not a good reason to do 
it, and I think this subcommittee would put some money in to 
pay whatever fee it is to join. So my take-aways are that $12 
million's not nearly enough, the problem is global in nature, 
the global fund would be a good start for this subcommittee, 
and I think the Congress and the administration should start 
leading by example, and if you could get back with me as to why 
we're not in the PROBLUE Trust Fund or the Basel Convention, 
I'd appreciate it.
    Mr. Moore. I will do that, Mr. Chairman.
    Senator Graham. And I'll end with this. I think all of us 
want to do more and if we can't join these organizations, let's 
find out why we can't and see if they'll change or create an 
alternative that we can join, because we need to lead the world 
on this.
    Senator Shaheen.
    Senator Shaheen. Well, thank you, Mr. Chairman, and thank 
you for holding this very important hearing today. Thank you to 
our witnesses for testifying. I'm sorry I missed much of the 
questioning.
    I do want to follow up a little bit on the Chairman's 
comments, but first I want to pick up on a comment that you 
made, Ambassador Moore, that I didn't really understand. You 
talked about the growing recycling market.
    It's my understanding that only about 9 percent of all 
plastic waste generated has been recycled and that current 
projections show a dramatic increase in the production of 
plastic and that many of the markets where we were sending our 
plastic in the United States have dried up. So that in China 
and a number of the other Southeast Asian countries, Indonesia, 
Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, have all reduced the 
markets for recycling.
    So I was just curious what you were referring to when you 
talked about the growing recycling market.
    Mr. Moore. Senator Shaheen, thank you for the question. I 
had the opportunity in my testimony to talk about this a bit.
    It's our understanding, including through the Department of 
Commerce, that the recycling market is actually expanding. That 
includes here in the United States, that the global recycling 
market will have a value of $530 billion by the year 2025.
    Senator Shaheen. I'm sorry. Can you give us a little more 
detail when you say the recycling markets are expanding in the 
United States? I know that we have had in New Hampshire several 
recycling operations that are no longer operating now. Can you 
talk about where that's happening and who's behind it, what's 
the capital or the companies that are doing that?
    Mr. Moore. Senator, thank you for the question, and I 
respect your interest in having greater detail. I apologize I 
don't have greater detail with me. I would be happy to take the 
question and provide specific information to you, but this 
relates to, for example, cross-border trade between Canada and 
the United States in recycled materials.
    One of the issues is there's more interest in recycling if 
it's more economically advantageous to do that. No business 
seeks the opportunity if the materials to be recycled become 
priced out of the market either because of transport costs or 
other economic limitations, then the market does actually 
reduce and then there's less commercial or economic motivation 
to recycle.
    So those are factors, but with regard to specific 
information, I recognize that you should have details and I 
will provide them to you and your staff as a taken question.
    Senator Shaheen. That would be great. If you could take 
that for the record,----
    Mr. Moore. Yes.
    Senator Shaheen [continuing]. I'd appreciate it.
    I do want to follow up on Senator Graham's questions about 
international cooperation because this administration has 
pulled the United States away from a number of international 
cooperative efforts and it seems to me that on an issue like 
how we get rid of plastics worldwide is something that we've 
got to cooperate with other countries on.
    So can you talk about how we are working with other 
countries or with other multilateral institutions to address 
plastic?
    Mr. Moore. Senator, thank you for that, as well. I would 
say there are a number of fora, multilateral, and bilateral. We 
are very active in the U.N. Environmental Program, based in 
Nairobi. The head of that, Inger Andersen, is a dual citizen of 
both the United States and Denmark and is doing a lot to lead 
UNEP through discussions on topics like this. This is a topic 
which has come up in sessions of the U.N. Environmental 
Assembly.
    We were anticipating it would be coming up soon when UNEP 
meets again. That's been postponed because of the pandemic.
