A local attorney from Pittsfield, Massachusetts, U.S. brought a petition to ban polystyrene (PS) before the City Council’s Ordinance and Rules Committee. The hearing on the proposal that had been filed in February 02, 2013 took place yesterday. Del Gallo, the local attorney argues that PS is not recyclable and is associated with chemical risks due to migration. Styrene has been shown to cause lung cancer in mice, but not in rats. In humans it has been associated with leukemia, lymphoma and lymphohematopoietic cancer. The U.S. National Institute of Environmental Health Sciences (NIEHS) concluded in 2011 that styrene can be reasonably anticipated to be a human carcinogen (NIEHS 2011).
A ban of polystyrene food packaging was previously proposed by New York’s mayor Micheal Bloomberg on February 14, 2013.
Read more
