Is Styrofoam Recyclable?

[Marathon Man]

Hi there.

I'm just wondering if Styrofoam is recyclable in any regard. I don't mean can it be utilised for other purposes around the house, but moreso is there anywhere it can be brought for reprocessing etc.

I've heard recently that it take a proverbial 'lifetime' to breakdown in the earth, so I really would prefer not continue discarding it.

Any information would be hugely appreciated.

Regards,
Paul.

[elbo]

Originally Posted by Marathon Man

Hi there.

I'm just wondering if Styrofoam is recyclable in any regard. I don't mean can it be utilised for other purposes around the house, but moreso is there anywhere it can be brought for reprocessing etc.

I've heard recently that it take a proverbial 'lifetime' to breakdown in the earth, so I really would prefer not continue discarding it.

Any information would be hugely appreciated.

Regards,
Paul.

I notice in Power City they have a crate near the exit door and people throw packaging, including styrofoam, into it. Don't know if they recycle it or not.

[mrsl]

I put it in my green bin because the men on the lorry told me, when I asked them one day if it was ok to put it in, that all the stuff is sorted at the depot anyway.

If it cannot be recycled it is disposed of from there - assumingly in a responsible way.

I have been putting it in ever since - foam from bases of pizzas etc and packaging.

Hope that helps
mrsl

[easyliving]

I use it to put into planting pots for drainage instead of stones, I also have dug some down into claggy soil as it does provide some airpockets. The one time I put it into my green bin they refused point blank to take my bin at all so I have not tried it since.

[Chris P]

Hi Marathon Man,

Apparently, Styrofoam (or Polystyrene) is very difficult to recycle. I believe the only recycling centres in Dublin that accept it are:

1. Eden Park Recycling Centre
Glasthule (beside Sandycove Dart Station)
Dun Laoghaire
Co. Dublin

2. Shanganagh Recycling Centre
Shanganagh Cemetery Car Park (off Dublin Road),
Shankill
Co. Dublin

Or...you could try RehabRecycle. They take large amounts of polystyrene from commercial concerns, but they may have a public service also. Contact details here:
http://www.rehabrecycle.ie/Polystyre...t-Details.aspx

Regards
Chris P
Admin

[Chris P]

Hi Marathon Man,

Obviously, the lifecycling-repurposing-recycling options are preferable, but the following (from Wikipedia) suggests that disposing of polystyrene through incineration and/or land-fill is not as bad as one might suspect:

"Foam cups and other polystyrene products can be safely buried in landfills, since it is as stable as concrete or brick. No plastic film is required to protect the air and underground water.

"Paper cups, when incinerated, produce an average of 200 pounds of ash per ton. If polystyrene is properly incinerated at high temperatures, one ton of foam cups produces 0.2 ounces of ash. The only chemicals generated are water, carbon dioxide, some volatile compounds, and carbon soot."

Details here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Polystyrene

As stable as concrete or brick? It seems that this stuff is made to last -- it really doesn't (bio?)degrade. Next time you are on a beach, check out the amount of polystrene and other plastics in the shingle/sand...

Regards
Chris P
Admin

[Marathon Man]

Thanks for all the information. I've send the rehabrecycle people an email to see if they provide any sort of drop off facility. Will let you know if I hear anything back.

Once again, many thanks,
Paul.

[summersun]

Hi Marathon Man,

Our green bins have a sign on the top saying no polystyrene products....

hope that helps a bit,

Summersun

[bex71]

I know you said you don't want household uses for it, Marathon Man, but large amounts of styrofoam are great for filling bean bags, when broken up (the large bean bags for sitting on). It can be messy to do, but worth it as filling can be very expensive. ;-)

[noni]

Any big-ish packaging can be cut to fit into spaces between timbers in your attic space, B and Q sell it by the sheet for this purpose.

[TickTock]

My local civic amenity has a huge recycling area and when I rang them to see if they take styrofoam they said certainly, they do. Off I popped with my bootload of white stuff and entered the centre only to be told that while they 'take' it, they don't actually recycle it. So if ya wanna get rid of this stuff, don't make the same mistake I did. Silly me!

[Chris P]

It's a step up from watching paint dry, but if you've got a spare 4 minutes, here's a video that shows part of the styrofoam recycling process:

http://www.jumbletown.ie/forums/showthread.php?t=42261

[TickTock]

Chris, I had those 4 minutes.....and now they are gone forever.

Amazing watching that stuff roll slowly to its impending doom. And how the man actually knew the exact time to empty and refill the box before the goo overflowed and escaped out the door of the factory to wreak havoc on the world! Such a cliff-hanger......I still want to know.....what happened next? lol!

In other words, do they just make more of the stuff?

[Chris P]

Originally Posted by TickTock

...I still want to know.....what happened next? lol! In other words, do they just make more of the stuff?

Hi TickTock,

This stuff doesn't die -- it's like perma-litter. However, creative folks often put it to good use...

Regards
Chris P
Admin

Pic: Styrofoam Hummer by Andy Junge (USA)

[TickTock]

Good grief!