    Bilaterally, we have seen a lot of successes. We talked 
quite a bit about, to just give one country as an example, 
Vietnam that is very keen to partner with us in terms of being 
more responsible with regard to plastic waste, building its 
capacity and its approaches. This is something that USAID is 
deeply involved in, as well, in terms of any number of issues. 
We see countries like that that are very keen to cooperate with 
us to look at commercial ways to address this problem.
    There was a discussion a little while ago also about 
packaging. Are there alternatives to plastic? This is a matter 
which, you know, diplomats in the field are working on directly 
because what is a suitable package for soap or food or 
something else in one country is not going to be the same in an 
economy with more limited means.
    Some people, instead of buying a couple of gallons or 
liters of something, buy it in a little packet, but that's 
still made out of plastic and still may constitute something 
which ends up in the oceans.
    So we're trying to calibrate with regard to all of this 
country by country where there are opportunities and in key 
multilateral fora, including the U.N. Environmental Program.
    Senator Shaheen. And when you talk about Vietnam being 
interested in cooperating with us, are they interested in 
taking plastic from the United States and then recycling it to 
other uses or exactly how are they interested in working with 
us?
    Mr. Moore. In my experience, recently they've been very 
keen to work with us on a variety of multilateral issues if 
it's commercially viable to recycle in Vietnam. That is 
something that I believe they would make the decision to do. If 
it's not, they would look in other areas.
    Vietnam currently sits with us on the U.N. Security Council 
and they also are chairing ASEAN and they've shown a lot of 
vision on a host of international issues. We have had some 
discussions with their Embassy here in Washington about trying 
to partner better.
    I apologize. I'm fairly new in the job and have not been 
able to see things through, other than the past couple of 
months, but I can tell you the level of interest in just that 
one country and in many others is very intense.
    I have to reiterate the point that I made earlier, which is 
that the worst source of plastic pollution, nearly 30 percent, 
comes from the People's Republic of China. For a host of 
reasons that you, Senator, and the committee and many others, 
everyone in the Senate is aware of, our relations with the 
People's Republic of China are not such that we see the 
inherent partnership developing there on this issue, but with 
Vietnam and a number of other countries, Indonesia and 
elsewhere, they understand the problem, they see the problem 
concretely on the shore of lakes and rivers, and, of course, 
the ocean, and so there are a lot of practical partnerships 
that we can build both with diplomacy and with assistance.
    Senator Shaheen. Well, thank you. Maybe you could take that 
also for the record in terms of what kind of partnerships and 
how are they taking our recycling, are we working together on 
using those recycled products to make new products, and how 
that is going to work. I would appreciate it. Thank you.
    Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
    Senator Graham. Thank you.
    Is it 7 countries and 10 rivers, is that right, 70 percent 
of the stuff comes out of? Seems to me we ought to focus on 
that too.
    Senator Udall has joined the subcommittee. You are welcome. 
I appreciate all of your leadership on this topic and if you'd 
like to ask questions or join us, you're more than welcome to.
    Senator Udall. Well, thank you, Chairman Graham and Senator 
Leahy, you're Ranking, for allowing me to be here today and 
participate. I really appreciate it and have enjoyed some of 
the comments you have made here today in terms of the joining. 
I may bring those up in asking a question, but I think, Mr. 
Chairman, in terms of joining when it happens at all the other 
countries in the world join and then they make rules and we're 
not a part of it, then we got problems, and I think you and 
I've talked about that before and I think the thrust of what 
you're saying is very important for the administration to hear. 
Thank you for that comment.
    And although I'm not a member of this subcommittee, I've 
devoted a great deal of attention to the issue of plastic 
pollution, appreciate both of you being here today, and I 
introduced comprehensive legislation on this topic in February, 
appreciate Senator Leahy's support. He mentioned today he was 
on my bill as a co-sponsor and look forward to the day when we 
can get the Chairman aboard, as well.
