10 reasons why plastic straws should be banned

Nearly 20 years ago, a dead pelican was found with its stomach filled with 17 plastic bags [10]. Here are a few more tips for ridding your life (and your community) of single-use plastics for good. The resulting number is staggering. Criddle has evaluated use of microorganisms to biodegrade plastic materials and to synthesize biodegradable bioplastics from waste feedstocks. Fortunately, microorganisms can also use cheap, renewable substrates, such as food wastes, biogas methane, carbon dioxide and renewable hydrogen. Author: floridadep.gov. 4. Straws don't provide as much utility as bags, so for many this is an easy adjustment. Plastic straws have an especially high propensity to end up in our rivers after being thrown away. Spare Yourself the Guilt Trip This Earth DayIts Companies That Need to Clean Up Their Acts, These Fanciful Sea Creatures Were Carried in on the Tide. This includes grocery plastic bags, Ziplock-type bags, dry cleaning bags and bread bags. If it looks clean, smells clean (and sounds clean! Save my name, email, and website in this browser for the next time I comment. Plastic straws are one of the most common forms of pollution found on beaches and in oceans all over the world. The bottom line of any plastic ban is that we must use less single-use plastics overall. Coca-Cola makes an estimated 110 billion plastic bottles a year. Items made of plastic that come into contact with food can be recycled, whereas products made of paper that absorb both food and garbage cannot. Theyre in about a quarter of the seafood in our markets, and even in table salt. Instead, you are actually reusing a product, and that means that you are utilizing earths resources smartly, while at the same time reducing waste. The majority of this pollutiondominated by single-use plastic wastecomes from countries lacking infrastructure to properly manage waste, particularly in Asia. No! What is the root of the problem (consumers or municipal waste management)? Additionally, plastics in our digestive tract may affect absorption of some important trace elements (like iron) which we need for maintaining proper health [13]. Other country that has decided to enforce the country-wide plastic bag ban after suffering of negative consequences was Mauritania. NRDC scientist Jennifer Sass says yes and debunks the skeptics claim that in trying to wean ourselves off plastic bags, were only creating more troubles. Microplastics are plastic debris that measures less than five millimetres, or 0.2 inches, in diameter. It was first invented in 1907 by Belgian-American chemist Leo Baekeland. 15. Some microplastics are even small by design, like the microbeads used in facial scrubs or the microfibers in polyester clothing. Well, a possible alternative solution could be to encourage businesses to only give out plastic straws on request. After all, ask your grandparents, they will remember that during their time people were used to go shopping with their own bags or baskets. Will others? A 2018 study of coral reefs in the Asia-Pacific has confirmed that plastic waste deposited on coral reefs promotes outbreaks of diseases that gradually destroy whole reef colonies [12]. For example, millions of discarded plastic bags clog water drainage channels and sewers in urban areas of Bangladesh. Thanks for signing up. According to a study that was published by Bloomberg News, it is predicted that the percentage of contaminated ocean water that is caused by plastic straws and stirrers is a shockingly modest 0.03 percent. India, for example, generates 25,940 tons of plastic waste every day but collects only 60 percent of it. Companies are trying to sell communities on a toxic solution to the plastic pollution crisis. Polypropylene is a form of plastic that is frequently used in the production of straws. We need to make fully biodegradable polymers that are cost-competitive. Consumer outrage about the plastics crisis is already commanding attention from big companies and from many governments. Killing wildlife 5. This is because the customers voluntarily reduce their consumption of plastic bags, which in turn provides enough time for retailers to find suitable alternatives and switch to them. Plastic waste, mostly broken down into tiny particles, floats in huge blobs amid ocean current patterns called gyres that together cover as much as 40 percent of Earth's ocean surface. The decrease in demand for plastic bags forces manufacturers to reduce their production and consider expanding in a supply of alternative products. Prior the ban, 70 percent of livestock losses were attributed to plastic bag ingestion. Greenwashing Alert: Chemical Recycling Isnt Actually Recycling. Considering what important source of food plankton is for many other species, it is clear that plastic gets distributed across the marine ecosystem. Not easy to recycle 7. Even if you can't go