KINGSTON – A ban on polystyrene containers
in Ulster County commercial establishments was approved by the county
legislature Tuesday night, on a 16 to 7 vote, with no additional debate
by legislators. All of the legislature’s Democrats voted
‘yes’ as did Republicans Carl Belfiglio, Herbert Litts and
Mary Wawro,
The measure did have wide citizen support during a prior public hearing,
and during the public comment portion of Tuesday night’s meeting.
Among those speaking in favor was Jeremy Cherson of Riverkeeper.
“Before you vote, I ask you to consider how you can help solve that problem and reduce that number,” Cherson said. “Voting ‘yes’ on the resolution in front of this chamber is an important solution to continue to demonstrate Ulster County’s leadership in environmental policy.”
Cherson noted Ulster would be joining a growing number of municipalities, including New York City, which will ban polystyrene in food service establishments next January 1.
Polystyrene is commonly referred to as “Styrofoam”, which is a trademark brand but not the only kind of plastic foam available.
