Styrofoam cups

I decided to do a post about styrofoam cups.  I assumed that I would be able to find tons of data on how bad for the environment styrofoam cups are, their toxicity, etc. Instead, I found that, as compared to paper cups, styrofoam cups have less impact on the environment. I also found very little recent data - the arguments pro and con are generally both from the 1990s.  But, just to prove that I am not a dogmatic, hardheaded individual (well, I am, but at least I can admit when I learn something new or am wrong), I will go ahead with my post. 


To begin with, most of us call everything that is made from a white, insulating foam "styrofoam".  In fact, the proper terminology is expanded polystyrene foam.  Styrofoam is a trademarked named for expanded polystyrene foam manufactured by the Dow Chemical Company. I'm just going to use the term styrofoam for the rest of this article, however.


Let's start with the process of making styrofoam cups versus paper cups.  One important thing to consider is that most paper cups made for hot liquids are created from virgin material (i.e. fresh trees), bleached, given a plastic or waxy liner, and then given a cardboard sleeve.  In general the cardboard sleeve is recyclable, but the cups are not because of the liner.  Therefore, everything that I have found so far says that styrofoam cups have a lower environmental impact for creation - both resource extraction and greenhouse gas emissions - even though styrofoam is made by expanding hydrocarbon beads.  


Proper disposal is a non-issue, because, although styrofoam cups will never biodegrade, in a modern landfill, neither will anything else, including paper cups.  Styrofoam, such as the blocks used when shipping electronics, can be recycled, but very few places take it, and in general cups and other styrofoam with food residue on it cannot be recycled.  Since the paper cups have a plastic or waxy lining, they cannot be recycled either.  Therefore, these two items are a draw in this area.


If we think about the transport of these items from their place of creation to their place of end use, styrofoam wins out again - it is so lightweight (up to 98% air) that less fuel is required to transport it. 


Additionally, styrofoam cups are in general much cheaper than paper cups.  


NOW, before you go running off to buy boatloads of styrofoam cups, there is one part of this analysis that is missing.  That is the comparison of disposable cups of any type to ceramic mugs.  One study found that while an individual styrofoam cup has a lower environmental impact than an individual ceramic mug, the ceramic mug can be re-used hundreds of times while the styrofoam cup is thrown away.  This study came to the conclusion that if you use more than 46 styrofoam cups (i.e. less than 1 per week), a ceramic mug would have a lower environmental impact.  Paper cups, with their even higher environmental impact, only require 3 to have a higher impact than a ceramic mug.  (http://www.triplepundit.com/2007/12/askpablo-disposable-cups-vs-reusable-mugs/).

This, of course, does not include the cost of washing the ceramic mugs, and I have not been able to find a new study that addresses this issue.  An old (1994) study by University of Victoria chemistry professor Martin Hocking found that you could use over 1,000 styrofoam cups before they had a greater environmental impact than a ceramic mug.  However, with the more efficient dishwashers we now have, plus the fact that many of us don't wash our mug after just 1 use, the number is probably much lower.

A few other things to consider:
1) Improperly disposed styrofoam can be a hazard to wildlife as well as a nuisance.  Because it is so light-weight, it flies very easily and travels great distances.  When ingested by wildlife, it can cause blockages in their digestive tract.
2) Styrofoam is manufactured from a potentially toxic molecule called styrene.  Styrene is classified by the EPA as a potentially cancerous chemical.  I have found reference to some research claiming that "Styrofoam cups lose weight when in use, meaning that styrene is oozing into the foods and drinks we consume. It then ends up stored in our fatty tissue, where it can build up to levels that can cause fatigue, nervousness, difficulty sleeping, blood abnormalities—and even carcinogenic effects." (http://www.newfrontier.com/asheville/earth-talk4.htm)
3) Polystyrene is a petroleum-based product.  This means that we have to extract more oil out of the ground in order to manufacture more styrofoam - recycling of styrofoam results in the downcycling of the material - so you can't make more cups from old cups.

Other options include the newer compostable cups and dishware.  There has not been a study yet that looks at the impact of these versus the other options.  Compostable dishware can be challenging, though, as not everyone has access to a compost program, and many of these items - especially silverware - can only be composted in a commercial system (trust me, I tried valiantly to get my worm compost system to destroy those forks from New Seasons).

For me, I'm going to avoid styrofoam - I feel that I'm exposed to enough chemicals in normal daily life, that if there is one that I can avoid, I'll do it.  I usually have a ceramic mug or a travel mug with me. But I won't be quite as hard on the styrofoam cup users - at least until there is something better available.