Westchester bans Styrofoam containers

WHITE PLAINS, N.Y. (AP) _ Sodas and snacks soon won’t come sheathed in Styrofoam at a popular amusement park and some other attractions in suburban Westchester County. The county is telling vendors at county facilities to stop using containers made from the plastic foam by Jan. 1. The ban will apply to the Playland amusement park and county swimming pools, among other places. County Executive Andrew Spano says he hopes the county’s move will spur businesses and other governments to find more environmentally friendly alternatives to Styrofoam, generically known as polystyrene. It’s estimated to take 500 years to break down in landfills. Several cities in the San Francisco Bay area have passed or considered bans on plastic foam takeout containers, and Baltimore has weighed a similar measure.