San Francisco Passes Most Expansive Styrofoam Ban in U.S.
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According to report by NBC Bay Area (San Francisco, Calif., USA) this past week, the city of San Francisco adopted the nation’s most extensive ban on Styrofoam on June 28, according to the supervisors who sponsored the legislation. Leaders alluded to the hopeful use of more compostable material that would include paper, paper bags, paperboard, and corrugated boxes as replacements.
The San Francisco Board of Supervisors unanimously voted to outlaw polystyrene foam, better known by its brand name, as it relates from everything from egg cartons to buoys as of Jan. 1, 2017. The old legislation, enacted in 2007, banned the product as it related to food packaging.
Now most every product made of Styrofoam — down to the beach coolers sold at the grocery store — are now forbidden in San Francisco. Penalties range from $100 for the first violation to $500 for the third and each subsequent violation, according to the board. The hope, city leaders said, is that more companies will begin using organic and compostable packaging materials.
