Re-Foam-It

Styrofoam items will be collected for recycling by ReFoamIt at the Swampscott/Marblehead Household Hazardous Waste Day being held on Saturday, June 2 on Tower Way in Marblehead from 9 a.m. to noon.

Styrofoam is the trade name for polystyrene, a petroleum-based plastic which is pumped up with air to provide a light weight material with an insulating quality. As we all know, it is used in many types of products from the cups to keep our beverages hot or cold to school luncheon trays to packing material that keeps our TVs protected during shipping.  It is a convenient container designed for a single use.

Styrofoam consists of the synthetic chemical styrene which, when incinerated, gives off a myriad of harmful air pollutants including styrene vapors and dioxin. Both styrene and dioxins are suspected human carcinogens and are linked to endocrine disruption.

When landfilled or tossed into the ocean Styrofoam never ever biodegrades and poses choking hazards to animals and clogging problems to drainage systems. And, when used as food containers, styrene molecules migrate into the food, particularly into fatty foods or hot food or drink, and then the chemical is inadvertently ingested.

For health and environmental reasons, it’s best to avoid Styrofoam or replace it with safer alternatives when possible; yet its usage is so widespread and accepted, this is not easily done. The next best thing is to see that polystyrene gets recycled versus thrown in the trash and Swampscott and Marblehead residents will have this opportunity at the upcoming HHW Day.

ReFoamIt will accept packing blocks and peanuts, produce and meat trays, coffee cups (those not infused with cardboard sleeves), plastic utensils, boogie boards, and insulation sheets.  For a more complete list of items that will be taken click here. For more information about other household hazardous materials that will be collected at HHW Day click here.