Reject Polystyrene Foam

Better known under its Dow Chemical Company brand name, Syrofoam, polystyrene foam is a form of plastic used to make hundreds of products. You are probably most familiar with it in food containers - cups, plates, egg cartons, trays for meat and produce, ice chests, and so on. It is also used to make insulation, flotation devices, foam cushions, and packaging.

There are many good reasons to avoid buying and using polystyrene foam:

• Like other plastics, polystyrene foam is a petroleum-based product, and its manufacture depletes the earth's limited supply of oil.
• When flexible foam is produced, CFCs are released into the atmosphere. With rigid foam, the CFCs are trapped in the foam cells. They are released into the atmosphere when the foam is broken or crushed in a landfill. Incinerating polystyrene produces toxic fumes.
• Polystyrene foam is not biodegradable. Unless it is burned, the coffee cup you threw out this morning will remain in the environment forever
• The technology for recycling foam is still in its infancy. Until it is better developed, those cups and plates are not recyclable.

The bottom line:

• Don't buy polystyrene foam containers, like ice chests or cups. If you must use disposable cups and plates, buy paper products.
• Don't buy products that come in polystyrene containers. Buy eggs in cardboard, not foam, cartons. Patronize fast-food restaurants that have switched to paper packaging.
• Don't buy foam pellets for shipping fragile items .Crumpled newspapers or straw work just as well.
• Don't buy mattresses or furniture with foam cushions unless the are labeled "Non-CFC".