I read an article yesterday about how to reduce trash in landfills. One shocking item I read said that it takes 1 million years for a piece of styrofoam to decompose. 1 million years??!! It's bad enough that we have items in our landfills that are technically biodegradable to some degree--like newspaper--that are not biodegrading because of a lack of oxygen when buried underground. Is the 1 million years when styrofoam is out in the open? Does it take more than 1 million years to decompose when placed in a landfill? Are all of those styrofoam containers that McDonalds used to use still in pristine condition in landfills across the country? If we knew that back then, maybe we should have tried to at least make those containers into some other product--especially given its longevity. After reading this article, I wondered why we are using styrofoam in any capacity in this day and age. If we can't recycle it easily and it won't go away for 1 million years (at least) when disposed of, what business do we have in buying and using styrofoam plates, cups, etc.? We really need to focus on either reusable containers at various restaurants or at least, recyclable containers. Not only that, fast-food restaurants and other establishments should be offering places for these containers to go for recycling purposes. Many states and cities promote recycling efforts in terms of residences, but really do very little to provide businesses with incentives to promote customer recycling. In other words, even if people recycle when home, they may often dispose of all containers when out at restaurants or at stores because no recycling bins are available. This needs to change and styrofoam, in my opinion, needs to be phased out as a choice for storing and serving food and beverages.