Polystyrene
There is overwhelming evidence that this material is seriously damaging the earth - Brooke Lierman
image by: SupChina
HWN Recommends
Styrofoam Facts — Why You May Want To Bring Your Own Cup
Styrofoam may be good for keeping coffee hot, but it is also good for stirring up political controversy. That’s because many of the things that make styrofoam good for consumers and commerce also make it bad for the environment...
First, we are duty-bound to warn you that “Styrofoam“ is, legally, a trademarked name for a particular Dow product typically used as a building material.
But the word styrofoam is widely used in conversation and media when referring to expanded polystyrene foam — which you may use in that disposable cup or as “peanuts” to pack fragile things for shipping. Technical and legal sticklers may prefer the term expanded polystyrene, or EPS. The AP Stylebook…
Resources
Meet the "superworm" that can digest plastic
A species of darkling beetle larvae has an enzyme in its gut that helps it gulp down polystyrene.
Styrofoam is polluting our environment. Let’s #BanTheFoam
Isn’t Styrofoam recyclable, though? While technically the answer is “yes”, in reality, it’s rarely recycled. Styrofoam is only actually recyclable if it is clean, un-dyed, and uncontaminated. But because Styrofoam often holds food, it seldom meets those conditions.
Facts About Landfill & Styrofoam
Styrofoam has the potential to affect the entire ecological system of this planet.
How big a problem is ocean polystyrene pollution?
Unfortunately, foamed polystyrene's light weight, popularity and potential to rapidly disintegrate also make it a common form of plastic pollution—whether carried away on the wind, by the rain or by a sneaky seagull lured by the smell of fish and chips, foamed polystyrene frequently finds its way into the ocean. Like practically all plastics, foamed polystyrene takes so long to truly biodegrade that it is classed as not biodegradable.
Is the 30-Year-Long Styrofoam War Nearing Its End?
Neither banning nor recycling will rid us of Styrofoam. Can we live without it?
Maine just banned Styrofoam food containers
Given the difficulty of recycling Styrofoam, it makes sense that Maine would decide to outright ban it instead — but this is just the first step in reducing our dependence on single-use plastics.
Polystyrene foam and ocean pollution
EPS foam is a single-impact material with no market for recycling. As a result, polystyrene products are quickly discarded and make their way onto beaches and into landfills. Single-use Styrofoam items find their way into the environment at high volumes — EPS represents 30% of all landfill space by volume.
Styrofoam cups get a bad rap, and other surprising environmental revelations
You might find it surprising to learn, however, that the much-hated Styrofoam cup is not quite as bad as we thought. Yes, these cups take forever to decompose and thus take up space in landfills. But drinking your daily cup of coffee out of a Styrofoam cup uses less energy than drinking out of a ceramic cup and washing it in hot water after each use—unless your ceramic cup lasts for 1,000 uses and you wash it only after every third use.
Styrofoam Facts: Why Styrofoam is Bad For the Environment
Did you know that Styrofoam cups and take-out containers are one of the biggest public health hazards? According to Styrofoam facts, Styrofoam is littered more than any other waste product and fills up 30 percent of landfills globally. Styrofoam is not only a dangerous air pollutant but also poses a great threat to humans, the environment, and animals. The worst part is that Styrofoam takes over 500 years to decompose and in the process, it leaches harmful chemicals into the environment.
Sunlight Breaks Down Polystyrene Over Decades To Centuries, Not Millennia
Until today, it was thought that polystyrene would pollute the environment for millennia. This widely-held assumption was based off the observation that microbes generally do not break down polystyrene. To the microbes, polystyrene is a complex food source that is energetically hard to consume.
Why Is Styrofoam Still a Thing?
Unfortunately, the very qualities that make expanded polystyrene (EPS) such an ubiquitous, cost-effective material are also the reasons it has become an all-out environmental nightmare.
Your Foam Coffee Cup Is Fighting for Its Life
The Dart Container Corporation, which makes foam products, is a manufacturing behemoth and produced a fortune for the family behind it. Environmentalists say its products are polluting the globe.
Styrofoam Facts — Why You May Want To Bring Your Own Cup
Styrofoam may be good for keeping coffee hot, but it is also good for stirring up political controversy. That’s because many of the things that make styrofoam good for consumers and commerce also make it bad for the environment.
Introducing Stitches!
Your Path to Meaningful Connections in the World of Health and Medicine
Connect, Collaborate, and Engage!
Coming Soon - Stitches, the innovative chat app from the creators of HWN. Join meaningful conversations on health and medical topics. Share text, images, and videos seamlessly. Connect directly within HWN's topic pages and articles.