zero waste entirely, it's high time we all ended our reliance on single use plastics. There are many uses for plastic that are not only reasonable but important, such as surgical gloves, or straws for people with disabilities. The phthalate DEHP, as just one example from dozens, is often added to plastic goods like shower curtains and garden hoses to make them more flexiblebut was also found to be a probable human carcinogen by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. Then, they have a propensity to break down into microplastics, which then clutter the ecosystems in question. The single biggest reason why people want to ban plastic straws is because of their negative effects on the environment. As for reusable straws, they arent flexible as plastic ones and can be easily forgotten at home. As plastic bags are not disposed properly . A 2017 Environmental Sciences and Technology study reported that up to 95 percent of plastic waste enters oceans from one of 10 riverseight in Asia and two in Africa. Some Disabled People Require Plastic Straws to Drink For some people with disabilities, straws are the only way they can drink. But only a few of us realize that each time we accept those disposable plastic grocery bags at store checkout, we actively participate in wasting energy and depleting non-renewable resources. By simply using less plastic, you can help keep marine life from eating and getting entangled in garbage. (Some places are going so far as to ban single-use plastics entirely; most notably, India intends to go this route by 2022.) The country instituted the ban in 2013 to minimize livestock deaths. Plastic bags. In countries with a lack of awareness about negative impacts of plastic bags, a polite refusal might not be met with much understanding. You cannot recycle them in the regular curbside collection of plastic, but you should be able to find many larger food stores and retailers (for example: Target, Walmart, Tesco, Morrisons, etc.) Tweet, call, or send letters to these companies to ask them to switch to more durable, recyclable, compostable, renewable, and/or recycled-content packaging with less fossil fuelderived plastic. One recent survey found plastics in 94 percent of tap water samples in the U.S. and in nearly every brand of bottled water. It has been projected that, if current trends continue, by 2050 the plastic in the ocean will outweigh the fish. PLASTIC STRAWS CANT BE BROKEN DOWN BY NATURE. And cracker plantswhich break, or crack, ethane molecules, a component of natural gas, into the chemical building blocks of plastic productsare energy intensive and highly polluting. A plastic straw ban could be a good step in the right direction, but we must use less single-use products overall to actually help the environment. But beyond these impacts, the bans have cultural effects. In Ireland, where this fee was instituted in 2002, plastic bag usage decreased by about 90 percent. (Source: Water in the West), Analysis reveals how restoring relatively narrow forest buffers could substantially improve regional water quality and carbon storage in Costa Rica and elsewhere. Using a straw directs a concentrated stream of liquid onto a localized area of the teeth, which can cause the enamel to wear away and lead to dental disease. 1 producer of plastic waste in the world. Affiliate Disclaimer: Some links on this site may be referral or affiliate links. She can remember all of her vehicles the Pontiac 6000, her familys car that was passed on to her when she went to college; the Volkswagen Rabbit, and later Fox, that took her through young adulthood; the Honda Civics,, Read More Car Recycling: Everything You Need to Know (With Statistics)Continue, Whether youre a scuba diver, snorkeler, or amateur swimmer, the ocean is a playground where you come to explore the beauty of nature and the difference from your regular lifes environment. Some Disabled People Require Plastic Straws to Drink For some people with disabilities, straws are the only way they. And when it comes to waste that lasts forever, every ton counts. In 2008, a crocodile in Australia died because of 25 plastic bags filling its stomach [11]. Thoughtful laws are needed to control the problem and at the same time encourage innovation. Carrying reusable bags and bottles is one great way to avoid single-use plastics in our day-to-day lives; more on preventing plastic waste can be found below. Single-use plastics are most commonly used for packaging and serviceware, such as bottles, wrappers, straws, and bags. The following are ten lines on why plastic bags need to be prohibited: 1) The careless disposal of trash in plastic bags leads to an increase in litter.2) The use of plastic bags contributes to the depletion of our natural resources, including water, trees, and agricultural products.3) Because of the danger it causes to marine life, the total Facebook; Contact Now . New and sustainable business models are needed to address the current plastic deluge and also to enable a new generation of sustainable materials and technologies. That is why the United Nations Environmental Programme Secretariat has recommended a ban on all plastic bags globally. 