As of April 26, 2009, the use of Styrofoam containers (also known as expanded polystyrene containers) was banned in Newport Beach, CA. These containers, commonly referred to as "to go boxes" have also been outlawed in other cities such as San Francisco and Seattle.
Students of Mariner Elementary and Newport Harbour High worked with the City Council of Newport Beach as well as the Environmental Quality Affairs Citizen Advisory Committee (EQAC). The students were concerned about the dangers associated with the use of expanded polystyrene (EPS), and rightfully so.
EPS containers are built primarily of polystyrene, which contains a material called Styrene. Styrene is incredibly dangerous and has been classified as a possible carcinogen by the EPA and the International Agency for Research on Cancer. Health effects include irritation and complications of the respiratory tract, central nervous system, and gastrointestinal tract. Also, many people use EPS containers for the storage of food, and do not realize how hazardous they are to microwave. While heating, toxins embedded in Styrofoam can leak into food in the container. Consumption of these toxins can cause reproductive health problems in humans.
Another problem with polystyrene products is that they are made from petroleum, and their manufacture releases large amounts of pollution. Styrofoam is made with the use of hydrocarbons, which when emitted in the atmosphere; react with nitrogen oxides to form tropospheric ozone. Styrofoam is also not biodegradable, and therefore ends up as litter along streets and in water bodies as well as landfills. This is very dangerous for marine life and birds who often mistake small pieces for food.Although Styrofoam containers are very convenient in our busy world, their problems significantly outweigh the benefits. Alternatives to "to-go" boxes include compostable or biodegradable recyclable containers, as well as just sitting and eating meals off of the usual ceramic plates, bowls, etc. More cities need to follow the lead of Newport Beach, Seattle, San Francisco and others who have banned the use of Styrofoam containers. This could prevent a lot of pollution emissions, trash and litter in our cities, and death of marine and bird life.
The EPA does not have a carcinogen classification for styrene. A study conducted by a "blue ribbon" panel of epidemiologists and published in the peer-reviewed Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine (November 2009) reports: "The evidence of human carcinogenicity of styrene is inconsistent and weak. On the basis of the available evidence, one cannot conclude that there is a causal relationship between styrene and any type of human cancer." Further, in 2006 the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services' National Toxicology Program determined styrene to be of "negligible concern" for effects on human development and reproduction, including endocrine effects. Additionally, polystyrene containers for food have been used safely for more than 50 years, having been tested and deemed safe by government agencies. Any minuscule amount of styrene that may migrate out of polystyrene containers into food is far too small to be of any health concern. Moreover, styrene occurs naturally in many foodstuffs, including cinnamon, beef, coffee and strawberries.
ReplyDeletePriscilla Briones for the Styrene Information and Research Center (SIRC), Arlington, Virginia. SIRC (www.styrene.org) is a trade association that represents interests of the North American styrene industry with its mission being the collection, development, analysis and communication of pertinent information on styrene.
I really like this idea and the way it was implemented. I think it would be great if we could get such a program installed at Virginia Tech or even some time of study to determine the amount of waste generated by the use of these containers. While there are those who are caught up in the minutia of whether styrene is in fact harmful to humans, overflowing land fills and the use of petroleum obviously are and we can all agree on that. Hopefully following the lead of the students who worked to get the university to approve reusable drinking containers, we can someday soon work on a program to get rid of these food containers.
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