Support EPS Foam Food Ware Bans

• EPS is lightweight and breaks apart easily, which means it escapes litter cleanup and is widely dispersed on land and in waterways.1 In fact, foam is the second most abundant type of beach debris.2 • Foam easily breaks into small pieces that are mistaken by marine wildlife for food.3 • The lifetime of EPS in the marine environment is unknown. Many researchers feel it will degrade to increasingly smaller sizes but never disappear.4

EPS is bad for the environment!

Foam food service ware is not easily recycled, bad for the environment, a threat to public health and costly to taxpayers. Cost competitive alternatives exist and jobs will not be lost!

EPS leaches toxic Styrene! • EPS is made using the monomer, Styrene, which the federal government has determined is “reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen.”6 Styrene exposure increases the risk of leukemia and lymphoma and is a neurotoxin.7 • Styrene can migrate from polystyrene containers into food and beverages when heated, or in contact with fatty or acidic foods.8 • Styrene residues are found in 100% of all samples of human fat tissue.9 • Manufacture, use, and disposal of styrene-based products releases styrene to air, soil and water.10 • Workers in polystyrene products manufacturing are exposed to Styrene, which increases risk of lymphoma, leukemia, lung tumors, pancreatic cancer, urinary bladder cancer, prostate cancer, and colorectal cancer. High rates of neurotoxicological effects have also been reported.11

An EPS ban will not harm local businesses!Jurisdictions widely report that local bans have gone into effect without complaints from local business. There is no evidence that restaurants have gone out of business due to foam bans in California. It is estimated that take out food packaging comprises 0.34-1.57% of total restaurant sales.5

• Polystyrene comprises 15% of street and highway litter, which costs taxpayers big money to clean up. Caltrans spends approximately $60 million a year to remove litter and debris from roadsides and highways.12 • None of the litter collection or trash capture methods used by local government effectively capture small, lightweight pieces of foam before they reach inland and ocean waters.13

EPS is costly to taxpayers!

EPS recycling doesn’t work!• EPS food packaging is typically not clean enough to be recycled.14 • EPS has a very low recycling rate. According to a 2004 study by the California Integrated Waste Management Board, only 0.2% (310 tons) of EPS food service packaging in California is recycled.15 • The American Chemistry Council took the position that the costs of collecting, cleaning and recycling post-consumer EPS are greater than the value of the recycled product.16

¹Gordon, Miriam. “Eliminating Land-based Discharges of Marine Debris in California: A Plan of Action from The Plastic Debris Project.” California Coastal Commission. (2006). Web. 28 Jan. 2013.²Moore, S., et al. “Composition and Distribution of Beach Debris in Orange County, California,” Marine Pollution Bulletin 42.3: 241-245 (2001).³Derraik, J.G.B. “The pollution of the marine environment by plastic debris: a review.” Marine Pollution Bulletin 44 (2002): 843.⁴Kanehiro, H., Tokai, T., Matuda, K. “Marine litter composition and distribution on the seabed of Tokyo Bay.” Fisheries Engineering 31 (1995): 1 95-199.⁵”Bring Your Own Bag Ordinance implementation Results and Actions to Reduce EPS Foam Food Ware.” City of San Jose Sta� Report. 12 Nov. 2012. Web. 28 Jan 2013. ⁶“Report on Carcinogens: Styrene.” National Toxicology Program, Department of Health and Human Services. 12 Edition (2011). Web. 28 Jan. 2013.⁷”Technology Transfer Network Air Toxics Website: Styrene.” EPA. Jan. 2000. Web. 28 Jan. 2013.⁸”12th Report on Carcinogens: Styrene.” National Toxicology Program. 10 Jun. 2011. Web. 28 Jan. 2013.⁹”Human Health Effects: Styrene.” Toxnet Hazardous Substances Data Bank, National Library of Medicine. CASRN: 100-42-5 1 Nov. 1994.¹⁰”Styrene.” Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry, Division of Toxicology and Environmental Medicine, US Dept. of Public Health and Human Services. ToxFAQsTM – CAS # 100-42-5: Sept. 2007.¹¹Ibid, National Toxicology Program.12“California Department of Transportation District 7 Litter Management Pilot Study.” California Department of Transportation. 26 Jun. 2000. Web. 28 Jan. 2013.¹³Ibid, City of San Jose Sta� Report.14Ibid, California Department of Transportation.15”Use and Disposal of Polystyrene in California: A Report to the California Legislature. ”California Integrated Waste Management Board. Dec. 2004.” Table 4, Page 14.16Ehrlich, Raymond J. “Economic Realities of Recycling.” Plastics Foodservice Packaging Group, American Chemistry Council, Inc. 2007 Web. 2009.

Foam bans are sweeping California!EPS foam is already banned in: Alameda, Albany, Aliso Viejo, Belmont, Berkeley, Burbank, Burlingame, Calabasas, Caperteria, Capitola, Carmel, Dana Point, Del Rey Oaks, Emeryville, Fairfax, Foster City, Fremont, Half Moon Bay, Hayward, Hercules, Hermosa Beach, Huntington Beach,* Laguna Beach, Laguna Hills,* Laguna Woods,* Livermore, Los Altos Hills, Los Angeles (city and county),* Malibu, Marin County, Marina, Menlow Park, Millbrae, Monterey (city and county), Newport Beach, Oakland, Orange,* Ojai, Pacific Grove Pacifica, Palo Alto, Pittsburg, Portola Valley, Redwood City, Richmond, San Bruno, San Carlos, San Clemente, San Leandro, San Rafael, Sausalito, San Francisco (city and county), San Clemente, San Carlos, San Jose,* San Juan Capistrano,* San Mateo County, Santa Clara County, Santa Cruz (city and county), Santa Monica, Scotts Valley, Seaside, Sonoma (county), South San Francisco,* Sunnyvale, Ventura County,* Watsonville and West Hollywood. *Indicates ban only applies to government facilities or events

Questions? Samantha Meyer, Zero Waste Program Coordinator, smeyer@cleanwater.org