82 percent of the responding food service establishments were aware of the prohibition, and 69 percent of those establishments viewed the ban favorably. BY Rob Jordan, Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment, As Colorado River wanes, water supplies and ecosystems hang in the balance, Riverfront forest restoration can deliver outsized benefits, Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment, An AI solution to climate models gravity wave problem, Beavers will become a bigger boon to river water quality as U.S. West warms. Single use plastics wreak havoc on wildlife and the earth. They suspect that it may add stress on the liver by introducing more pathogens into the body. Microplastics were found in soft drinks like Coca Cola, in tap water, in seafood It has contaminated our food chain, so it should not surprise us that it can be tracked in our body. However, in 2014, the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) supported the first project to calculate the real cost of plastic, including adverse environmental impacts of its production, use and disposal. Here are 3 reasons why plastic straws should not be banned, explained in a simple and easy-to-understand manner: 1. Leape has long been a leader in ocean conservation efforts. Banning plastic straws is also increasingly popular. You can use some easy online locators to see the closest plastic bag drop-off. Speak out in support of local plastic bans, whether by calling your local government representative, submitting an op-ed to your citys newspaper, or simply starting conversations with neighbors. Ill talk about this more in the next section: By itself, a plastic straw ban is unlikely to have a large impact on the environment. High costs for cleanup 8. If we ban single-use plastic straws we will have to turn to the dangerous alternatives.In source You'll receive your first NRDC action alert and Plastic bags floating in the ocean resemble jellyfish, one of the main sources of food for some species of sea turtles, especially the critically-endangered Leatherback turtles. In this essay on should plastic be banned, it is very important to put forth the fact that there are many bodies of health and environmental governance around the world who argue that plastic ban can be problematic stating the following reasons-. Quick Navigation for Reasons Why Plastic Shopping Bags Should Be Banned REASONS 1. We hear everywhere around us that we need to save energy. These steps are pretty straight forward and depend on your own initiative. All rights reserved. Hi, Im Hugh, and my mission with Get Green Now is to raise awareness of environmental issues and teach people how to live sustainably. Cook more often, to reduce your use of plastic-heavy takeout containers. In Germany alone, we use 40 billion plastic straws every year. its plants and animals, and the natural systems on which all life depends. Plastic bag litter has even caused great problems in some areas. Its possible that using a plastic straw would make it easier for you to drink without spilling, but the long-term expenses are not worth it. You as an individual have the power to make a gradual change in your community. But this comes along with many unanswered questions. In addition, despite the fact that the FDA has deemed this to be safe for consumption, chemicals from the plastic may seep into liquids, releasing substances that have the potential to influence estrogen levels. Why is plastic bad for the environment? Getting rid of a single plastic straw may not have a very large effect on the environment. Plastic is not the largest contributor of pollution and the . Additionally, awareness raising campaigns create a social pressure that should inspire local government and institutions to help in making changes at a bigger scale, like a regional ban or levy. Most of it is either dumped in landfills or ends up in the ocean. We are working hard to improve our content. Stanford Reportspoke withJim Leape, co-director of theStanford Center for Ocean Solutions, andCraig Criddle, a professor of civil and environmental engineering, about the path to reducing ocean plastic pollution. We are a couple of environmentalists who seek inspiration for life in simple values based on our love for nature. And, if you dont like wearing the same shirt or pants, Read More Dont wash it if it doesnt look dirtyContinue, At age 50, Kay is a little over halfway through her life as a driver. Some companies are taking initiative on their own. As a result, the actual recycling rate for plastic bags globally is between 5 to 15 percent, while in the United States it makes only 1 percent a year [17].