Let's Reduce Foam on California Beaches

Victory!

On Thrusday Governor Brown signed into law SB 1335, which will require all food service packaging provided at California state parks, beaches, and other state facilities be reusable, compostable, or recyclable. 

Expanded polystyrene (EPS or “Styrofoam®”) take-out food packaging and wrappers are some of the most common types of plastic pollution found at California beach cleanups, accounting for over 20% of items picked up at California’s Coastal Cleanup Day in 2017. Most EPS foam take-out food containers cannot be recycled or composted and end up littering our beaches, breaking into smaller pieces, becoming a blight to beach-goers, and costing local governments thousands of dollars annually to clean up.

EPS - like all plastics - persists in the ocean, releases toxins, and enters our food chain through fish and other marine life. EPS in particular poses human health risks, and is a known animal carcinogen and reasonably anticipated human carcinogen. Styrene is derived from petroleum or natural gas and the process of making EPS foam has an impact on climate change through increased greenhouse emissions. Not only that, but plastics have been shown to release greenhouse gases as they photo-degrade as well.

Through this new law, the State of California is once again leading the way on plastic pollution reduction measures!