Oakland Bans Plastic Foam Take-Out Containers

[Kadie]

Jun 22, 2006 1:30 pm US/Pacific

Oakland Bans Plastic Foam Take-Out Containers

(AP) OAKLAND, Calif. The city of Oakland has decided to ban restaurants and cafes from using plastic foam take-out containers and will require that they switch to biodegradable and compostable materials.

Eateries found using plastic foam containers after January first would face fines up to 500 dollars.

Councilors approved the legislation this week and a final vote was scheduled for next week.

But the second part of the legislation -- the shift to biodegradable and compostable materials -- will not be enforced until the city leaders determine they have become more affordable.

more...
http://cbs13.com/topstories/local_story_173163153.html

[Catherine Vincent]

1. I think this is a great idea.

All cities should follow suit.

[LisaM]

2. Good for them!

I hate styrofoam.

[Reverend_Smitty]

3. Thats a good thing...

Fast food restaurants stopped serving stuff in Styrofoam years ago, there's no reason why restaurants can't follow suit

[SmokingJacket]

4. Good for them.

There's no good reason to use non-biodegradable wrapping for food -- the food's gone in a few hours, the wrapper lasts a thousand years. :wtf:

[lindisfarne]

8. But do the cardboard containers (heavily coated with wax or plastic)

biodegrade any faster in a landfill?

When you look at the environmental cost of paper vs. plastic bags, paper bags are as bad, if not worse. The solution is to reuse bags many many times or use cloth. (see http://www.reusablebags.com/facts.php?id=7)

"It takes more than four times as much energy to manufacture a paper bag as it does to manufacture a plastic bag. ... Of course, most paper comes from tree pulp, so the impact of paper bag production on forests is enormous. ... Paper sacks generate 70% more air and 50 times more water pollutants than plastic bags. ... It takes 91% less energy to recycle a pound of plastic than it takes to recycle a pound of paper. But recycling rates of either type of disposable bag are extremely low, with only 10 to 15% of paper bags and 1 to 3% of plastic bags being recycled, according to the Wall Street Journal. ... Although paper bags have a higher recycling rate than plastic, each new paper grocery bag you use is made from mostly virgin pulp for better strength and elasticity.

Issue 4: Degradability
Current research demonstrates that paper in today's landfills does not degrade or break down at a substantially faster rate than plastic does. In fact, nothing completely degrades in modern landfills because of the lack of water, light, oxygen, and other important elements that are necessary for the degradation process to be completed. "

[SmokingJacket]

11. I'm a canvas bagger, myself.

I do think paper is somewhat better than plastic, of course, none at all is better. At least worms can slowly make their way through paper, if need be. A paper bag blowing down the street will degrade quickly, while a plastic bag will blow around forever -- until it chokes or suffocates some animal. I can't believe only one to three percent of plastic bags are recycled!! NO ONE recycles styrofoam - that stuff should be banned.

Ultimately, we need to stop thinking of stuff as "disposable."

[Robb]

5. Well, OK

Until then, businesses can use plastic trays, wax-coated paper boxes, or any material other than plastic foam. Compliance will be monitored by city inspectors.

I'm not sure plastic trays are an improvement. Speaking as a former waiter, we all hated using styrofoam containers, but everything else cost the restaurant more and frankly didn't work well.

Good move forward, if a little lacking in alternatives. I'll be looking forward to the city council's determination when biodegradable and compostable materials are "more affordable."

[ThomCat]

6. I hope this catches on.

[Gold Metal Flake]

7. This presents another opportunity to support CA Hemp Farming Act AB 1147

Industrial hemp not trees for food containers.

CA Industrial Hemp Farming Act (AB 1147)

"Assemblyman Mark Leno (D-San Francisco) and Assemblyman Chuck DeVore (R-Irvine) recently introduced AB 1147, the Industrial Hemp Farming Act. California legislators need to hear from businesses and individuals who support AB 1147. If you live in California or have a business located in California, we would like you to send a letter to your CA state representatives in support of AB 1147."


http://www.votehemp.com

[dipsydoodle]

9. They should make them out of rice paper

That way you could eat the packing as well. :)

[faithnotgreed]

10. love this - thank you oakland