    Across the United States and around the world, we're seeing 
increasing momentum to aggressively tackle the problem of 
plastic pollution. Unfortunately, I've been very disappointed 
by the lack of U.S. leadership.
    Despite what has been said here today, it's very clear to 
me that the U.S. participation in all international processes 
to develop regulations on plastic production and impose limits 
on plastic waste exports have been counter to the efforts of 
the broader international community.
    In May of last year, 187 countries took a major step to 
limit the flow of plastic waste to poor countries under the 
Basel Convention and more than 80 countries have expressed 
support for a new global agreement to address the full lifetime 
cycle of plastics.
    In both cases, the U.S. has not only failed to be a leader 
but instead is actually working against progress on tackling 
this pollution.
    The administration's efforts have tilted more towards 
development and trade agreements supporting investments in 
petrochemical production in various countries. This is totally 
at odds with the global policy solution to prevent plastic 
pollution, not to mention the climate change part of this.
    The U.S. solution to the plastic pollution crisis cannot be 
let's just create more plastic. That's what we're doing. With 
nearly 400 million tons of plastic produced globally each year 
and failed policies to reclaim and recycle that plastic, we're 
creating suffocating amounts of plastic that are harming our 
environment, our health, and our budgets.
    We've been sold a bill of goods that recycling alone is the 
answer but less than 9 percent of plastic has ever been 
recycled and a great deal of our recycled plastic in the United 
States is shipped overseas to burden poor and developing 
countries where there are clear struggles to effectively manage 
this volume of waste.
    So limiting the production of the products in the first 
place would be the simplest policy for everyone involved.
    So, Ambassador Moore, I'd like to ask you, is the U.S. 
participating in any efforts to prevent other countries from 
adopting bans or regulations on single-use plastic products?
    Mr. Moore. Senator Udall, thank you for your question, and 
thank you for your leadership on this issue. I know that's part 
of a family tradition looking after the interests of the United 
States.
    In terms of discussing this, as I said in response to 
Senator Shaheen, there are conversations, including in the U.N. 
Environmental Program at the U.N. Environmental Assembly, 
looking at the issue of what's produced and how it's handled.
    In terms of a variety of steps, it's not just about 
recycling. We like that and are very proud of the innovative 
ideas of American business. There are other types of packaging 
and other things that can be done. So it's not just about 
increasing plastic waste.
    I am not aware of any fundamental approach to block 
international consensus on this issue. We look after our 
national interests and our economic interests and we do have 
great faith in what American business can do to help address 
the problem. That includes producers and that includes 
recyclers.
    Beyond that, I've been in the position for only a few 
months and in the midst of the pandemic. I have not been part 
of any effort like that, but if I have your permission, 
Senator, perhaps it would be better if I take the question and 
give you a more comprehensive response for the record.
    Senator Udall. Thank you. Well, and I would just note for 
the record that India did offer a resolution with regard to 
single-use plastics and the United States said they weren't 
going to do that and as many of us know, all over the country, 
Mr. Chairman, cities are engaging in ordinances and bans on 
single-use plastics. So some people see that as a solution. We 
need to explore that and we need to be part of it.
    I see my time's out, but I really appreciate, like I said, 
the Chairman's comments in terms of joining.
    The other comment I would make, the 10 rivers we're talking 
about, a great deal of that plastic we have shipped over there 
to developing countries and then it gets into those rivers and 
so I don't know the exact percentages. We'll try to get those 
for you, but that's the crux of the problem. We can't just say, 
oh, it's those 10 rivers.
    In fact, we're shipping it over there and they're not 
effectively recycling it and so it gets into the rivers and 
gets into the ocean.
    Thank you, Mr. Chairman.
    Senator Graham. Thank you.
    Senator Udall. Great to be part of your subcommittee today.
    Senator Graham. Thank you. Well, to our witnesses, you've 
been very helpful, appreciate your leadership. I think I have a 
lot of confidence in your abilities here.
    So is it right that no Administration's joined the Basel 
Convention since 1989, is that right?
