Following Seattle's leading, last night the Issaquah City Council voted 6-1 in favor of banning polystyrene food containers. The ban which becomes law in October of 2010 will require all restaurants, grocers, schools and other food sellers to comply by May of 2011. Issaquah will be the first city on the Eastside to pass such legislation
Polystyrene, which is commonly known by its trademarked name Styrofoam is popular because it is a cheaper and more rugged option compared to other environmentally friendly, compostable options. Research has shown that polystyrene takes longer to decompose and as a result lingers a long time in landfills and trash dumps. Comparatively, it is also more expensive to recycle.
Switching to compostable food containers is only half the battle environmentalists say, accordingly the City Council has included that all those affected by the ban will also have to provide proper recycling and composting receptacles to make it possible for consumers to dispose of items properly.
Come May of 2011, the ban will be enforced primarily by consumer complaints. Violators will be cited by city code compliance officer and required to pay a fine.
Although it seems like the timeline for the ban's deployment is way too conservative, to supposedly give enough time for those affected to comply, I think this is a great step for Issaquah. Hopefully it will motivate other towns on the Eastside to get their act together and pass similar legislation. Its not like Bellevue, Kirkland, Redmond don't have the recycling infrastructure in place to handle it.
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