Styrofoam Products Banned From Annapolis, Anne Arundel County

ANNAPOLIS, MD – In an effort to help save the environment and protect Chesapeake Bay, businesses in Annapolis have until Sept. 1 to completely remove the use of polystyrene from their stores. Polystyrene, or EPS, is best known by its trademarked name Styrofoam. Last October, the city approved a prohibition on polystyrene foam food service products for use and for sale at food service businesses, as well as at grocery stores and convenience stores.

Annapolis businesses currently sit in a grace period that extends through Sept. 1 to fully eradicate the product. If it is discovered that they still are selling or using these products after Sept. 1, they will be fined $100 for the first offense and $200 for subsequent violations. Because EPS foam is not recyclable, Annapolis officials felt that this petroleum byproduct didn’t have a place in their town, especially since it does not biodegrade but instead breaks off into small pieces that pose hazards to fish and wildlife.

Anne Arundel County has implemented a similar ban that begins October 1. The state of Maryland also passed a ban with a July 2020 effective date.

“This ban will go a long way to keeping EPS foam out of the Bay,” said Jacqueline Guild, director of the City’s Office of Environmental Policy, in a press release.

EPS foam is banned in the following products in Annapolis: cups, bowls, plates and takeout containers, clamshells and trays. The ban impacts restaurants (full, fast and self-service), grocery stores, vending trucks and food carts, and institutional cafeterias and other businesses that sell or provide food for consumption on- or off-premise. Businesses may use containers composed of compostable materials, paper, plant (sugarcane, rice, bamboo), as well as aluminum, recyclable plastics (1 through 5) and glass instead.

Maine is the first state in the country to have a similar ban, reported CBS News. Other states in addition to Maine and Maryland have similar bills in the works including Vermont, Colorado, Oregon and New Jersey.