Hello! I am a senior at Lambert High School who loves Forsyth County and the environment. I hate to see pollution and the destruction of our county's landscape, and I want to do something about it. Starting with Styrofoam.

Why should Forsyth County care (I mean everyone else uses Styrofoam- right?)

Not right. Countless of counties and cities across America have taken action to ban the use of Styrofoam, thus stopping the pollution of our bodies and the environments. Here are a few who have totally or partially banned the product…                                        - New York City (and several other cities in New York)
- Takoma Park, MD
- Seattle, Washington
- Miami Beach, FL
- Nantucket (City & County), Massachusetts
- Minneapolis, Minnesota
- Los Angeles County and San Francisco, California (and many other cities and counties in CA)
... that’s a lot more than you expected, right? That just goes to show how possible and important it is for Forsyth County to ban Styrofoam. For example, there is 236,612 of us in Forsyth County, so we need a lot of food availability: fast food, restaurants, grocery stores, etc. Just drive down Peachtree Parkway and you’ll see what I mean. As a result, a majority of our food comes in Styrofoam. This is why Forsyth County should care because we are a massive community and create a massive impact. 

What is Styrofoam's impact?

- It contains the styrene and benzene (carcinogens) that leech into our foods and environment.
- The product takes over 500 years to decompose. 
- Styrofoam takes up 30% of our landfills
- It costs $3,000/ton to recycle (so where should it go if it doesn’t decompose and you can’t recycle it?!)
- We use it every day: school lunch trays, plastic utensils, cups, plates, take-out containers, etc. 
- It is made out of non-reusable fossil fuels, which release pollutants that contribute to climate change.                                                                                                         

Here is what needs to happen

I believe the best way to make a change is to educate yourself and to spread your knowledge. The next step will be to take action. You are simply educating yourself and taking action right now by reading then signing my petition! Congrats! Also, you must share this petition (which takes us back to step 1). As a result, our great Forsyth County Council Members can hear our concerns, be educated, and ban Styrofoam product, so we can be a growing county and a green county. We are a large community, so let's use our voices together to make a change for the better.

I believe it starts with one person to make a difference every day. Even if I get one person to sign, at least I know there is someone else out there who is concerned about the effects of Styrofoam.

By giving up Styrofoam we can gain everything, by not giving up Styrofoam we can lose everything.

Thank you!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Forsyth_County,_Georgia

http://nomorestyrofoam.org

https://saferchemicals.org/2014/05/26/styrene-and-styrofoam-101-2/

https://storyofstuff.org/blog/styrofoam-bans-are-sweeping-across-the-nation/