10 reasons why plastic straws should be banned

Plastic utensils are convenient and straws are fun for kids, but much of that plastic eventually winds up in a landfill or as litter. "To us, it was the 'gateway plastic' to the larger, more . Ultimately, we can further decrease costs and achieve economies of scale through decentralized production systems and perhaps also at large biorefineries. In 2015 researchers from the University of Georgia estimated that between 4.8 million and 12.7 million metric tons of plastic per year make their way into the oceans via people living within 30 miles of a coast. They are a part of our modern lives, and we dont tend to think much about them. For wildlife, microplastics can be particularly dangerous; when eaten they can easily accumulate inside an animals body and cause health issues, like punctured organs or fatal intestinal blockages. Should Plastic Straws Be Banned? [Pros & Cons of a Straw Ban] Starting in the 1960s, plastic straw manufacturing took off. Though plastica chain of synthetic polymers, essentiallywas invented in the mid-19th century, it wasnt until the 1970s that its popularity skyrocketed. 2015-2023 Greentumble. Single use plastics wreak havoc on wildlife and the earth. Look around and you will notice that plastic bags are the most common litter. 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. Criddle and Leape are also senior fellows at theStanford Woods Institute for the Environment. Plastic is not the largest contributor of pollution and the . This is the case particularly in Southeast Asia, which has begun to import much of the plastic that used to go to China for recycling. We all know what the debate is between plastic and paper straws but paper straws are horrible they will immediately break apart in your mouth and feel horrible. Plastic straws are not the first iteration of straws. (Everything You Need To Know). We've all become too hooked on the availability and comfort of the stuff. | | Required fields are marked *. Growing public concern has inspired movements to ban single-use plastics, most notably straws. Low rated: 2. Made from fossil fuels 3. The crucial challenge is to ensure that these bans are just a first step. In fact, plastic straws only make up around 0.03 percent of total plastic waste by mass. Activists Say Straws Should Be Banned Because They Are a 'Gateway Plastic' However, one thing we know, is that by introducing a pollutant that may never break down in the environment can have implications that will far exceed any of our predictions. We should also try to give up plastic straws if we are capable of doing so. Plastic fragments in the ocean such as those from plastic bags can absorb pollutants like PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls) and PAHs (Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) easily. In 2008, a crocodile in Australia died because of 25 plastic bags filling its stomach [11]. For example, some disabled people may not be able to properly hold or pick up a cup, so they need to use straws to drink properly. Five Reasons Banning Plastics May Harm the Environment and Consumers Here are 3 reasons why plastic straws should not be banned, explained in a simple and easy-to-understand manner: 1. If it looks clean, smells clean (and sounds clean! If there is one piece of advice that everyone should remember, it would be that nothing is for free in this world. Post date: 18 yesterday. Plastic bags being the major component of the trash thrown away, most of it ends up on the streets. This means that you are not consuming more resources every time you need to carry your groceries home. Fortunately, microorganisms can also use cheap, renewable substrates, such as food wastes, biogas methane, carbon dioxide and renewable hydrogen. If you are constantly feeling gassy, then you should definitely consider drinking beverages the old fashioned way. 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. Coca-Cola makes an estimated 110 billion plastic bottles a year. By 2030, CEO James Quincey has pledged to use 50 percent recycled material in its bottles and cans and recycle one bottle or can. Activists Say Straws Should Be Banned Because They Are a 'Gateway Plastic' Advocates hope a straw ban will be the first step toward broader plastic prohibitions. As plastic bags are not disposed properly . Single-use plastics are most commonly used for packaging and serviceware, such as bottles, wrappers, straws, and bags. This means that the average consumption of plastic bags per person dropped from 328 bags per year to just 21 [20]. These costs include the true environmental costs of resource extraction and depletion, the loss of quality of life, economic loss from littering, and wildlife loss. Dont re-wash something if you can wear it again. Lizzie Carr is shining a light on what is floating through the worlds waterways, and breaking athletic records along the way. Single-Use Plastics 101 | NRDC Plastic straws, being so lightweight and non-biodegradable, are readily carried into the water, where they eventually break down into smaller and smaller pieces of microplastic. After all, ask your grandparents, they will remember that during their time people were used to go shopping with their own bags or baskets. This means that you need to first educate yourself about the problem. McDonald's recently announced . Such materials already exist in nature. In many instances, it may seem too awkward for you to refuse the bag, so you accept it this one time, but you should know that it is fine to say no politely even at this stage if you dont want that bag. But should plastic straws really be banned? 