With polystyrene plates, you are what you eat on

‘ ‘ ‘ Paranoid about gaining the infamous ‘freshman 15,’ I committed myself to attempting to… ‘ ‘ ‘ Paranoid about gaining the infamous ‘freshman 15,’ I committed myself to attempting to live a healthier lifestyle, and therefore most of the things crossing my mind as possible sweet treats at lunch today were out of the question. Then, I remembered hearing that there was a frozen yogurt place at the Schenley Cafe in the William Pitt Union. Contemplating what I would get, I headed over to it ‘mdash; Freshens ‘mdash; and when I got there, I stopped, horrified. To my great dismay, towering before me stood a pillar of ignorance, an obelisk of ineptitude, a cathedral of the unlearned: a great big stack of Styrofoam cups.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ ‘ I was disconcerted when I found out that the University only recycles plastics No. 1 and No. 2 when the city of Pittsburgh itself recycles No. 1 through No. 5. I was disappointed to see stacks of unused plastic plates next to cheeseburgers and fries placed in individual, disposable containers, and I was very upset when I discovered that each print job meant a wasted sheet of colored paper. But Styrofoam? That’s just ignorance, and in the light of the fact that perfectly good, cost-effective alternatives exist, like recyclable plastics and biodegradable paper, it’s disheartening. ‘ ‘ ‘ What is most concerning about this issue is that, as far as I and (I hope) most people are concerned, Styrofoam is an old issue. Everybody knows it’s bad for the environment, and maybe some other people even know that it can’t be closed-loop recycled. That is to say, a Styrofoam cup cannot be used to make another Styrofoam cup. All the aforementioned issues didn’t look too bad alone, but all together, plus Styrofoam ‘mdash; the University of Pittsburgh has some cleaning up to do. ‘ ‘ ‘ A quick formality: Styrofoam is actually the trademarked name given to things made of polystyrene by the Dow Chemical Company. So when you read ‘polystyrene,’ think Styrofoam. ‘ ‘ ‘ Polystyrene is just plain bad. Environmentally, purchasing something in polystyrene is one of the poorest decisions a consumer can make: It never breaks down, it can be reused but it can’t be recycled, and it can contaminate groundwater. ‘ ‘ ‘ Worse perhaps than the environmental implications of polystyrene are its effects on health. I mentioned that I wanted a healthy treat, and I’m sure a lot of people who see ‘fat free’ and ‘good source of protein’ on the sign at Freshens are thinking the same thing. Served in polystyrene cups, that healthy treat becomes a little less edible. Good news, though: The Freshens company recently switched over to using polystyrene-free paper ‘ecotainers.’ There’s a double-standard, however. Next door to Freshens is Strutters, and it still uses polystyrene plates. So your dessert may not kill you, but your meal might.’ ‘ ‘ ‘ It might be atrocious for the environment, but it’s just chicken on a plate ‘mdash; what is so deadly about that? Well, when polystyrene comes in contact with water, it leaches chemicals into it. Researchers from the Environmental Protection Agency found that the weight of polystyrene cups decreases with use ‘mdash; parts of that fashionable, insulating container are getting in your food. Fortunately, as knowledge of the ills of polystyrene has spread, its use has declined. However, in 1986, when polystyrene was all the rage, the EPA did a survey of human tissue samples and found styrene in 100 percent of the samples tested. 100 percent. That’s a guarantee. You eat from polystyrene, your body absorbs some of the material that leaked into your food. I guess the saying is right. You are what you eat: synthetic thermal insulation if it’s on polystyrene. ‘ ‘ ‘ So, becoming part polystyrene isn’t scary enough? The EPA released a hazard summary on styrene in 1992 and found that the styrene that ends up making its way into your body isn’t benign. Upon contact through ingestion in the mouth or exposure to the skin, styrene has been shown to cause skin and eye irritation in humans, corneal injury in rabbits, changes in liver enzymes in rats and lesions on the liver. Long-term effects of styrene exposure as shown in lab animal tests include birth defects, loss of fetuses and decreased birth weight, and the International Agency for Research on Cancer considers styrene to be a probable human carcinogen. ‘ ‘ ‘ It may seem like a small issue, but together with the wasted paper at computing labs, recyclable plastics not being recycled and use of disposable containers when washable plates are everywhere in sight ‘mdash; it’s just not right. I don’t think it was anyone’s decision at any point to be ecologically insensitive, but I do think it reflects badly on the University. Environmental awareness needs to be a priority. This negligence should not be allowed to occur. The University absolutely needs to stop using polystyrene now. Until then, there is only one solution for students: Boycott Strutters until they upgrade to the biodegradable plate. Foaming at the mouth? Think it might be polystyrene foam? E-mail Matt at mad150@pitt.edu.