Green Behind City's Styrofoam Ban

It may appear that the City Council's bill to ban styrofoam and plastic utensils from food service businesses has an environmental basis, but a "fiscal note" linked at the bottom of the bill reveals other justifications.

It cites an annual cost of $620,ooo to the city for "collection, recycling, disposal and litter cleanup for the disposable food service items." The note also mentions that compostable containers would remove the need to sort food service garbage, which is expected to save the city money.

Not to mention the $250 fine for any establishment failing to comply.

However the City is also willing to fund the transition to the more expensive containers, which it estimates to be 5 to 1o cents more than Styrofoam ones, by helping to establish buying cooperatives.

Cedar Grove Composting appears to be the City's main destination for the food waste, and may help create "logos and/or color coding so the public cannot mistake such products for others that do not meet the established standard."