STAMFORD, Conn. — Mayor David Martin today announced he signed an ordinance amending Stamford’s charter to prohibit the sale and distribution of polystyrene products (often referred to as the trademarked term “Styrofoam”) for food packagers and retail establishments in the City of Stamford. The ordinance will take effect in April 2021.

“I am proud to sign this ordinance and prevent this nasty pollutant from inevitably littering our streets and harming our environment,” said Mayor David Martin. “Polystyrene alternatives such as cardboard are easier to recycle while costing roughly the same to businesses. This is a common sense environmental reform that benefits everyone who lives on this planet.”
Stamford’s Board of Representatives proposed this ordinance and it passed with significant majority support from the Board. The ordinance will go into effect six months after the Mayor’s signing, beginning on April 20th, 2021.

“With the signing of today’s ordinance, Stamford maintains its position as an environmental leader in our State,” said Representative Jonathan Jacobson, author and co-sponsor of the ordinance. “The banning of Styrofoam not only demonstrates our commitment to maximizing the environmental integrity of our City, but will further help to inspire other municipalities to act in a similar fashion as well.”

Polystyrene is a petroleum-based lightweight plastic material used by various businesses for food packaging and is also one of the more prevalent environmental pollutants. Polystyrene is not biodegradable and is difficult to reuse or recycle cost effectively. Stamford’s Board received guidance from local nonprofits on effective policy proposals to enact change on the local level.

“We enjoyed working on this ordinance and are glad Mayor Martin and the Stamford Board of Representatives recognize the massive environmental and health problems with single-use plastic, and supported this ban on foam," said volunteer chair of the Surfrider Foundation Connecticut Chapter and Stamford resident, Jack Egan.

Stamford is specifically challenged by waste management of polystyrene products, often littering public roads and sidewalks. Polystyrene litter and pollution impacts the ecological health of Stamford’s greenspaces and marine life, as well as impacts the aesthetic value across the City.

“Plastics are a problem in the environment and Stamford’s ordinance banning polystyrene will absolutely improve our local environment,” said SoundWaters President Dr. Leigh Shemitz. “At SoundWaters, we know this because we’ve tallied the impact from last year’s plastic bag ban and saw a phenomenal decrease in plastic bags on our local beaches, dropping by over 80 percent in just the first 5 months of that ban. This new ordinance will dramatically reduce the amount of small plastic bits — the microplastics — that are so harmful to marine life.”

Stamford’s polystyrene ban is a continuation of environmental ordinances following the City’s plastic bag ban that took effect in May 2019. The State of Connecticut passed its own plastic bag ban later that year.

“BYO Connecticut applauds the City of Stamford, its leadership, residents, and businesses for their continued collaborative commitment to stopping disposable waste before it starts,” said BYO Connecticut’s Jeanine Behr Getz. “Stamford’s initiative and effective management of environmental, social, and governance issues are critical to the long-term success of the City, our State, the vitality of the planet, and will inspire towns and cities across Connecticut to strive to do the same”

Stamford’s polystyrene ordinance includes a number of exceptions such as raw meat or seafood, coolers and ice chests, and products prepackaged before receipt by retail establishments (such as egg cartons).

“Women on Watch welcomes the City’s ban on polystyrene, a persistent material that adversely impacts human and marine life and litters our neighborhoods,” said Women On Watch Environmental Chair Judy Liebeskind. “This ordinance will help to promote the substitution of biodegradable, compostable, recyclable alternatives.”


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