It is illegal to burn styrofoam because this would release harmful chemicals to the atmosphere, notably benzene, a known human carcinogen used in the manufacturing process of polystyrene. (that means it causes cancer)
It is bulky and hard to recycle, and takes an incredible amount of time to break down. You probably heard a chemistry teacher tell your high school class that polystyrene foam will be around much longer than the Statue of Liberty. The use of polystyrene for food packaging is now completely banned in some US cities. Environmentalists and oceanographers also note that EPS is one of the main ocean pollutants, being found in abundance in what is known as the Great Pacific Garbage Patch, an area in the northern Pacific Ocean that’s said to contain 3.3 million pieces of plastic garbage per square kilometer.
If your favorite take out places utilize polystyrene, consider bringing your own container and ask them to use yours as you are against carcinogens holding your food.
Reuse it
I’m sure there were times when you were packing something for shipping and there just wasn’t any packaging or padding material in the house. To reduce volume and save on storage space, you might want to cut the bricks into smaller pieces – it’s faster to do this with a heated knife or wire – and store the material in a plastic bag for future use.
Mailing companies
Check with your local UPS store for Styrofoam recycling. Many of these will now accept Styrofoam packing peanuts for reuse. A few will take in both peanuts and bricks for reuse in packaging.
Styrofoam sheets are a fantastic way to add a layer of insulation to your cardboard box. This makes them the perfect box accessory and no shipping business should be without them, particularly if need keep your goods cool or warm.
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