    Mr. Moore. That's correct, Mr. Chairman.
    Senator Graham. So back to Senator Udall's point, we've got 
to find something we can join here. I want a global fund to be 
created like we've done for AIDS and malaria and other things 
to deal with plastics that we can control, but I really want us 
to look at the World Bank program to see if we can make some 
contributions there. We're going to leave the hearing open to 
Friday at 2 p.m. for additional questions.

                     ADDITIONAL COMMITTEE QUESTIONS

    [The following questions were not asked at the hearing, but 
were submitted to the witnesses for response subsequent to the 
hearing.]
             Questions Submitted to Hon. Michelle Bekkering
            Questions Submitted by Senator Patrick J. Leahy
    Question. It is estimated that of the 400 million metric tons of 
plastic produced each year, close to 40 percent is for packaging, such 
as beverage bottles and other containers and plastic films. And as we 
know, much of that waste ends up in our rivers, lakes, and oceans. In 
fact, the top 10 items collected on beaches around the world are 
single-use plastics.
    So I ask both of you, how are our policies and programs addressing 
the specific issue of single-use plastics, and if we continue doing 
only what we are currently doing to address it, what difference can we 
expect to make in the next 3, 5, and 10 years?
    Assuming we want to play a leading role in the global effort to 
substantially reduce ocean plastic pollution within 10 years, we 
clearly need to do a lot more than what we are doing. What would you 
recommend?

    Answer. USAID's approach to addressing ocean plastic pollution is 
holistic and includes single-use plastics. Efforts to reduce waste from 
single-use plastics, either through alternative product delivery models 
or behavior change, will be more effective when paired with efforts to 
improve solid waste management collection and treatment and creating 
new end markets for post-consumer recycled content.
    An example of this approach is USAID-supported work in the 
Philippines (Negros Island) where a local NGO worked to increase 
commitment from mayors, build the capacity of the local governments 
through solid waste management plans, and mentor entrepreneurs to 
develop Zero Waste convenience stores. In the Philippines, the urban 
poor often purchase small amounts of everyday items, like shampoo, in 
single-serve plastic packets because they cannot afford to buy larger 
amounts. Over 160 million of these single-use plastic packets are 
sold--and discarded--every day in the Philippines. In the Zero Waste 
convenience stores established with USAID support, people can buy 
small, affordable quantities of these items in reusable containers.
    Similarly, a local NGO supported by USAID in Sri Lanka (Negombo and 
Katunayake) collaborated with solid waste management officials to 
empower women in the waste management industry, connected public and 
private recyclers with sources of, and markets for, recycled plastics 
to improve collection efficiency, and partnered with supermarkets to 
reduce plastic carrier bag use. Single-use plastics, particularly 
carrier bags, comprise a significant portion of solid waste in Sri 
Lanka. A total of 14 supermarkets participated in a program to educate 
customers about not using single-use plastic bags, including holding 
``no plastic bag hours,'' leading to an average 30 percent reduction in 
bag usage across participating stores.
    Over the next 3 years, USAID will capture and take to scale lessons 
learned from the Municipal Waste Recycling Program (2016-2021), such as 
those described above. Through the Municipal Waste Recycling Program, 
USAID has helped cities and communities in Asia reduce plastic waste 
through more efficient and incentivized recycling as well as through 
behavior change and innovative business models, such as the Zero Waste 
stores. Collectively, the 30 grants USAID made to local organizations 
in Indonesia, Philippines, Vietnam, and Sri Lanka have already resulted 
in more than 3,000 metric tons of plastics being collected and 
recycled. By 2023, USAID expects more than 9,000 metric tons will be 
kept from leaking into the environment, with at least 900 metric tons 
due to reduction at source.
