Anonymous,

Researchers have found the highest levels of microplastics ever in the open ocean -- in the Mariana Trench.1

We're partnering with our national network to call for a statewide ban on one of the worst forms of plastic pollution: polystyrene cups and containers. Plastics don't belong in the ocean, and they definitely shouldn't be in the Mariana Trench.

Ask your governor to ban polystyrene.

Plastics in the deepest depths of the ocean should tell us that our plastics problem has gone too far. But it's not just that plastic is in the Mariana Trench -- it's also in the stomachs of deep sea creatures.2 How does it get there?

We throw out tons of single-use polystyrene foam cups and containers, what most people call Styrofoam, every day. This plastic doesn't degrade, but breaks into smaller and smaller pieces and finds its way into our waterways, and eventually, our oceans. Wildlife can mistake the plastic for food, and they can't digest it -- the plastic just slowly fills their stomachs until they starve.

And the worst part? We don't even need these single-use plastics -- they just make our lives a little more convenient. The solution is simple. We just have to stop using the stuff.

We know that we can win on this -- we've already won a plastic bag ban in California and a polystyrene ban in Maine.

Act today to help ban one of the worst forms of plastic pollution.

Thank you for making it all possible,

Ed Johnson
President

1. Damian Carrington, "Plastic pollution discovered at deepest point of ocean," The Guardian, December 20, 2018.
2. Matthew Taylor, "Plastics found in stomachs of deepest sea creatures," The Guardian, November 15, 2017.