With May and June arriving, ‘tis the season for high school and college graduations. As family and friends come together to celebrate, one common guest is hopefully conspicuously absent: plastic. The City of Goleta continues to reduce plastic pollution through the Plastic Free Goleta initiative, an ongoing effort that encourages residents and businesses to help protect our communities and environment from the dangers of single-use plastic waste by choosing eco-friendly alternatives.

Plastic Free Goleta is centered around the City’s comprehensive plastic reduction ordinance adopted in 2022, which established prohibitions on the sale, distribution, and use of several different kinds of single-use plastic and polystyrene products. Many of these items wind up in landfills or polluting our beaches and waterways and threatening local wildlife. Efforts to reduce single-use plastics reflect our City’s core value of environmental protection and help to keep our communities clean and healthy both for us and our wildlife neighbors for future generations to come.

Goleta’s plastic regulations cover several key areas:

• Single-use foodware items including straws and utensils distributed or sold in the City cannot be made of plastic. Food service establishments and vendors are prohibited from giving customers single-use plastic foodware and are required to provide reusable utensils for on-site dining services. Reusables can reduce waste and cut costs for businesses and families. And if reusable utensils aren’t a viable option, single-use items made from other materials such as paper, wood, bamboo, or even edible materials like pasta are good alternatives with much less impact on the environment. Importantly, utensils made from bioplastics (including most plastics labeled “compostable”), PLA plastics, and #7 plastics are also banned under these rules.
  
  
• Polystyrene is a non-recyclable material that poses significant hazards for wildlife health and the environment. Food products made from polystyrene, including rigid polystyrene or Styrofoam, are banned for sale and distribution within the City. Common examples include meat trays, red solo cups, egg cartons, plates, and food containers. Packing materials made of polystyrene like foam peanuts are also banned. These items can be made from many more sustainable alternative materials which pose less danger for local ecology and are easier to divert in the waste stream.
  
  
• Balloons are both a safety risk and an environmental threat. They are a frequent source of marine debris which animals can mistake for food or become entangled with. Balloons made from Mylar/foil cause hundreds of power outages every year when they make contact with power lines. Goleta’s policy prohibits releasing balloons anywhere within the City, as well as the sale and distribution of balloons made of Mylar/foil. But that doesn’t have to spoil the party—celebrate responsibly this spring with bubbles, flowers, paper decorations or other creative choices!

We can all work together to make Goleta plastic free. Learn more about the impacts of plastic pollution, the City’s plastic regulations, and the alternatives available to replace common single-use plastic items, in our Plastic Free Goleta Guide.

You can also learn more about our plastic policies and the City’s broader Sustainability program at www.CityofGoleta.org/PlasticFreeGoleta. If you have any questions about our programs, please contact us at sustainability@cityofgoleta.gov. Thank you for doing your part for Plastic Free Goleta!