Most people are oblivious to the fact that we are destroying our ecosystem, which can turn to our ultimate demise. Styrofoam containers have always been made for the convenience of customers and the business involved. The containers last a long time and they don’t decompose or dampen under moist food. But how long does it take to decompose? Styrofoam containers take at least 500 years to start decaying and even have the possibility of going up to 1 million years. The problem isn’t just that these containers stay around for a long time, but they take up 25 to 30 percent of landfills. This means that one landfill has about 1369 tons of styrofoam. On top of being non-beneficial, these containers are also produced 3 million tons worldwide so you do the math and find out how many tons of styrofoam don’t come up in landfills.

            Biodegradable: (of a substance or object) capable of being decomposed by bacteria or other living organisms. Plastic and styrofoam do not fit this definition. These materials are what Panda Express’ takeout containers are made of. According to Cleveland State University, styrofoam takes more than a million years to decompose. Plastic takes 1000 years, and although that’s not as long, both materials together have a drastic impact on the environment. We are petitioning to have Panda Express make the switch from their plastic and styrofoam to biodegradable unbleached plant fiber bowls. Not only is this safer for the environment with a decomposition rate of 30-90 days, but it releases no chemicals into our food when heated.

            These plastic and styrofoam containers impact everybody, including the environment. The manufacturing of styrofoam involves human carcinogens and poses many health risks. As convenient as it is, styrofoam should not be used for food storage due to the large number of chemicals that its made with. We face the same issue storing food in plastic containers. Toxic chemicals leak out and leech into the food which also causes many kinds of health problems. We hope that by starting this petition, this will encourage Panda Express to rethink the materials that they’re using for their containers. Hopefully, awareness can be raised about the issues that using plastic and styrofoam has brought and will continue to bring.

Bibliography

“Plastic Pollution .” Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plastic_pollution#Effects_of_plastic_on_land

.Kinhal, Vijayalaxmi. “How Styrofoam Is Bad for the Environment.” LoveToKnow, LoveToKnow Corp, greenliving.lovetoknow.com/How_Styrofoam_is_Bad_for_the_Environment.

“Why Styrofoam Is Bad for Your Health and the Planet | 1 Million Women.” Why Styrofoam Is Bad for Your Health and the Planet | 1 Million Women, www.1millionwomen.com.au/blog/why-you-should-say-no-styrofoam/