Please attend Acton’s Annual Town Meeting and vote May 17 to reduce polystyrene and plastic utensils.
On May 17, voters at (the second night of) Acton’s Annual Town Meeting will consider two potential new bylaws intended to diminish some of the consequences of living in a “use-and-toss” era. Here you can learn more about one of those — Article #48. (See info on Ban the Bag & More’s other Warrant Article here.)
As its name indicates, this proposal is directed toward the sources of significant items of modern pollution and litter — polystyrene, whether in its solid or foam form (aka Styrofoam®), and disposable plastic straws, stirrers, splash sticks, and chopsticks. Polystyrene has been labeled a “probable carcinogen” by the World Health Organization.
One of its components, benzene, is a known human carcinogen. Polystyrene food service ware, knives, forks, spoons, coolers, packing materials, pool noodles, and the like are not biodegradable, compostable, or able to be recycled in the Town of Acton. Similarly, the straws, stirrers, splash sticks, or chop sticks tossed away on the roadside cannot be recycled. Left in the open environment, these items break down into increasingly small pieces, eventually becoming microplastics that are ingested by animals or carried by wind and rain until they enter the marine food chain. These plastics never go away. Now, researchers say, these plastics are finding their way into our organs and bloodstreams. As MASS PIRG points out, “Nothing we use for a few minutes should threaten our health and pollute our future for hundreds of years.”
Reducing polystyrene’s presence is a small step forward. What’s involved?
For food establishments within the Town of Acton, the Polystyrene and Disposable Plastic Reduction Bylaw would eliminate the use, sale or distribution of:
• polystyrene food service ware, sometimes identified by a “6” or “PS” (e.g., foam clamshell takeout containers; foam coffee cups and lids; #6 rigid cups, glasses, and clear take-out containers and foam trays)
• disposable knives, forks or spoons made of polystyrene (also called cutlery)
• disposable plastic straws, stirrers, splash sticks, or chopsticks (also called disposable plastic utensils)
Food establishments needing to provide disposable items to consumers would have to substitute food ware or utensils made of other materials, such as pressed or coated paper, aluminum, bamboo, wood, polyethylene or polypropylene (i.e., #1 or #5), or plant-based plastics, some of which might be recyclable, compostable, or biodegradable, although those qualities are not required by the bylaw.
Under the proposed bylaw, retail establishments such as grocery stores, convenience stores, or pharmacies, would not be able to use, distribute or sell:
• polystyrene food service ware (e.g., foam trays, stacks of foam plate or cups, #6 plastic cups and plates)
• unencapsulated polystyrene foam products, including packing materials and boxes, coolers, pool or beach toys, dock floats, etc.
If a retail establishment wished to sell disposable plastic straws, stirrers, or splash sticks, it could do so as long as it provided clearly labeled, nearby displays of equivalent non-plastic items, such as wooden chopsticks and stirrers, or bamboo, silicone, or plant-based straws so that the consumer would be able to make a choice.
How will businesses and consumers be able to tell whether a food service item (such as a plastic cup) is made of polystyrene?
Looking for the #6 resin code symbol or for “PS” on the product is the easiest way, but sometimes items are not marked. If the carton or wrapping in which the product is sold doesn’t contain this information, consumers can look online, where lists of products made from polystyrene can be found. Restaurant distributors and online retailers, such as Amazon, also generally indicate of what material the product is made. Also, because a number of cities and states have now instituted polystyrene bans, restaurant supply warehouses and distributors are now explicitly advertising the range of products available as alternatives to polystyrene. Finally, Ban the Bag & More is committed to providing ongoing education and information about alternatives should the bylaw be passed by Town Meeting.
What if I need a straw or stirrer or chopsticks?
Restaurants will still be able to provide non-plastic utensils, such as wooden chopsticks or stirrers or silicone or paper straws, if you request them. Some may place those non-plastic items in displays where customers can serve themselves, which is also permitted by the bylaw. Consumers may also bring their own straws to food establishments.
Are there any exemptions?
Food packaged outside of the Town of Acton (e.g., eggs in foam cartons or meat on foam trays), which have not been repackaged inside the town, is exempt from the provisions of the bylaw. Also, the bylaw does not prohibit individuals from using disposable food service items made of polystyrene (which have been purchased outside of Acton) in their own homes, or from bringing and using their own personal knives, forks, or spoons in a food establishment.
When would this bylaw go into effect?
January 1, 2023
What if this causes undue hardship for a local business or nonprofit?
Ban the Bag & More has identified next steps to help local businesses, and is committed to (1) following up with public information and education, and (b) determining and advocating for better options for small businesses purchase of alternatives to polystyrene. The Board of Health will be able to grant extensions in cases in which there is evidence of undue hardship, or when a restaurant needs more time to draw down existing inventory, for example.