Tuesday, September 29, 2020 – Styrofoam vs. Paper Cups
- Mary Reed
- Sep 30, 2020
- 5 min read
I walk by a Styrofoam cup carelessly cast off in a parking lot. To write this blog, I discovered that Styrofoam is the trademarked brand for expanded polystyrene. Thank you, Wikipedia. I know that many fast-food restaurants often use Styrofoam cups. However, when I worked at Mary Kay Inc., only those compressed paper cups were provided for drinking coffee. The company was obviously trying to make a statement about the environment. I admit I have been guilty of using Styrofoam cups at my annual Christmas open house and at our quarterly HOA meetings. It’s probably time for me to look for an alternative. Below you will find everything you did — or did not — want to know about Styrofoam vs. paper cups.
According to Wikipedia, Styrofoam is a trademarked brand of closed-cell extruded polystyrene foam — commonly called "Blue Board" — manufactured as foam continuous building insulation board used in walls, roofs and foundations as thermal insulation and water barrier. This material is light blue in color and is owned and manufactured by The Dow Chemical Co.
In the United States and Canada, the colloquial use of the word styrofoam refers to another material that is usually white in color and made of expanded — not extruded — polystyrene foam. It is often used in food containers, coffee cups and as cushioning material in packaging. The trademarked term is used generically although it is a different material from the extruded polystyrene used for Styrofoam insulation.
The Styrofoam brand polystyrene foam, which is used for craft applications, can be identified by its roughness and the "crunch" it makes when cut. Additionally, it is moderately soluble in many organic solvents, cyanoacrylate and the propellants and solvents of spray paint.
Styrofoam is composed of 98% air, making it lightweight and buoyant.
History
In 1947, researchers in Dow's Chemical Physics Lab found a way to make foamed polystyrene. Led by Ray McIntire, they rediscovered a method first used by Swedish inventor Carl Georg Munters. Dow acquired exclusive rights to use Munters' patents and found ways to make large quantities of extruded polystyrene as a closed cell foam that resists moisture.
Environmental impact of Styrofoam cups vs. paper cups
According to Elizabeth Gehrman’s April 6, 2014 article “Why paper cups just aren’t greener” in the Boston Globe, polystyrene is derived from petroleum and natural-gas byproducts; 4,748 gallons of water are used to make 10,000 foam cups.
Twenty million trees (a renewable resource) are cut down annually to manufacture paper cups, most of which are coated with a fossil fuel-derived plastic called polyethylene. The paper industry uses chemicals — including chlorine dioxide — which can cause harm if it leaves a factory in wastewater. Moreover, 8,095 gallons of water are used to make 10,000 paper cups with sleeves.
Toxic chemicals, including benzene, leach out of polystyrene containers into the food or drink inside them, especially when heated in a microwave.
There are no known health harms from paper cups.
The net expended energy that goes into making 10,000 16-ounce polystyrene cups is 5.4 million BTUs, about the same as burning 450 pounds of coal.
For 10,000 16-ounce polyethylene-coated paper cups, it’s 6.5 million BTUs, equivalent to 542 pounds of coal.
Factoring in moving the raw materials to the manufacturer, it takes 3.2 grams of petroleum to produce and ship one polystyrene cup.
Getting a paper cup made takes 4.1 grams of petroleum per cup, more if it has a plastic coating.
The manufacture of 10,000 polystyrene cups causes about 680 pounds of greenhouse gas emissions; that’s equivalent to emissions from 34.5 gallons of gas.
For paper cups, it’s 500 pounds, or 25.5 gallons of gas, but when you add a sleeve, the emissions exceed those for polystyrene.
It can take more than a million years for a polystyrene foam product to decompose in a landfill, according to the EPA, and 50 years in a marine environment — where it can cause serious harm to animals.
A paper cup takes more than 20 years to decompose in a sealed landfill and a few days in a lake or the ocean. Paper cups — even polyethylene-coated ones — can be recycled.
So, in the case of Styrofoam vs. paper cups, “One is better on climate change and water” — that would be foam — “one is better on toxicity, and neither is great on recyclability,” said Tim Greiner, managing director of Pure Strategies, a sustainability consultancy in Gloucester, Massachusetts.
However, to me, the decomposition rate clinches the win for paper cups. More than a million years compared to 20 years? No contest. According to Samantha Allen’s article “10 Eco-Friendly Alternatives to Styrofoam” at doyou.com, below are some possibilities.
Mushroom material
These materials are grown rather than made. No, seriously — they’re made from mushrooms! Agricultural waste is mixed with mushroom fungus to grow a fully sustainable packaging alternative.
Plantable packaging
Are you dissatisfied with the plant-growing properties of your standard packaging materials? I mean, who isn’t, right? Seeds embedded in this fiber board can turn your next mail delivery into a cute window garden.
Edible packing peanuts
Packing peanuts are even more fun when you can eat them. We can’t guarantee they’ll taste great, but since they’re made completely of cornstarch, you don’t have to worry if your pets decide to snack on them.
InCycle® Cups
MicroGREEN Inc. uses its unique technology to add carbon dioxide to recycled plastics, creating a lightweight, durable plastic that’s easier to recycle and reuse.
Bamboo fiber eco bowl
Tom Dixon’s note to customers explains that these bowls are made from powdered bamboo fiber mixed with resin. The note says, “After a long functional life, they could retire as a plant pot or simply be composted back to the earth.”
EarthAware™ biodegradable packing materials
It looks like a regular plastic air pouch, but EarthAware™’s packing materials are made with a special type of plastic that can biodegrade in just five years. That’s a lot quicker than Styrofoam’s biodegradation date, which is never.
EarthShell “paper” plates
There’s no paper at all in these disposable plates. Instead, rice, potatoes and limestone could be the future of Central Park picnics.
Peat plastic
Peat is most often used to make gardening pots, Scottish whiskey and weird smelling fires. But thanks to a Finnish research organization, this cheap and abundant resource can also be made into biodegradable cups and utensils.
Ecotainer® cups
More than 90% of the Styrofoam in New York’s landfills came from food containers like plates, take-out boxes and disposable cups. These cute Ecotainer® cups — made from recycled plants and wood fibers — could easily fill that niche.
Loliware edible cups
These may not replace your standard “to-go” cup, but we can totally see New Yorkers loving this edible glassware. Made from plant gelatin, these vegan-friendly cups come in flavors that compliment your beverage. They’re also super eco-friendly — whether they break down in a landfill or in your belly.
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