    Over the next 5 years, USAID's new Clean Cities, Blue Ocean program 
(2019-2024), will build capacity and commitment for the 3Rs (reduce, 
reuse, recycle) in partner cities to help aggregate an additional 
25,000 metric tons of recyclables. This is an essential step in 
creating viable recycling markets. USAID will also track the amount of 
investment mobilized and the number of innovations supported to 
strengthen the 3Rs and improve solid waste management. Through Clean 
Cities, Blue Ocean, USAID aims to mobilize $100 million in new 
investment over the life of the project and support 35 innovations.
    Over the next 10 years, through a blended finance partnership 
signed with Circulate Capital in 2019, USAID will leverage $106 million 
in private sector capital, which has already been secured, to invest in 
the types of facilities that are needed to provide high quality post-
consumer recycled content from single-use plastics. By expanding 
recycling capacity and providing a reliable supply of recycled content 
in key Asian countries, these facilities stimulate the collection of 
single-use plastics and create demand for plastic that would otherwise 
end up as waste. The first investment deal from Circulate Capital is to 
a women-owned recycling business in Indonesia specializing in recycling 
PET bottles into rPET flakes that can then be used in the development 
of new items.
    With additional funding, USAID will expand its footprint through 
bilateral programming in key countries of Asia and other regions to 
substantially reduce ocean plastic pollution. We will work alongside 
partner countries to build capacity and engage the private sector to 
implement the 3Rs, ensuring that government policies and investments 
translate to long-term behavior change and systems that are effective, 
financially self-sustaining, and fit to the local context.
    The first of these bilateral programs will be in Indonesia and will 
utilize fiscal year 2020 funding. Indonesia is the second-largest 
contributor to ocean plastic pollution, largely because it collects 
only about half of municipal solid waste and most is not properly 
disposed of in sanitary landfills. Despite these significant 
challenges, USAID believes that progress can be made in partnership 
with the Government of Indonesia. The Government of Indonesia has set 
ambitious goals to manage 100 percent of solid waste (which will 
include a 20 percent reduction at source in urban areas and a 30 
percent reduction at source throughout the country) and reduce the 
country's contribution to ocean plastics by 70 percent by the year 
2025. To date, targets to achieve these goals have not been fully met 
due to under-investment and lax enforcement of relevant laws and 
regulations. Through Clean Cities, Blue Ocean, and a new bilateral 
program, USAID will support the Government of Indonesia as it works 
towards its ambitious goals.

    Question. There's much more we should be doing in our own country 
to improve our infrastructure, reduce our reliance on plastics, and 
encourage innovation in waste management and recycling. But no country 
can tackle ocean plastic pollution alone. International cooperation is 
essential.
    Ms. Bekkering, how does USAID collaborate with other countries and 
multilateral organizations to implement waste recycling and ocean 
plastic pollution activities? What progress can you point to?

    Answer. Collaboration with other countries is key to USAID's 
approach to tackling ocean plastics pollution and ensures that systemic 
improvement is sustained. One of USAID's strengths is its long-standing 
relationships with national and local governments that allows it to 
bring together stakeholders at all levels, strengthening coordination 
horizontally across partners representing different areas of expertise 
and interests, as well as strengthening coordination vertically to 
ensure that cities are supported by national policies and regional and 
global initiatives. USAID began its efforts to address ocean plastic 
pollution by supporting 30 locally-led projects in four out of the top 
five contributing countries: Indonesia, Philippines, Sri Lanka, and 
Vietnam. Starting with this initial set of target countries has allowed 
us to achieve meaningful results and develop best practices for further 
expansion in these countries and elsewhere around the world. It has 
also enabled us to impact national-level policy conversations to 
influence solid waste management and ocean plastic pollution even 
further.
