Disclosure: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. This page may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission if you click a link and purchase something that I have recommended. There is no additional cost to you whatsoever.
As 2025 dawned, a number of U.S. states, together with Oregon, California, Delaware, Rhode Island, and Hawaii, launched bans on expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam packaging and merchandise. Commonly recognized by the trademarked identify Styrofoam, the environmental affect of EPS, a cloth infamous for its persistence in ecosystems and recycling challenges.
EPS foam is light-weight and brittle. It is a significant supply of microplastics that persist within the surroundings and due to its resistance to pure degradation results in long-term air pollution in waterways and landscapes. Additionally, EPS is difficult to recycle, with restricted services outfitted to course of the fabric, leading to most EPS merchandise ending up in landfills or as litter.
In 1989, the Center for Environmental Health, a part of the Centers for Disease Control, first raised the health risks associated with styrene, a element of polystyrene that may intervene with hormones and copy, even inflicting most cancers by means of long-term publicity. As the fabric entered on a regular basis use, the impact of polystyrene on the environment grew to become painfully clear. In latest years, advocacy teams have campaigned diligently to obtain passage the new bans. British Columbia took probably the most aggressive motion in 2023, prohibiting all single-use plastics, not simply EPS.
Scope of the Bans
The new prohibitions goal varied EPS merchandise:
- Food Service Containers: Single-use objects corresponding to cups, plates, bowls, clamshell containers, and trays at the moment are banned. These merchandise are prevalent within the meals service business however pose important environmental hazards resulting from their non-biodegradable nature.
- Coolers and Ice Chests: Lightweight, insulating EPS foam coolers are included within the ban. Their tendency to interrupt into smaller particles contributes to widespread environmental contamination.
- Packaging Materials: Items like EPS packing peanuts, usually used to cushion merchandise in transport, are additionally prohibited below the brand new rules.
A Growing Legislative Movement
This 12 months’s wave of bans heralds a rising motion that calls for accountable approaches to plastic air pollution. Plastic bans first gained momentum in Washington State. In 2024, Washington enacted laws to section out EPS merchandise, setting a precedent for different states. At the time, Peter Lyon, Solid Waste Management Program Manager on the Washington Department of Ecology said, “Single-use plastic foam merchandise are low cost to purchase, however their environmental price is excessive. Expanded polystyrene is tough to recycle and infrequently finally ends up changing into litter.”
In 2024, Oregon handed Senate Bill 543, which prohibits promoting or distributing EPS foodware containers and packaging peanuts; the state additionally banned using PFAS in meals packaging. Governor Tina Kotek remarked, “This laws is a big step towards decreasing plastic air pollution in our state, defending our pure sources, and selling public well being.” The invoice went into impact on January 1st.
California’s SB54, the Plastic Pollution Prevention and Packaging Producer Responsibility Act, requires that all plastic food packaging be recyclable and that manufacturers demonstrate that 25% of their materials is recycled in 2025 to proceed working within the state. EPS recycling, while evolving, isn’t presently economically viable in most locales as a result of a lot of it should be collected to provide a revenue.
Advocacy and Support Ahead
Environmental organizations applauded the brand new legal guidelines, saying they set an instance for the remainder of the nation.
“Not solely is styrene poisonous for human and environmental well being, however so is PFAS in foodware,” Jamie Pang, Environmental Health Program Director on the Oregon Environmental Council, stated in an Ocean Conservancy press release. Dr. Anja Brandon of the Ocean Conservancy added: “These payments are an enormous victory for the ocean and the Oregon communities that rely upon it.“
The latest bans on EPS foam packaging underscore the rising demand for rules that cut back plastic air pollution and safeguard the surroundings and human well being. As the plastic ban motion expands, states are drawing new regulatory traces that outline how the fabric is made and used. Consumer motion can reinforce the message to meals producers and restaurateurs that they need to embrace sustainable practices and handle the challenges of single-use plastics.
