Green Task Force to Recommend City Styrofoam Ban

Hermosa's Green Task Force voted unanimously Monday night to propose that the city prohibit the use of polystyrene foam containers and other petroleum-based plastic items, such as drink lids or cutlery, from being distributed in local restaurants with takeout orders.

An official recommendation will be submitted for a vote at an upcoming City Council meeting.  

"We are in this ban, not necessarily banning takeout containers, which ultimately wind up as trash, but we're talking about banning a toxic form of trash," said task force Chairman Phil Friedl. 

Polystyrene is a petroleum-based plastic material, commonly known as Styrofoam, that can be molded into products such as cups and containers.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services regards a component of polystyrene to be biologically toxic. 

The material is classified as a potential human carcinogen by the International Agency for Research on Cancer, which found that toxic chemicals could leak out of takeout containers and into food.

Additionally, the Green Task Force found in a subcommittee report that California spends about $30 million each year on disposal of polystyrene foam.

Less than 1 percent of polystyrene material is recycled and, often, is the second most commonly found item littering local beaches, ranking behind cigarette butts, according to the report.

"A huge part of trash in the city is a part of events, so we want this [ban] required for the event permit too," added task force member Lisa Ryder Moore. 

If the City Council approves the task force's recommendation, the use of Styrofoam containers and petroleum-based plastic packaging could be banned from local restaurants and community events starting next year.

Meanwhile, plastic bags were given a backseat in the Green Task Force's ride to sustainability.

The group plans to wait for county action before potentially making a recommendation that the City Council consider an ordinance banning single-use plastic shopping bags from being distributed at local stores. 

Los Angeles County's Board of Supervisors is poised to consider a ban now that a by the state Senate.

The Green Task Force stands "in support of the proposed L.A. County ban on plastic bags," Friedl said.

The consideration of county action encouraged the group to postpone its municipal recommendation, but so did the potential for a lawsuit against the city.

The first citywide single-use plastic bag ban was passed in San Francisco three years ago, and a handful of California cities have since followed, including Malibu, Palo Alto and Fairfax.

Neighboring Manhattan Beach had hoped to join that list, but its ordinance is currently tangled in litigation as a result of the city being sued over the ban.

Similar resistance could threaten Hermosa, said task force member Mike Miller. "We keep wasting money on lawyers in this town," he said.

Task force members still hope to look into voluntary plastic bag bans. The group discussed one proposal for the prohibition to be included as a Clean Bay Restaurant certification requirement. 

"That's an excellent idea," Friedl said.