    For example, a USAID grantee in Vietnam developed a model to 
strengthen recycling for two districts in the city of Da Nang that has 
been adopted more broadly by city authorities and created an 
opportunity for higher-level policy influence. Due to its proven track 
record of helping Da Nang achieve results, the grantee was asked by the 
national government in December 2018 to design a national-level 
consultative workshop that informed the development of the country's 
National Action Plan on Marine Plastic Debris Management. The 
organization continued to provide input into the development of this 
plan, which was issued in late 2019 and includes efforts to scale good 
practices in plastic waste collection, separation, transportation, and 
treatment in coastal and marine areas; representing a significant step 
for Vietnam. In the Philippines, the national government has recently 
reached out to USAID directly for input on its national plan, which 
similarly was informed by USAID's ongoing work in the country.
    While USAID's focus is on developing local solutions with a 
supporting national policy framework, this is a truly global challenge. 
No nation can solve this problem alone, so we need a coordinated global 
response. For our part, USAID is already coordinating with other donors 
to ensure the sharing of lessons learned and coordinated, impactful 
field programming. For example, USAID is actively seeking opportunities 
for partnership and coordination with multiple donors and development 
partners, including the UK, Australia, Norway, Japan, and the Global 
Environment Fund (GEF). With the World Bank and other donors, USAID is 
serving on an expert group for the development of the ASEAN Regional 
Action Plan on Marine Plastics Debris. Through national, regional, and 
international fora, such as the Fisheries and Chemical Working Groups 
of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Forum and Our Ocean 
Conference, USAID has been sharing valuable lessons learned from our 
ongoing work. USAID has also shared lessons learned in Asia with other 
regions, such as with the Workshop on Marine Debris held under the 
Dominican Republic-Central America-United States Free Trade Agreement 
(CAFTA-DR).
    Greater international collaboration, particularly coordinated 
funding, could be achieved through a global fund to combat ocean 
plastic pollution. Such a fund could be housed at USAID, as Section 
635(d) of the Foreign Assistance Act already grants USAID the authority 
to accept and pool funding from other donors and the private sector; it 
also allows USAID direct involvement, oversight, and promotion of these 
funds for this important foreign policy matter.
    A Global Fund to Combat Ocean Plastic Pollution managed by USAID 
could mobilize and invest funds to address plastic pollution by 
increasing capacity for solid waste management and the 3Rs (reduce, 
reuse, recycle), incentivizing recycling in collaboration with the 
private sector (while empowering women and protecting workers), and 
promoting innovation and investment in locally appropriate business 
models, technologies, and infrastructure. USAID could use this fund to 
scale up pollution prevention activities in key source countries and 
expand geographically (particularly in regions such as Africa and Latin 
America), and also supplement USAID's existing marine biodiversity 
programs to integrate interventions for sea-based sources.
    By making the United States a convener on the issue, a Fund would 
more directly permit the USG to shape the international agenda. When 
combined with expanded USAID programming on the ground, the Fund could 
raise the profile of USG leadership on the issue both internationally 
as well as in individual countries. Moreover, housing the Fund at USAID 
would address a major congressional concern regarding the lack of 
sufficient oversight of Funds managed by multilateral organizations.
    USAID has the added advantage compared to existing multilateral 
funds of having the flexibility to work directly with all stakeholders, 
including national and municipal governments, the private sector, civil 
society, and academia. Other global funding entities, such as the GEF 
or the World Bank trust fund ProBlue, can only provide funding through 
specific types of partners, such as national governments or U.N. 
agencies. The USG also cannot provide direct oversight of these funds. 
Creating a new Fund managed by USAID would not prevent coordination 
with these multilateral funds. Activities could be coordinated via U.S. 
executive directors to those institutions.
    USAID is the logical choice of a bilateral donor to manage such a 
fund because it is one of the few government donor agencies with an 
extensive on-the-ground presence across the developing world. Other 
donors like Canada, Australia, Sweden, Norway, and the UK either do not 
have a strong presence on the ground globally. Also, other donor 
countries have folded/are folding their aid agencies into their foreign 
ministries so they lack the capacity to manage such a fund.
