Title: Reducing Waste in National Parks Act
Policy area: Public Lands and Natural Resources

Summary:
Reducing Waste in National Parks Act
This bill directs each regional office of the National Park Service (NPS) to establish a program to recycle and reduce the use of disposable plastic bottles within each NPS unit located in its region.
NPS regional offices may eliminate the sale of water in disposable plastic bottles within their NPS units after having considered several specified factors. Where, prior to enactment of this bill, an NPS unit does not offer water for sale in disposable plastic bottles, the unit may continue that practice if it submits to the regional office an evaluation of those factors.
NPS regional offices shall develop for each NPS unit a proactive visitor education strategy to address visitor expectations of water availability and explain the rationale for the program.

[Congressional Bills 116th Congress]
[From the U.S. Government Publishing Office]
[H.R. 4236 Introduced in House (IH)]

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116th CONGRESS
  1st Session
                                H. R. 4236

 To encourage recycling and reduction of disposable plastic bottles in 
       units of the National Park System, and for other purposes.


_______________________________________________________________________


                    IN THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

                           September 6, 2019

 Mr. Quigley (for himself, Mr. Cohen, Mr. Lowenthal, Ms. Haaland, Mr. 
Tonko, Mr. Krishnamoorthi, Ms. Schakowsky, Mr. Blumenauer, Mr. Gallego, 
Mr. Connolly, and Ms. Kuster of New Hampshire) introduced the following 
     bill; which was referred to the Committee on Natural Resources

_______________________________________________________________________

                                 A BILL


 
 To encourage recycling and reduction of disposable plastic bottles in 
       units of the National Park System, and for other purposes.

    Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the 
United States of America in Congress assembled,

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE.

    This Act may be cited as the ``Reducing Waste in National Parks 
Act''.

SEC. 2. DISPOSABLE PLASTIC BOTTLE RECYCLING AND REDUCTION IN UNITS OF 
              THE NATIONAL PARK SYSTEM.

    (a) Program for Recycling and Reduction of Disposable Plastic 
Bottles in Units of the NPS.--Each regional director concerned shall 
establish in such unit of the National Park System a program for 
recycling and reduction of disposable plastic bottles, including, if 
applicable, elimination of the sale of water in disposable plastic 
bottles under subsection (b).
    (b) Elimination of Sale of Water in Disposable Plastic Bottles.--
            (1) In general.--Each regional director concerned may 
        eliminate the sale of water in disposable plastic bottles in 
        such unit of the National Park System after consideration of 
        the following factors with respect to such unit:
                    (A) The costs and benefits to the overall 
                operations.
                    (B) The amount of waste that would be eliminated.
                    (C) The infrastructure costs and funding sources 
                for bottle refill stations.
                    (D) Any contractual implications with respect to 
                concessioners, including considerations of new 
                leaseholder surrender interest or possessory interest.
                    (E) The operational costs of bottle refill 
                stations, including utilities and regular public health 
                testing.
                    (F) The cost and availability of BPA-free reusable 
                containers.
                    (G) The effect on concessioner and cooperation 
                association sales revenue.
                    (H) The availability of water within concession 
                food service operations.
                    (I) The ability to provide visitor education in the 
                unit and online so that visitors may come prepared with 
                their own water bottles.
                    (J) Any input from the National Park Service Office 
                of Public Health.
                    (K) The feasibility of posting signs so that 
                visitors can easily find bottle refill stations.
                    (L) Safety considerations for visitors who may 
                resort to not carrying enough water or drinking from 
                surface water sources with potential exposure to 
                disease.
                    (M) Any input from concessioners and cooperating 
                associations within the unit.
            (2) Units of nps previously eliminated sale of water in 
        disposable plastic bottles.--With respect to a unit of the 
        National Park System that does not offer for sale water in 
        disposable plastic bottles on the date prior to the date of the 
        enactment of this Act, the superintendent of such unit may 
        continue to not offer for sale water in disposable plastic 
        bottles if such superintendent, not later than 180 days after 
        the date of the enactment of this Act, submits to the regional 
        director of such unit an evaluation that analyzes and addresses 
        the factors listed in subparagraphs (A) through (M) of 
        paragraph (1).
    (c) Proactive Visitor Education Strategy.--Each regional director 
concerned shall develop for such unit of the National Park System a 
proactive visitor education strategy that addresses visitor 
expectations of water availability and explains the rationale for the 
program for recycling and reduction of disposable plastic bottles 
established under subsection (a) and implemented in such unit.
    (d) Continuity Within Unit of the NPS.--Each regional director 
concerned shall, to the extent possible, implement the program for 
recycling and reduction of disposable plastic bottles established under 
subsection (a) in a manner that is consistent throughout such unit of 
the National Park System, including incorporation of such program into 
any agreement with an organization operating within the unit, including 
a concessioner operating plan and cooperating association scope of 
sales.
    (e) Biennial Evaluation.--Each regional director concerned shall, 
not less than once every 2 years--
            (1) conduct an evaluation of the program for recycling and 
        reduction of disposable plastic bottles established under 
        subsection (a) for such unit of the National Park System, 
        including--
                    (A) public response to the program;
                    (B) visitor satisfaction with the availability of 
                water;
                    (C) buying behavior with respect to products sold 
                in disposable plastic bottles;
                    (D) public safety including information on cases of 
                dehydration or exposure to disease from drinking from 
                surface water; and
                    (E) disposable plastic bottle collection rates; and
            (2) submit such evaluation to the Director of the National 
        Park Service and the Secretary of the Interior.
    (f) Definition of Regional Director Concerned.--For the purposes of 
this section, the term ``regional director concerned'' means, with 
respect to a unit of the National Park System, the regional director of 
the region of the National Park System in which such unit is located, 
working in coordination with the superintendent of such unit.
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