Healthcare Plastics Working Group
Nearly 25% of the 14,000 tons of waste generated daily by US hospitals is plastic — much of it single-use. This is driving over a fifth of the P-SNAP membership craze, and many are taking action. The P-SNAP Healthcare Plastics Working Group is a forum to coordinate people, evidence-based solutions, and projects — and to work collaboratively with groups undertaking similar work. We can be far more efficient when we are less isolated.
Contact Mary Kosuth, PhD: kosu0003@umn.edu
Synthetic Turf Working Group
In Yiddish, the word “shonda” indicates a disgrace or scandal that is so terrible that it has collective implications. The word is a good synonym for synthetic turf, a product that now covers approximately 20,000 playing fields in the United States with plastic carpet known to contain PAH’s, VOC’s, heavy metals, and often PFAS. The heavy exposure of children who play, crawl, and relax on these surfaces is joined by elevated risk of heat stroke and surface burns, and increased athletic injuries such as ACL tears. The public health case against synturf is robust, but the lobby of the $2.7 billion industry is formidable.
Fortunately, some of the best and most passionate of us are working on it together. You can join them. P-SNAP’s new synthetic turf working group will keep you up to date on the science, the writing and speaking skills, and the site fights where the battle is playing out.
Contact David Masur: david@pennenvironment.org
Chemical “Recycling” Working Group
Chemical recycling, sometimes branded as “advanced recycling,” uses heat, pressure, and chemicals to break down plastics. In so doing, it can generate dioxins, furans, benzene, VOCs, and PAHs — emissions comparable to or higher than incineration. Facilities are often sited in communities already overburdened with poverty and environmental toxicants. This working group is led by Veena Singla, PhD, in conjunction with the Break Free From Plastic Coalition, of which P-SNAP is a member. It serves as a place to learn, coordinate, collaborate, and amplify work on chemical recycling.
Contact Veena Singla, PhD: Veena.singla@ucsf.edu
Microfibers and Health Working Group
Microfibers are found in air, food, water, and human tissues. Like other MNPs, they are not chemically inert, and they are associated with cellular inflammation, oxidative stress, inflammatory immune response, and fibrotic changes. The Microfibers and Health Working Group brings together P‑SNAP members to track emerging science, identify priority research needs, and explore how health professionals can help shape interventions that reduce microfiber pollution at the source.
Contact Madeleine McGillivray: madeleine@seedingsovereignty.org
P-SNAP Rapid Response Team
Oh, the disinformation! The jumbled facts! And the opportunity! This is the team from inside of P-SNAP that keeps an eye on the press and sends in LTEs, Op-Eds, comments, and corrections whenever they see a chance to get a word in edgewise. It’s a dynamic group that fights manufactured doubt with scientific facts, stays up to date with industry tactics, and promotes P-SNAP as a resource for journalists, policymakers, and others with a stake in well-informed discussion. New members welcome!
Contact Megan Wolff, PhD: megan@psnap.org