    Many countries are potential contributors to a USAID-managed fund, 
including those that have made commitments at the G20, such as 
Australia, Japan, the Asian Development Bank, and emerging partners 
such as the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Private sector companies and 
foundations can also be considered. After initial commitments, USAID 
would continue to pool resources from interested donor countries, 
foundations and the private sector on a 3-5 year funding cycle to 
replenish the fund based on evolving commitments and needs.

    Question. The Department of State and USAID have a global 
workforce, and billions of dollars are spent annually constructing, 
maintaining, and operating U.S. Government facilities around the world 
and in our own country.
    This question is for both of you. What are the Department of State 
and USAID doing to implement waste recycling and substantially reduce 
the use of single use plastics in your own construction, maintenance, 
and day-to-day operations? What would be a realistic target for 
achieving this goal in the near-term, and what would be the costs of 
doing so? Can you get us that information?

    Answer. USAID's operations management aims to serve as a role model 
consistent with our foreign assistance programming approach on single-
use plastics and solid waste management.
    For domestic facilities, the construction and maintenance of the 
buildings is the responsibility of the General Services Administration 
(GSA). For the day-to-day operations aspect of the question, USAID 
participates in GSA's National Capital Region Recycling program. GSA 
recycling contractors pick up paper, cardboard, cans, glass/plastic 
bottles, and printer cartridges from USAID facilities. Not only is the 
program environmentally friendly, the revenue generated by the 
recycling returns back to the Agency. USAID promotes recycling via 
signage in galleys. In addition, USAID installed water bottle filling 
stations on every floor of its two main facilities, the Ronald Reagan 
Building and the USAID Annex, to discourage single-use plastic water 
bottles.
    For the majority of USAID's overseas missions, the Department of 
State has primary responsibility for the construction and maintenance 
of overseas facilities, residential and office. In a few countries, 
USAID has primary responsibility for the construction and maintenance 
of one or more residential and/or office facilities. In those 
facilities, USAID has ensured construction includes for example, 
sustainable features such as bottle fillers alongside water fountains 
to encourage use of other than single-use plastic bottles. In addition, 
the materials we procure, including furniture, are Greenguard 
certified, including but not limited to, carpet tiles, acoustical 
ceiling tiles, vinyl tile, and workstation panel fabrics and 
components. Most, if not all, contain a percentage of recycled plastic 
material.
    For most USAID missions that are co-located with the Embassy, the 
Department of State has primary responsibility for day-to-day 
operations of facilities. For a few embassies, USAID, not the 
Department of State, has primary responsibility for day-to-day 
operations. In these latter cases, USAID follows operational standards 
consistent with the Department of State's International Cooperative 
Administrative Support Services service delivery platform and policies. 
USAID missions in conjunction with the Embassy implement recycling 
programs similar to GSA's National Capital Region Recycling program. 
These programs vary by post depending on the host countries' waste 
programs and local vendor availability.
    Beyond facilities, USAID's day-to-day operations include 
implementation of hundreds of millions of dollars of development and 
humanitarian assistance. USAID has begun piloting a number of efforts 
to reduce the disposable products in the provision of these efforts. 
For example, in 2018, USAID's Mission in Vietnam began an initiative 
requiring partners receiving USAID funds to reduce or eliminate the use 
of disposable products in executing their activities. As of March 2020, 
USAID's Regional Mission for Asia helped expand this initiative across 
Missions in Southeast Asia. While it is too early to make definitive 
statements about costs, initial discussions with partners suggest that 
these changes could have minimal cost or even perhaps cost savings.
    Similarly, USAID's Bureau for Humanitarian Assistance (USAID/BHA) 
has joined the United Nations and other global partners in assessing 
ways to reduce plastic packaging waste in humanitarian supply chains. 
