Episode 91
[FOCUS] Myth 7 - Styrofoam Can Be Recycled (NO it Can't)
Episode Summary: This episode is an excerpt from a past episode on Myths about climate change
Jenn and Inma discuss myth 7, which is a Styrofoam cup or takeout container placed in recycling bins helps the environment.
It is not true.
Styrofoam contains mainly air, the fraction of plastic is too small to be recycled
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Listen to the full episode: Myth 7 and 8 about Climate Change
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Featuring Carbon Almanac Contributors Jenn Swanson and Inma Lopez
From Langley in British Columbia, Canada, Jenn is a Minister, Coach, Writer and Community Connector, helping people help themselves.
Imma is from Cádiz in the South of Spain, living in Aberdeen, Scotland. Imma is a sommelier, a poet, a podcaster, a mother, a slow food advocate, and an animist activist.
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The CarbonSessions Podcast is produced and edited by Leekei Tang, Steve Heatherington and Rob Slater.
Transcript
Hi, I'm Jen.
Speaker:Hi, I'm Ima and today we're talking about another myth and that is about
Speaker:styrofoam, styrofoam containers that it's okay to put them in the recycling bin.
Speaker:Gosh.
Speaker:Yeah, that is continuing with our last episode about plastic, but S.
Speaker:Even worse.
Speaker:It is, isn't it?
Speaker:It is.
Speaker:And, and I found some statistics, therefore, uh, the us, um, which
Speaker:neither of us live in, but, uh, I'm sure is similar everywhere else.
Speaker:Um, that apparently Americans throw away about 25.
Speaker:Now listen to this number 25 billion styrofoam cups every year, just cups.
Speaker:Nevermind all the other pieces.
Speaker:Wow.
Speaker:I just thought my God, 25 billion and styrofoam cups, aren't biodegradable.
Speaker:They, they don't break down completely over time.
Speaker:They can't be recycled.
Speaker:And what they do is they break into tiny little pieces and they stay
Speaker:in the environment for hundreds, forever and hundreds of years.
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:We are gonna, gosh, that is so what billions, that is so, so, oh my God.
Speaker:And that's just one country.
Speaker:Can you imagine exactly well, and that's one thing that's cups.
Speaker:Nevermind.
Speaker:All the other pieces of styrofoam, like packing peanuts and take out containers.
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:Containers.
Speaker:Mm-hmm oh gosh.
Speaker:Mm-hmm . That is so terrible.
Speaker:So well for, for me, it is a hundred percent clear what the action is about.
Speaker:for me, I'm not gonna get anything in that in containment that have, that
Speaker:are made with ster, anything at all.
Speaker:It's, it's hard when you, if you're ordering things to know how it's packaged.
Speaker:Although some companies you can look to see what the packing material is.
Speaker:If you're ordering something online to be.
Speaker:There are some companies that are going to sustainable packing, like just
Speaker:crumpled up brown paper that can then be recycled, but it's difficult because it.
Speaker:This stuff stays in our, our environment.
Speaker:It causes, uh, all sorts of pollution because it shows up in the, in the
Speaker:rivers and the oceans and the parks, and it's harmful to the animals
Speaker:because it's white and fluffy.
Speaker:So birds and fish sometimes think that it's food.
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:And then they end up eating it and getting very sick.
Speaker:Yes.
Speaker:And we eat the fish and get very sick.
Speaker:Mm-hmm , it's a, it's a complete cycle.
Speaker:Uh, I think I read not long ago that it was in states sense.
Speaker:God, we don't live there.
Speaker:but American population have, uh, I think it was a 25% of things
Speaker:made with plastic in their body.
Speaker:Oh, my goodness.
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:And that's probably true in other parts of the world as well.
Speaker:I was kidding.
Speaker:Yes, of course.
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:another thing I, I learned about styrofoam is the manufacturing of styrofoam cups.
Speaker:They've changed it.
Speaker:they've updated their processes because what the old styrofoam,
Speaker:the way they manufactured, it used to damage the ozone layer.
Speaker:Wow.
Speaker:Because of the way they had to be heated up and molded into the shape
Speaker:of a cup, cuz it starts off as little beads mm-hmm and the little beads get
Speaker:filled with air and then they get turned into, they melt them into the shape of.
Speaker:And they used to use something that it's called a blowing agent.
Speaker:So it allows the beads to expand and what they used to use would
Speaker:damage and deplete the ozone layer.
Speaker:Um, they phased out those ones and they're now using substances that
Speaker:don't deplete the ozone layer.
Speaker:So that's a good thing, but I still think that it would be
Speaker:very important to talk about.
Speaker:Removing them from the systems and you can go to cardboard, uh, takeout containers.
Speaker:You can go to paper cups.
Speaker:You can really push for using recyclable, like not recyclable reusable, reusable.
Speaker:Yeah, exactly.
Speaker:I was gonna say that reusable containers.
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:And compostable cups, there are things that are made out of
Speaker:corn that will actually compost.
Speaker:Yep.
Speaker:And there, there was a restaurant in Hawaii and this was spurred on by a
Speaker:surfer who, um, who convinced a very popular restaurant in, uh, Hawaii.
Speaker:To replace all their single used styrofoam cups with compostable
Speaker:cups and the restaurant agreed.
Speaker:And this one little tiny decision is estimated to keep about 48,000
Speaker:styrofoam cups out of Hawaii.
Speaker:Wow.
Speaker:Because of one person's lobbying a restaurant to say, can you.
Speaker:Do something different?
Speaker:Yes.
Speaker:Well, here you are.
Speaker:That is the reaction for today.
Speaker:Convince your favorite restaurant to use, to use compostable, uh, for
Speaker:takeaway compostable materials and also to ask if they would allow you
Speaker:to bring in reusable containers.
Speaker:Yes, yes, definitely.
Speaker:So that's a big one.
Speaker:You.
Speaker:Bring your own containers and, and save, I mean, for a coffee
Speaker:it's easy or for a tea it's easy.
Speaker:You just have to get your, your roof of a cup and refill.
Speaker:. Right.
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:And if you're, if you don't know that you're going to suddenly be going for a
Speaker:coffee, you know, maybe you have an extra one in a bag or in, in your car or in yes.
Speaker:You know, in your backpack have an extra one that you carry around all
Speaker:the time and just leave it in your, in what you're packing around with you.
Speaker:. Yes.
Speaker:Yes.
Speaker:I, I definitely signed for.
Speaker:Yeah.
Speaker:And also just join forces with you, your family, your friends, your favorite
Speaker:restaurant to, to get things rolling.
Speaker:Absolutely.
Speaker:Take action.
Speaker:Yes.
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