Businesses and restaurants in Atascadero, Paso Robles, and non-incorporated areas of San Luis Obispo County may be able to use polystyrene products a little longer.
The San Luis Obispo Integrated Waste Management Authority will once again look at what is next for the material, also known as Styrofoam.
Rock & Roll Diner in Oceano says when COVID-19 was the only hit and take out, they switched from paper-to-containers to Styrofoam.
“With the significant cut in our revenue, it has helped to have the opportunity to use Styrofoam again,” said Marios Pouyioukkas, owner. “It was primarily a survival skill.”
The IWMA originally approved a ban in 2019, but delayed its implementation in April 2020 due to the pandemic.
The council decided to follow the state mandates and on March 10, he voted 7-6 to postpone the ban until a public hearing in April.
But next month, a final decision will be made to determine whether the material will remain in restaurants, grocery stores and even catering establishments.
Five cities on the Central Coast already have the ban in effect.
“Of course, if we could do it all over the country with all the holders, it would be good, but I also admit that we did not have the votes,” said Dawn Ortiz-Legg, IWMA board of directors and San . Luis Obispo County District 3 Supervisor.
The owner of Rock & Roll Diner, in addition to being cost effective during tough times, says it prevents food from sinking through paper products.
“The cost of Styrofoam is about a third of the paper products,” Pouyioukkas said.
He says the switch to paper could mean a rise in the price of your food.
“The more things we cost, the more we have to pass them on to our guests, and that’s just the basic rule, because I’m sure not only me, but most business owners in our area, too,” Pouyioukkas explained.
Those who do not use the containers are concerned about the environmental impact. Polystyrene is not biodegradable.
“It picks up and then blows apart quite easily and that’s what gets into the waterways,” Ortiz-Legg said.
Rock & Roll Diner says they are likely to switch to paper in the coming months like their other venue, Pismo Coast Village Grill, which already needs it.
“I think especially in coastal communities, it will be a welcome start if we wait for the legislature to do more to our recycling situation here in California,” Ortiz-Legg said.
The public hearing is on April 14.
If the ban goes into effect, business owners could face fines for violations.
The polystyrene ban in other cities is still in force.