Styrofoam gets the boot

The Newport Beach City Council voted unanimously Tuesday to ban polystyrene products at restaurants in the city after Newport Harbor High School students lobbied city officials for several years to toss Styrofoam cups and to-go boxes out of city eateries.

“I’m ecstatic,” said Newport Harbor High sophomore Ariel Kusby. “We worked so hard, and it’s amazing to see the fruit of our efforts in a world that’s mostly controlled by adults.”

Students from teacher Scott Morlan’s surfing and environmental class at Newport Harbor High School have been asking the city to ban expanded polystyrene products, commonly known as Styrofoam, for about six years, Morlan said. The students say Styrofoam products pollute local beaches.

“It’s so great to see these kids empowered,” Morlan said. “What a great learning experience and a way to learn about the power of one, the difference one person can make.”

About 30 students from Morlan’s class last year spoke with local restaurant owners, researched biodegradable alternatives to expanded polystyrene and collected signatures. The class isn’t in session this semester, Morlan said, but a handful of the students from last year’s class showed up Tuesday night to show their support of the ban.

“We’ve been working on it for such a long time; it feels good that it’s finally done,” said sophomore Isabella Holmes, who began working on the ban as a freshman.

Newport Beach Councilman Keith Curry commended the students for pursuing the ban, while a national trade group representing polystyrene had asked the council to keep the substance legal.

“You should feel very proud,” Curry said. “It’s not very often that a national trade organization lobbies this council on something, and you should know that you beat them.”

Councilwoman Nancy Gardner commended the Newport Beach Restaurant Assn. for supporting the proposed ban.

Many local restaurants use Styrofoam containers for to-go orders. Several Southern California cities have already adopted similar ordinances, including Laguna Beach and Santa Monica.

The ordinance would be phased in over a six-month period. The ban also includes a hardship clause that exempts restaurants if eliminating Styrofoam products from their businesses would cause owners undue economic hardship and no reasonable alternative can be found.

The council is expected to give final approval to the ordinance at its meeting Oct. 28.

If passed, the ordinance would go into effect April 29.

BRIANNA BAILEY may be reached at (714) 966-4625 or at brianna.bailey@latimes.com.