In Hawaii, we are continuously serving up takeout food. So, it’s not altogether surprising that our state’s consumption of expanded polystyrene foam containers, none of which is recycled, is the highest per capita in the United States.

Environmentalists and others maintain that due to lightweight design, our ubiquitous clamshell containers and cups can easily drift away from waste collection systems and accumulate on land and in water, and can leach toxins. The litter can do harm to birds and marine life ranging from fish and turtles to seals and whales.

Senate Bill 1109 would ban food vendors statewide from handing out expanded polystyrene (EPS) foam containers, starting in January 2020. A few exceptions: cash-strapped vendors could seek a limited waiver, and businesses with access to polystyrene recycling could be exempt. While the bill has prompted several hundred residents and organizations to weigh in on the issue, on Friday its progress appeared to be stalled.

Pointing to more than 100 cities and counties across the U.S. that have EPS foam bans, supporters say it’s time for the Aloha State to make the green-minded move toward foam-free food service products, which typically cost more but are safer for the environment.

Opponents counter that vendors should not be forced to shell out for more expensive containers, which could lead to job cuts or higher-priced takeout eats; and that businesses should be free to make their own selection of government-approved food-grade products. Since 1958, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration had permitted the use of polystyrene for food service products.

In written testimony, Tina Yamaki, president of Retail Merchants of Hawaii, a nonprofit trade organization, said: “We need to maintain a fair balance regarding food service containers. This government mandate would place an undue burden on grocers, restaurants, mom-and-pop establishments, and others as their cost of business would increase. … Many businesses are already operating on a very thin profit margin.”

Yamaki added, “The solution … is not in a total ban, but in the wise management of this resource … the ‘reduce, reuse and recycle’ principle. The focus should be on litter control education and looking into establishing a polystyrene recycling program.” Currently, there’s no such recycling in Hawaii.

But groups such as the Surfrider Foundation contend that the environmental troubles tied to EPS foam containers, which do not biodegrade, are reason enough to rid the islands of them. In its coastal cleanups, foam products are among the biggest litter culprits. “Each year we see more and more plastics aggregating on our state beaches,” Rafael Bergstrom, the foundation’s Oahu Chapter Coordinator, said in his testimony.

Like drifting plastic bags, foam can clog storm drains and runoff infrastructure. If it breaks into pieces, it can end up in the stomachs of marine and stream wildlife, causing irritation and damage to the digestive system. When plastics remain in the gut, instead of passing through, a fish could feel falsely sated, which could lead to malnutrition or starvation, according to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Regarding on-island litter, SB 1109 backers note that the state Department of Transportation released a trash reduction plan last year estimating that prohibiting EPS foam foodware could result in a 10 percent reduction of the Highways Division’s litter cleanup costs.

Some opponents suspect that environmental concerns are overblown. They say, for example, that Honolulu’s waste collection system bypasses the landfill to deliver all of its polystyrene materials to HPOWER, where it’s burned as a inexpensive source for fuel. The city’s HPOWER waste-to-energy plant processes more than 700,000 tons of waste annually, producing up to 10 percent of Oahu’s electricity.

To that, environmentalists respond that compostable containers have a much higher fuel value — almost double that of EPS foam — when incinerated, and they don’t release toxic ash and smoke.

Surfrider Foundation’s Bergstrom said: “Single-use plastics, like polystyrene foam, are a fossil-fuel driven, carbon-emitting industry that has no place in an island economy where space is limited and our environmental health is the most important issue to our economy. Alternatives to foam and other forms of plastic are easily accessible, with the most sustainable version being certified compostable products.”

Further, he said, the plant-based material for fiber containers can be grown and made in the islands, thereby creating jobs.

K Yamada Distributors, a family-run business in Kalihi, and its sister company, Hawaii Foam Products, LLC, employ 100 workers in the manufacturing and distribution of food-grade expanded polystyrene food containers throughout the state.

In SB 1109 testimony, KYD’s president, Dexter Yamada said: “As someone who has been in the business of packaging for all my life, I can say that compostable products are not always a better alternative.” He said they consume more raw materials, water and electrical use, and can rack up shipping costs because there’s no local compostable manufacturer.

What’s more, Yamada said, “compostable product cost comparisons vary, but are clearly higher.” In his own cost comparison, he said, a case of 200 square foam containers (8-inch) costs $19 while a case of the same-sized compostable containers goes for about $40. And functionally, the latter can be less sturdy — some get soggy when packed with gravy-topped foods or hot soups and broths.

“The proposed ban on food-grade EPS food containers unnecessarily contributes to Hawaii’s difficult business environment,” Yamada said.

Instead of a ban, Yamada and others representing various business communities suggest taking a closer look at establishing EPS recycling, especially on neighbor islands, which do not have facilities similar to HPOWER. On the mainland, foam recycling programs use EPS products to make products such as picture frames, base boards and decorative moldings.

The state Department of Health, which would be tagged with establishing rules tied to the ban, finds that both supporters and opponents make compelling points — and recommends shelving state legislation to allow counties the opportunity to decide whether to implement bans, as they did with the current prohibitions on plastic bags.

The Maui County Council, which has been sizing up the issue for about seven years, is expected to soon revisit a proposed ordinance. And last year, with a 4-4 vote, the Hawaii County Council rejected a bill to ban polystyrene foam food containers. However, the tie prompted it to put together a group of community members to further study the issue.

While members of the Kauai County Council have expressed interest in the possibility of putting forward a bill to ban polystyrene products, Mayor Bernard Carvalho Jr.’s administration is currently more focused on diversion programs that aim to offer economic incentive as a carrot for reducing the volume of waste headed for the landfill.

On Oahu, a study conducted by the city’s Department of Environmental Services found that most of the scores of cities that now have bans do not have waste-to-energy (similar to HPOWER) in their waste management lineup, relying instead on recycling and composting to divert waste from landfills. Three years ago, the Honolulu City Council considered a bill requiring eateries using EPS to switch to compostable food service ware.

While the counties continue to weigh the pros and cons of the foam-free movement, some smaller-scale bans are already in effect. At the University of Hawaii at Manoa, for example, a student-initiated ban on use of EPS foam at all campus food establishments, has been in place as a policy for four years.

Also the Hawaii Ocean Friendly Restaurant program, launched last year, now includes more than 130 eateries certified as foam-free. Participants use no EPS foam (takeout food containers are recyclable or compostable); only reusable tableware for onsite dining; and adhere to proper recycling practices.

The statewide program — a campaign to reduce use of single-use plastics — is organized by the Surfrider Foundation’s local chapters and the Rise Above Plastics Coalition, which includes the Kokua Hawaii Foundation, Maui Huliau Foundation, Styrophobia, Sierra Club of Hawaii, Conservation Council for Hawaii and Sustainable Coastlines Hawaii.