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. Not only does the waste destroy the land itself, but when plastic is incinerated (as is the case for unrecyclable plastic at some illegal facilities) its toxic fumes quickly become a health hazard for residents, leading to everything from skin rashes to cancer. Single-use plastics in particularespecially small items like straws, bags, and cutleryare traditionally hard to recycle because they fall into the crevices of recycling machinery and therefore are often not accepted by recycling centers. In 2015 a mere 24 of these ethane cracker facilities in the United States had the combined carbon output of 3.8 million passenger vehicles. This blog covers a variety of topics including plastic pollution, renewable energy, electric vehicles, and much more. While we may not pay for plastic bags directly when we go shopping, they are anything but free.. The Pasig River in the Philippines is another scary example of the negative effects of plastic bags on the environment. Since their birth, baby turtles have only one goal to get to the sea and swim into deep waters where they will feed and if successful grow into adult turtles. They're not alone. Avoid plastic wrap altogether by storing leftovers in reusable containers. What do the bans accomplish? The Natural Resources Defense Council works to safeguard the earth - its people, Let us know if you liked this article. Plastic straws only account for roughly one percent of the total amount of waste plastic found in the ocean. Marine animals bear the burden of this influx of garbage into their habitats. Help raise awareness of fellow consumers that means everyone when you think about it (unless they dont shopever). Banning Straws and Bags Won't Solve our Plastic Problem Because of this, the plants and wildlife in the area have a potential risk of absorbing the microplastics through their diets and drinking water. In the United States alone, statistics reach up to 12 million barrels of oil that are used each year to produce even more plastic bags 100 billion more, to give you the precise number [5]. Reasons why smoking should be banned articles jobs According to some estimates, the cost of plastic bag cleanup is about 17 cents per bag [14] and the cost is paid by us once again. They contribute to the contamination of our landfills and seas when they are discarded after use. Another indirect danger of plastic bags has breeding ground in the pollution they create. Then, you should try to explain your reasons for not wanting your products packed in plastic bags. The second, more fundamental imperative is to get plastics out of our waste stream. We use them to drink beverages at home and we get them at almost every restaurant. Another example of a locally issued ban is Seattle where not only single-use plastic bags have been banned but also single-use compostable and biodegradable bags. An additional problem with plastic grocery bags recycling is their cleanliness. Buying a product through my link comes at no extra cost to you, and I only recommend products that I believe in. We are a couple of environmentalists who seek inspiration for life in simple values based on our love for nature. It was first invented in 1907 by Belgian-American chemist Leo Baekeland. (Source: Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment), Stanford scientists are among a growing number of researchers harnessing artificial intelligence techniques to bring more realistic representations of ubiquitous atmospheric ripples into global climate models. Well, before putting it into the laundry basket, take a look at it closely. Plastic bags have become such a nuisance because we as consumers use them excessively even when not needed and authorities havent figured out effective ways of dealing with them as waste. Well, lets have a look at the most important reasons why single-use plastic bags should be banned right now. 6461 garfield street hollywood, fl. 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. Scientists are showing that we are sending tons of tiny plastic particles into our soils each year, potentially affecting crops and our health. Coca-Cola has said that it alone produces three million tons of plastic packaging each year, equivalent to a terrifying 200,000 plastic bottles per minute. Alarmingly, scientists estimate that there will be more plastic than fish in the ocean by weight in 2050. Since the 1950s, 8.3 billion metric tons of plastics have been produced, and half of that in the past 15 years alone. Straws, Ives says, made the perfect target: too inconsequential to really be missed but so ubiquitous that their absence would be noticed. Policies like bottle bill lawswhich generally require retailers to add a fee on individual bottles, which can then be partially redeemed by customers when they recycleare a way to increase corporate responsibility for waste while providing a monetary incentive to recycle. Thats a promising start. They end up in the water, eaten by wildlife, and inside our bodies. 10 reasons why plastic straws should be banned 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. These are known to be hormone-disrupting chemicals. the eight worst source of ocean plastic pollution, Impact of Plastic Bags on the Environment, non-renewable fossil fuel-based resources, Plastic Bag Degradation: What You Should Know, Serious Effects of Plastic Pollution on Human Health. Put simply, single-use plastics are goods that are made primarily from fossil fuelbased chemicals (petrochemicals) and are meant to be disposed of right after useoften, in mere minutes. 2. FNB News - Choose the right straw | FNB News Other country that has decided to enforce the country-wide plastic bag ban after suffering of negative consequences was Mauritania. High costs for cleanup 8. 10 reasons why plastic straws should not be banned However, I do believe that we should limit our use of plastic straws by asking businesses to only give out straws on request.

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