IBWA Earth Day Message to Lawmakers: Pass Bipartisan, Common Sense Recycling Laws

IBWA Earth Day Message to Lawmakers: Pass Bipartisan, Common Sense Recycling Laws

International Bottled Water Association | News Release | April 20, 2026

Alexandria, VA - On Earth Day, the International Bottled Water Association (IBWA) isn't just celebrating progress, we're pushing for it. This year's theme-Our Power, Our Planet-captures something our industry believes deeply: that meaningful environmental change requires action at every level, from the individual consumer recycling plastic to the legislators on Capitol Hill voting to invest in and build the infrastructure to make recycling work for every American. IBWA is committed to all of it.

That's because bottled water is the nation's leader in recycling. Plastic water bottles are among the most widely recycled beverage packaging formats, with recycling rates that consistently outpace many other consumer product categories by wide margins, all while delivering the most essential nutrient on the planet: water.

In June, IBWA members will head to Washington to make a clear case directly to lawmakers: it's time to move recycling legislation forward.

Congress Must Act: The STEWARD Act and CIRCLE Act

The STEWARD Act is a bipartisan legislative package that combines two critical bills: the Recycling infrastructure and Accessibility Act (RIAA) and the Recycling and Composting Accountability Act (RCAA). The RIAA directs the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to expand recycling infrastructure in underserved communities through targeted grants, ensuring that recycling is an option for all Americans, not just those in well-resourced zip codes. The RCAA strengthens national data collection on recycling and composting rates, giving policymakers and industry the information they need to drive continuous improvement. The STEWARD Act passed the Senate in both 2024 and 2025 and requires Congressional action in 2026.

IBWA also strongly supports the CIRCLE Act, a bipartisan House bill referred to the Ways and Means Committee in July 2025 that would establish a tax credit to modernize U.S. recycling infrastructure and build a stronger domestic market for recycled content. A robust domestic market is the engine of a true circular economy, and this bill will help build it.

Together, these bills represent exactly the kind of commonsense, bipartisan policy progress that can unlock real environmental gains. IBWA urges Congress to act.

Designed to Be Recycled

The bottled water industry's advocacy on Capitol Hill is rooted in packaging innovations we've already established. All bottled water containers, whether they are PET, HDPE, or PC plastic, are 100% recyclable, making them among the easiest packaging types to process in curbside programs. That's no accident. Bottled water packaging is intentionally designed with end-of-life in mind from the start.

But designing for recyclability is only the beginning. The real measure of a circular economy is what happens after a container is collected from the recycling bin. That's why IBWA members are investing in recycled PET (rPET), closing the loop by turning yesterday's bottles into tomorrow's packaging. Many bottled water companies have been using bottles made from 50%, 75%, and even 100% rPET for years. Between 2008 and 2014 alone, rPET use in bottled water packaging grew by 17.5%, reaching an average of 20% recycled content per container. That progress reflects genuine industry commitment: the more rPET IBWA members use, the stronger the market signal to invest in recycling infrastructure and the less virgin plastic our industry needs.

Consumers Participation Is Essential

Bottled water containers make up 48% of all PET plastic beverage containers collected through U.S. curbside programs, a testament to what engaged consumers can achieve. Yet the EPA reports that the overall recycling rate for all PET bottles and jars is 29.1%, while the rate for all plastics combined sits at just 8.7%. There is enormous room for growth, and the legislation IBWA supports would help by making recycling more accessible, more consistent, and better tracked across the country.

This Earth Day, IBWA is proud to be building a circular economy by supporting recyclable packaging, increasing use of recycling content, and a vigorous push for the policy framework that makes it all scale.

For more information about IBWA, visit bottledwater.org.

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Media Contact:
Sabrina Hicks
[email protected]
703.647.4601

About the International Bottled Water Association

Founded in 1958, IBWA is the leading voice for the bottled water industry, which supports more than 617,000 jobs that generate $42.5 billion in wages and $163 billion in overall U.S. economic impact. IBWA provides members with professional services focused on advocacy, communications, technical services, and education to advance safe, healthy hydration and sustainable business practices. IBWA's membership consists of bottlers, distributors, and suppliers across the U.S. and around the world working to deliver the #1 packaged beverage to consumers everywhere. For more information about IBWA, please visit https://www.bottledwater.org.

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