What is EPS?

Often called “Styrofoam” (which is actually a trademarked name for a Dow Chemical Company foam product), the more accurate name for the generic white foam in disposable cups, plates, clamshell containers, and packing peanuts is expanded polystyrene or EPS.

The lightweight, inexpensive material is often used for packaging, and its insulating qualities make it a popular container for food & beverages.²

How is it made?

The EPS foam manufacturing process begins with benzene, a known carcinogen derived from non-renewable fossil fuels. A chemical reaction converts benzene to styrene—another hazardous chemical, which has known neurological effects and is a suspected carcinogen in humans. Styrene monomers are chemically linked to form polystyrene (PS) chains, which are treated with a blowing agent, such as pentane gas, to create a polystyrene foam.¹

• At higher temperatures, chemicals can leach from EPS products, potentially contaminating the container’s contents. For example: foam cups with hot coffee, clamshells containing freshly made hot food, items reheated in these containers, etc.¹’³

EPS by the numbers

The numbers on EPS are staggering. Each year, the U.S. produces 3 million tons of plastic foam, and the production process is intense and polluting: for example, 680 pounds of greenhouse gas is emitted to produce just 10,000 foam cups.³

After production, plastic foam is made into millions of single-use products, which are disposed of in landfills or littered across the environment. A 2015 report estimated that 25 billion plastic foam cups are thrown away each year, which is enough to circle the earth 436 times!³ Today, approximately 80% of EPS ends up in landfills and 20% in waterways. In fact, EPS foam represents an estimated 30% of the trash volume in the U.S.’s nearly 2,000 landfills.¹ The 20% of EPS that ends up as litter on land and eventually in waterways presents a significant environmental hazard to wildlife and is costly and labor-intensive to clean up. Less than 1% of EPS is recycled, due to the high cost to recycle the material, a lack of recycling facilities equipped to recycle it, and a low resale value of recycled EPS material.¹’³

Although the material itself is inexpensive, the ultimate costs of expanded polystyrene are far from cheap. As the Surfrider Foundation explains, “the continued use of [EPS] damages our environment and our health and contributes to climate change. One 2016 study estimated the hidden costs of EPS are $7 billion a year. A recent poll of several states showed bipartisan support of styrofoam bans, with 60% supporting a ban on EPS and 76% in favor of legislation to reduce plastic pollution.² Clean Virginia Waterways of Longwood University found that support for EPS food & beverage container bans in Virginia is strong, at 63%.⁵

Source: Clean Fairfax