42 USC § 6914b - Degradable plastic ring carriers; definitions

---
identifier: "/us/usc/t42/s6914b"
source: "usc"
legal_status: "official_prima_facie"
title: "42 USC § 6914b - Degradable plastic ring carriers; definitions"
title_number: 42
title_name: "THE PUBLIC HEALTH AND WELFARE"
section_number: "6914b"
section_name: "Degradable plastic ring carriers; definitions"
chapter_number: 82
chapter_name: "SOLID WASTE DISPOSAL"
subchapter_number: "II"
subchapter_name: "OFFICE OF SOLID WASTE; AUTHORITIES OF THE ADMINISTRATOR"
positive_law: false
currency: "119-84"
last_updated: "2026-04-17"
format_version: "1.1.0"
generator: "[email protected]"
source_credit: "(Pub. L. 100–556, title I, § 102, Oct. 28, 1988, 102 Stat. 2779.)"
---


# § 6914b. Degradable plastic ring carriers; definitions

As used in this title—

**(1)** the term “regulated item” means any plastic ring carrier device that contains at least one hole greater than 1¾ inches in diameter which is made, used, or designed for the purpose of packaging, transporting, or carrying multipackaged cans or bottles, and which is of a size, shape, design, or type capable, when discarded, of becoming entangled with fish or wildlife; and

**(2)** the term “naturally degradable material” means a material which, when discarded, will be reduced to environmentally benign subunits under the action of normal environmental forces, such as, among others, biological decomposition, photodegradation, or hydrolysis.

---

**Source Credit**: (Pub. L. 100–556, title I, § 102, Oct. 28, 1988, 102 Stat. 2779.)

## Editorial Notes

### References in Text

This title, referred to in text, is title I of , , , which enacted sections 6914b and 6914b–1 of this title, and provisions set out as a note under . For complete classification of this title to the Code, see Tables.

### Codification

Section was not enacted as part of the Solid Waste Disposal Act which comprises this chapter.

## Statutory Notes and Related Subsidiaries

### Congressional Findings

> **“(1)** plastic ring carrier devices have been found in large quantities in the marine environment;
> 
> **“(2)** fish and wildlife have been known to have become entangled in plastic ring carriers;
> 
> **“(3)** nondegradable plastic ring carrier devices can remain intact in the marine environment for decades, posing a threat to fish and wildlife; and
> 
> **“(4)** 16 States have enacted laws requiring that plastic ring carrier devices be made from degradable material in order to reduce litter and to protect fish and wildlife.”

, , , provided that: