Problems With Styrofoam in Landfills

As an expendable material, polystyrene (or styrofoam as it is commonly known) is part of our everyday lives. The styrofoam coffee cup that we casually throw in the garbage is one of the 25 billion styrofoam cups that end up as municipal solid waste in the U.S. every year. In 2000, about 3 million tons of styrofoam was produced in the U.S. and 2.3 million tons ended up in landfills.

Volume in Landfills

• Although styrofoam does not contribute much towards the weight entering a landfill, it contributes to the volume in a landfill. Styrofoam and plastics take about 25 to 30 percent of landfill space. In this manner, styrofoam waste increases the rate at which old landfills are closed and new ones are built.

Durable Waste

• Styrofoam is very durable and does not degrade over time. This means that the 25,000,000,000 styrofoam cups that enter a landfill will stay as styrofoam for hundreds of years. While other materials in the landfill degrade over time and take less space, the volume taken up by styrofoam in a landfill does not change.

Outside the Landfills

• Air, water and solid pollutants are released during the making of styrofoam that are hazardous to human health. Heating of food or drink in Styrofoam containers results in the leaching of toxic chemicals that are also harmful. Manufactured by linking small units of styrene by polymerization, 95 to 98 percent of styrofoam is air, making it very light. Even light winds blow littered styrofoam over land and water, which may break into small pieces and be fatal if consumed by birds or animals.

Recycling Styrofoam

• Some recycling programs aim to keep styrofoam out of landfills. Used styrofoam is recycled to make flower pots, picture frames and other items. Briquettes made from recycled styrofoam reduce the volume styrofoam by 95 percent and can be used as fuels or used as plastic to make new products. In 2006, scientists discovered microorganisms that can convert styrofoam into eco-friendly plastic.