When Culver City’s ban on polystyrene became official earlier this month, some areas that lawmakers and anti-plastic advocates wanted to cover were left open.
But those gaps could be closed if state Sen. Ben Allen (D- Santa Monica) has his way.
Ata a press conference in Westwood on May 22, Allen was joined by Los Angeles today by Los Angeles city lawmakers and environmentalists to announce Senate Bill B705, the Ocean Pollution Reduction Act. The proposed bill would prohibit food providers from dispensing takeout food in disposable, polystyrene food containers by Jan. 1, 2020 and is fashioned after Santa Monica’s 2008 Styrofoam ban.
“We’ve reached the point where consumers and cities understand the risks and harm of polystyrene and want to shift to more sustainable and healthy alternatives,” Allen said. “This statewide ban on the use of polystyrene for takeout food containers will significantly reduce the amount of waste littering our ocean and it will protect wildlife, the public health and future generations from harm.”
The Culver City law does not cover foam packaging such as egg cartons, trays used in grocery stores to sell produce, meat, poultry and fish, food in containers that individuals bring to Culver City for personal consumption and prepared food that is prepared or packaged outside of the City, provided however, that such food is not altered or repackaged within Culver City limits, according to the city’s website.
The sale of solid polystyrene products such as containers, cups, cup lids, bowls, plates, cutlery, and straws are also still permitted.
Because it make it unlawful statewide for food providers to serve food in polystyrene containers, SB 705 could essentially make it illegal to have Styrofoam in any fashion within two and a half years.
“One of the primary examples of the amount of Styrofoam waste can be found in Ballona Creek,” said Culver City Mayor Jeffrey Cooper after the ban became official on May 16. “Trash and other hazards, such as Styrofoam containers and cups, have entered Ballona Creek, breaking down into dangerously small particles, which pollutes the water that flows directly to the Pacific Ocean.”
Polystyrene, commonly known as “Styrofoam,” breaks into smaller and smaller pieces that end up in oceans and waterways, harming wildlife and leaching toxins into water. Environmental organizations such as Santa Monica –based Heal the Bay and the Surfrider Foundation have pushed for banning the polymer for decades.
“This is an issue that needs both local and statewide leadership. Over the last 10 years, volunteers have picked up nearly 500,000 foam items during Heal the Bay’s beach clean ups,” said Heal the Bay’s Education and Outreach Manager Nancy Shrodes.
SB 705 is supported by the Californians Against Waste, California League of Conservation Voters, Heal the Bay, Surfrider Foundation, Sierra Club California and Breast Cancer Prevention Partners.
The Ocean Protection Council estimates that the current cost of cleaning up marine debris annually may exceed $1 billion.
It will be heard next in the Senate Appropriations Committee on May 25.