Dear Maui County Council Members,
Ocean Defender Hawaii would like to propose a commercial ban on the use of styrofoam cups and containers on Maui County for the following reasons.

1. Styrofoam has toxins which leach out of these containers into the edible food that are packaged. Polystyrene actually emits harmful things like Styrene and Benzene into the air and into the food that has been packed in such containers. When the food is eaten, these toxins affect the reproductive system of the consumer. Styrene then ends up getting stored in our fat cells, where they can accumulate to dangerous levels causing nervousness, fatigue, insomnia, depression and nervousness. Benzene causes cancer in humans. Now, due to more awareness, less of these products are used for packing edibles, but they are still used. The reason is that Styrofoam is cheaper than paper cups and containers.

2. Styrofoam products are made with petroleum. Petroleum is a heavy pollutant; moreover this is a commodity that is getting scarce. This is another negative against using Styrofoam.

3. The product is not biodegrade. It seems to last eternally. The reason is that the environment does not seem to harm it. Moreover, since it is light, the wind makes it fly away, and it floats on water. Over long periods of time, a great deal of this material has accumulated in our water bodies, affecting marine life.

3. The Styrofoam that ends up in our garbage continues to live there indefinitely. Over time, animals end up eating it and it clogs their digestive systems. Since animals do get eaten by others and also by man, it directly and indirectly affects our health.

4. Styrofoam is increasingly taking up space in our landfills. The landfills will eventually be breached, and since it does not break down and get recycled by the earth, this is a dangerous situation.

5. Styrofoam manufacturing is done using hydrofluorocarbons or HFCs and more recently CFCs that contribute to global warming and deplete the ozone layer.

We are a Maui based non profit organization and we are concern with the health of our environment and our people. We humbly ask you consider this petition.

Aloha
Oriana Kalama
CEO/Founder
Ocean Defender