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Currently — December 12th, 2022

Currently — December 12th, 2022

December 11, 2022

What you need to know, currently.

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San Diego and Los Angeles, California’s two largest cities, banned plastic foam last week.

Expanded polystyrene is the plastic that’s often used in disposable coffee cups and takeout containers. Although it’s lightweight and cheap, it can crumble into microplastic pieces, tiny plastic shards that can creep into almost anything on Earth—including in people’s bloodstream. The material is also made of styrene, which the World Health Organization classified as “possibly carcinogenic.”

Next April, companies in both cities are not allowed to sell any products made from this plastic foam, though there are some exceptions for products like surfboards and coolers. Los Angeles businesses with fewer than 27 employees have an extra year to comply, while San Diego gave businesses who make less than $500,000 annual, have a one-year extension as well.

Los Angeles and San Diego are among the hundreds of municipalities nationwide that are working to get rid of plastic foam, including eight U.S. states.

—Aarohi Sheth

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