By Angela Carella
Updated Oct 23, 2020 7:33 p.m.
Garbage and polystyrene bits are collected with a high powered vacuum by a group of volunteers cleaning up the marsh areas at Czescik Marina on March 18, 2016 in Stamford.
Matthew Brown / Hearst Connecticut Media
STAMFORD — Mayor David Martin has signed into law a ban on the sale and distribution of polystyrene products in the city.
Starting April 20, food packagers and retail establishments may no longer use containers made of the substance — the trademarked brand Styrofoam being perhaps its best-known form.
“I am proud to sign this ordinance and prevent this nasty pollutant from inevitably littering our streets and harming our environment,” Martin said in a statement. “Polystyrene alternatives such as cardboard are easier to recycle while costing roughly the same to businesses. This is a common-sense environmental reform that benefits everyone who lives on this planet.”
The Board of Representatives passed the measure, 34-2, at its October meeting. It follows two other environmental measures recently approved by the board — one banning single-use plastic bags and another that prohibits plastic straws and stirrers.
“With the signing of today’s ordinance, Stamford maintains its position as an environmental leader in our state,” said Rep. Jonathan Jacobson, D-12, author of the polystyrene ordinance. “The banning of Styrofoam not only demonstrates our commitment to maximizing the environmental integrity of our city, but will further help to inspire other municipalities to act in a similar fashion as well.”
Polystyrene is a petroleum-based lightweight material used for food packaging. A prevalent environmental pollutant, it is not biodegradable and is difficult to reuse or recycle.
In crafting the policy, city representatives sought guidance from nonprofit environmental groups.
“We enjoyed working on this ordinance and are glad Mayor Martin and the Stamford Board of Representatives recognize the massive environmental and health problems with single-use plastic, and supported this ban on foam,” said Jack Egan of Stamford, volunteer chair of the Surfrider Foundation Connecticut Chapter.
Foam containers litter streets and contaminate marine life, said Leigh Shemitz, president of SoundWaters.
“Plastics are a problem in the environment and Stamford’s ordinance banning polystyrene will absolutely improve our local environment,” Shemitz said. “At SoundWaters, we know this because we’ve tallied the impact from last year’s plastic bag ban and saw a phenomenal decrease in plastic bags on our local beaches, dropping by over 80 percent in just the first 5 months of that ban. This new ordinance will dramatically reduce the amount of small plastic bits — the microplastics — that are so harmful to marine life.”
Jeanine Behr Getz of BYO Connecticut applauded city leaders, businesses and residents “for their continued collaborative commitment to stopping disposable waste before it starts.”
The “effective management of environmental, social and governance issues are critical to the long-term success of the city, our state, the vitality of the planet, and will inspire towns and cities across Connecticut to strive to do the same,” Behr Getz said.
Exceptions to the polystyrene ban include raw meat and seafood containers, coolers and ice chests, and products, such as eggs, that are packaged before stores receive them.
Judy Liebeskind, environmental chair of Women on Watch, said the group welcomes the polystyrene ban.
“This ordinance will help to promote the substitution of biodegradable, compostable, recyclable alternatives,” Liebeskind said.
Oct 23, 2020|Updated Oct 23, 2020 7:33 p.m.
Angela Carella
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