Thank you Sen. Davis for vote on polystyrene ban

To the Editor;
On April 25 the Maine Senate passed a bill that would ban polystyrene, or Styrofoam, cups and food containers by 2020. The bill now goes to Gov. Janet Mills’ desk for her signature. Thank you Sen. Paul Davis, R-Sangerville for understanding that solving the plastic pollution problem is not a partisan issue and voting ‘yes’ on the polystyrene ban.

In 2019, we can and must move beyond plastics. Polystyrene foam is one of the worst forms of plastic pollution because it never fully degrades and is not recyclable in Maine. With plastic flowing through every river, collecting in our oceans and forming “islands” twice the size of Texas, and ending up in the guts of nearly every organism in the ocean. We should all be able to agree that nothing we use for a few minutes should be allowed to pollute our oceans and rivers and threaten wildlife for centuries.

Sen. Davis ensured that Maine will put wildlife over waste, and do our part to address our plastic pollution crisis. We simply can’t continue to produce and throw away plastic at this rate. As coastal state, Maine can and should lead the way. Now, it’s time for Gov. Mills to sign the ban on polystyrene cups and food containers.

Carissa Maurin,
Environment Maine
state director