Why Montana should think twice about its proposed styrofoam ban

The Montana legislature has passed a controversial bill that would ban the use of styrofoam containers by the food industry within five years. The measure - House Bill 477 - is now before Governor Greg Gianforte awaiting his signature.

It's an admirable effort, but not one that will make a difference. In fact, it could do more harm than good.

Proponents have argued that styrofoam is not only bad for health but also bad for the environment. But banning styrofoam has consequences.

First, the legislation would force restaurants and other businesses to switch to more expensive packaging alternatives. This cost increase would be passed onto consumers at time when many are already struggling to make ends meet. A paper cup, for example, costs about 2.5 times more than a styrofoam cup.

Second, the impact on the environment. A paper cup requires 12 times the amount of water and 36 times the amount of electricity to produce. A Dutch study also found sourcing material for foam cups and shipping "uses 22 percent less petroleum than is needed for paper cups, and producing foam cups doesn’t require the use of harsh chemicals such as chlorine dioxide."

Third, there's little evidence to show the bans in other cities have actually helped protect the environment. In fact, more than 100 cities and a dozen states have passed laws that restrict or ban the use of styrofoam, many of them in California. However, the California State Water Resources Control Board concluded that “mere substitution would not result in reduced trash generation if such product substitution would be discarded in the same manner as the banned item.”

Going after businesses in the state for using styrofoam also seems particularly unfair. After all, they are not the ones throwing the product into the litter stream. Consumers and law-abiding businesses shouldn't be penalized simply because others may not be responsible.

Simply banning a product is an easy way to address a potential problem. Real solutions, however, take hard work and often don't involve the government at all.