Delegate Al Carr talks Past Initiatives and COVID-19

MD Delegate Al Carr and DC Councilmember Tommy Wells pictured during coordinated bag fee legislation work in Annapolis (2010)

This past Friday, our Executive Director Shane Robinson had a quick chat with Delegate Al Carr. The two talked about some of Trash Free Maryland’s future plans as well as past legislation Del. Carr spearheaded. Carr had a big hand in Trash Free Maryland’s early years and continues to be a supporter. Early in TFM’s history, one of Carr’s litter-reducing measures was his 2009 plastic bag fee legislation which was the beginning of his work with what is now Trash Free Maryland. After reading in the Washington Post about plastic bag pollution and about Virginia Delegate (now Senator) Adam Eben’s involvement, Carr knew he wanted to make a change in his own state. Plastic bags, a threat to health and the environment, are notoriously distributed by the wind, ending up in the watershed and environment at large. Trash Free Maryland continues to allocate resources toward decreasing plastic bag use and is supporting a statewide ban on plastic bags during Maryland’s 2021 legislative session. This initiative, that Del. Carr helped start, has continued for more than a decade and shows that fighting the good fight doesn’t always yield instant gratification.

Shane Robinson and Al Carr continued their discussion on Trash Free Maryland’s mission, relating to Covid-19. This virus has created countless obstacles and tragedies for families across the world, so it was acknowledged that proper trash disposal and recycling are seemingly the least of everyone’s problems. However, Carr mentioned that reducing trash pollution is always an issue people should care about. There has been a marked increase in people reverting to single-use plastic due to convenience and sanitation concerns. 2020 has been a difficult year for most; however, we must remember that disregarding our surrounding environment could lead to future disasters that pale in comparison to this year. Delegate Al Carr and everyone at Trash Free Maryland wish you all good health and environmental mindfulness.