By Scott Sherman | District 7 Dispatch

Recently, the City Council unanimously approved the addition of expanded polystyrene (EPS) food service containers such as foam drinking cups and food containers to the city’s curbside recycling program that became effective this month.

This policy achievement is a goal my office has been working on since taking office in 2012. I am truly delighted curbside Styrofoam recycling is now a reality and believe it will benefit the local environment.

The reason Styrofoam recycling is so important is because the new policy will help increase the lifespan of the Miramar Landfill and help the city reach its goals laid out in the Zero Waste Plan.

The city approved the Zero Waste Plan in 2015. The plan’s goals are to achieve 75 percent waste diversion by 2020, 90 percent diversion by 2035, and “zero waste” by 2040 by identifying potential diversion strategies for future action.

Diverting Styrofoam was one of those materials identified to help the city reach its diversion goals.

In addition to Styrofoam, it is also important for residents to continue recycling cardboard, paper, newspapers, metal containers, plastic and glass bottles and jars, rigid plastics (including clean food packaging containers), jugs, tubs, trays, pots, buckets and toys, food and drink cartons, and EPS packaging.

For more information about recycling programs in San Diego, including details about the city’s efforts to divert waste from the Miramar Landfill, please visit recyclingworks.com.

—Councilmember Scott Sherman represents the District 7 neighborhoods of Mission valley, Allied Gardens, Grantville, Del Cerro and San Carlos.