Forget the foam

let’s cancel Benzene & styrene…

In conjunction with the Cut the Cutlery Campaign, we’ve launched the Forget the Foam Campaign, which is eliminating all polystyrene takeaway containers in Tofino and Ucluelet. 

Only a few businesses have polystyrene containers on the coast, however, this plastic resin is the most environmentally destructive. Polystyrene never breaks down, and leaches toxic chemicals like benzene and styrene into the heated food people eat and into the ecosystems communities rely on. Additionally, this material also has a low recycling rate: 22% of material entering the West Coast Landfill is recyclable, and a majority of this is plastic, including polystyrene. Polystyrene is an archaic material to be utilizing for food packaging, which is exemplified by the proliferation of bans on this material all over the world.

Once businesses voluntarily comply with this campaign by World Oceans Day, we will be asking both the District of Ucluelet and District of Tofino to add polystyrene containers to the Single-Use Plastics Regulation. 

For more information and for media requests please contact lwoodbury@canada.surfrider.org