USAID is spearheading a study, ``Sustainability in Humanitarian Supply 
Chains: A Preliminary Scoping of Improvements in Packaging Waste 
Management'' to assess the full life cycle of waste, drawing lessons 
from private sector advances in circular economy approaches. The study 
will evaluate short- and long-term gains regarding cost-effectiveness 
and efficiency. BHA is also engaging with the Massachusetts Institute 
of Technology (MIT) Lincoln Laboratory to investigate solutions to 
track, manage, and reduce the environmental impact of humanitarian aid 
packaging waste. Areas of research include innovative materials, reuse 
or recycling of existing packaging, and alternate distribution 
mechanisms. The partnership has identified innovative, cost effective 
recycling as a solution that can minimize the impact of packaging waste 
and provide benefits to local communities. An initial specification, 
leveraging U.S. technology innovations, has been developed for a 
portable, solar powered recycling unit. An initial pilot of this 
solution is expected to begin in early fiscal year 2021.

    Question. Many individuals and corporations cite a 2015 Science 
magazine article to argue that the United States is not at fault for 
ocean plastic pollution and that the predominance of pollution is the 
result of poor waste management in Southeast Asia. The article's 
author, however, contends that this is the wrong conclusion, and has 
highlighted that the amount of waste generated by one person in the 
United States is two to six times greater than the waste generated in 
many countries. Much of our waste that has been sorted for recycling 
has been sent to poor countries that cannot handle it.
    In response, we are seeing many countries act aggressively to limit 
their own production of unnecessary single-use plastic products and to 
stop the export of plastic waste. I ask both of you, what are we doing 
to support those efforts?

    Answer. Low- and middle-income countries are experiencing rapid 
population and economic growth along with urbanization, which is 
driving up levels of waste generated. As lifestyles change, the 
composition of waste is changing to include increasing amounts of 
harder-to-recycle plastics. USAID supports its partner countries by 
working with them to improve their ability to manage the growing 
volumes of waste, and to implement the 3Rs (reduce, reuse, recycle) 
without limiting economic growth or creating unintended consequences 
for the poorest and most vulnerable populations. Helping these 
countries to build capacity to collect, process, and recycle any waste, 
whether imported or generated domestically, creates economic 
opportunities while also reducing pollution.
    With better waste systems and incentives for implementing the 3Rs 
effectively, cities in low- and middle-income countries can get ahead 
of the challenges created by these demographic and consumption changes. 
In addition to providing grants to local organizations, USAID's program 
Clean Cities, Blue Ocean is providing specialized technical expertise 
to enable private sector investment in infrastructure, increased 
government transparency, and improved local enforcement of regulations. 
USAID also supports a policy framework built on consensus that creates 
the right incentives for the 3Rs. To do this, USAID helps governments 
and other key stakeholders build an evidence base to increase local 
understanding of the current contextual situation as well as to develop 
appropriate policy instruments to address the local context. In Sri 
Lanka, USAID's grant to the Ceylon Chamber of Commerce has supported 
policy dialogue among government, private sector, and environmental 
groups on post-consumer plastic management that was informed by 
research on plastic-based products, packaging use, and their value 
chain.
    Helping countries capitalize on approaches that are old or new, 
that work in their national and cultural context is key. This is a 
complex challenge that cannot be solved through top-down measures alone 
or separate from economic realities. Instead of prescribing a specific 
path, USAID works with countries to find consensus-based solutions that 
are impactful and sustainable.

                         CONCLUSION OF HEARINGS

    Senator Graham. I just want to thank you both. I look 
forward to working with you on this.
    We're going to provide you more resources. You just tell us 
where you think it will be best utilized.
    Thank you.
    Mr. Moore. Mr. Chairman, thank you very much, and thank you 
for the attention.
    Senator Graham. Thank you.
    Ms. Bekkering. Thank you.
    Senator Graham. The hearing is adjourned. Thank you.
    [Whereupon, at 3:21 p.m., Tuesday, July 21, the hearings 
were concluded, and the subcommittee was recessed, to reconvene 
subject to the call of the Chair.]