Girl Scouts urge Kingsboro committee to curb Styrofoam use in schools and town

Three members of Junior Girl Scout troop 83838 told the Kingsboro Sustainability Committee why they want to cut Styrofoam use in town, citing chemical releases, long decomposition times and harms to wildlife.

"Why Styrofoam is bad for the environment," the girls said during a presentation led by Savannah and Emily and a troop member, listing five reasons including that Styrofoam "releases chemicals and gasses," often ends up in landfills and waterways, and can take "5 to 10 centuries to decompose." They urged the committee to help reduce use at Kingsboro Elementary School and elsewhere.

Committee members asked how collected foam is handled and noted that some community recycling vendors charge significant fees to collect bulky foam at events; one member said local trash is incinerated in Haverhill and that incinerators use filters and energy-recovery processes. Members also raised operational questions about school food service, noting the district used reusable trays before COVID and that switching back raises labor and dishwasher staffing questions.

The committee agreed to follow up: members suggested contacting the schools and the Board of Health, and staff offered to route communications through the sustainability mailbox to coordinate a meeting with the superintendent. Committee members said they would support student outreach and explore whether a town bylaw or school policy would be appropriate next steps before proposing formal action at town meeting.

The meeting closed the Styrofoam discussion with a promise to arrange next steps: reach out to district leadership, collect information about health and operational impacts, and report back to the committee for potential bylaw drafting or staff direction to the Select Board.

The committee moved on to other agenda items; no formal bylaw or motion on Styrofoam was adopted at this session.