Styrofoam from holiday gifts are unwanted leftovers that can clutter up the house for weeks before being discarded at the curbside.
Now a group that represents restaurant owners and other businesses is calling on New Yorkers to haul their foam leftovers to locations throughout the five boroughs to have it recycled on Saturday.
The group, PS Recycle It, said the goal of what it calls the “first-ever citywide Styrofoam collection event” is to “move” the city “toward a more complete and comprehensive recycling program,” said spokeswoman Sarah Gould.
“Why send foam cups, containers, and packaging into landfills when it can be easily recycled?” she said in a statement. “We believe wholeheartedly that the city should embrace foam recycling just like so many other cities and communities across the country.”
Currently, the city accepts only certain types of Styrofoam with everyday recyclables, such as egg cartons.
In September 2015, a judge struck down a limited ban of fast-food foam containers that had been signed into law by Mayor Bill de Blasio. The judge said the Department of Sanitation should consider ways to keep the materials out of landfills. An appeals court denied City Hall’s challenge to the decision.
The city has said a ban, even a limited one, would keep nearly 30,000 tons of polystyrene waste from landfills, waterways and streets. But industry groups have opposed a ban, saying it would impose an economic burden on small businesses because alternative containers are more costly.
The Department of Sanitation didn’t respond to a request for comment Friday on whether it is assessing the possibility of expanding the types of Styrofoam materials that can be recycled. It had earlier rejected a proposal for a five-year plan to recycle some Styrofoam.
Here’s where you can drop-off your Styrofoam from 9 a.m. to noon on Saturday:
Bronx — Kinsbridge Armory, 10 W. 195th St.
Brooklyn — Nick’s Lobster parking lot, 2777 Flatbush Ave.
Manhattan — Adam Clayton Powell, Jr. State Office Building, loading dock on West 126th Street
Queens — York College parking lot, southeast corner of Guy R. Brewer Boulevard and Liberty Avenue
Staten Island — Christ Church New Brighton, 76 Franklin Ave.
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