THE STYROFOAM DILEMMA

The technology does exist, says Tamer Boyaci, an assistant professor at the Desautels Faculty of Management at McGill University - the problem is the cost. "It's not viable because this type of plastic is very light and takes up a lot of space, so it has a low scrap value. People are not interested in collecting it." Indeed, the California Department of Conservation pegs the costs of recycling polystyrene at more than $3,000 U.S. per ton, meaning polystyrene actually has a negative scrap value. By comparison, glass costs $89 per ton to recycle.

The Gazette, March 6, 2009