Why Plastic Straws Are Being Banned - Square Plastics bags are not so much necessary that man cannot live without it. LEAPE:Microplastics pervade the oceans. Participate in beach or river cleanups. How? It's free to sign up and bid on jobs. We should do likewise. This form of ban could lead to a reduction in landfill across the country, going a long way to protect the nature and serenity of the area. Thats nearly equivalent to the weight of the entire human population. Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. One of the most significant negative effects that plastic bags have on the natural world is that it takes a very long time for them to degrade.In addition, the breakdown of plastic bags in the sun results in the release of hazardous compounds into the surrounding soil, and the combustion of plastic bags results in the release of a poisonous material into the surrounding air, contributing to the problem of ambient air pollution. It means that most bags can be recycled. This means that you need to first educate yourself about the problem. Here are 3 reasons why plastic straws should not be banned, explained in a simple and easy-to-understand manner: 1. Communities and consumers can play vital roles in sparking action. Dont re-wash something if you can wear it again. The resulting number is staggering. Stanford experts discuss the limitations of these bans and the potential for meaningful change. Plastic straws only account for roughly one percent of the total amount of waste plastic found in the ocean. Then, you should try to explain your reasons for not wanting your products packed in plastic bags. Have some dirty clothes that you just wore today? Some Disabled People Require Plastic Straws to Drink For some people with disabilities, straws are the only way they. Even when you dont see it, these indestructible particles are everywhere around us, including in the food chain. 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. Buy in bulk. Communities with good awareness about negative impacts of plastic bags have been more successful at enforcing the ban [20]. Here's a quick list of the ways plastic straws may be harming your health: 1. Once the wheel starts spinning, it leads to even more positive changes. A wave of single-use plastic bans is sweeping the country and the globemost often on plastic bags, straws, stirrers, and takeout clamshells. Globally, 8 to 10 percent of our current oil supply goes to a plastic bag manufacture [4]. Single-use plastics are most commonly used for packaging and serviceware, such as bottles, wrappers, straws, and bags. Quick Navigation for Reasons Why Plastic Shopping Bags Should Be Banned REASONS 1. Plastic is not the largest contributor of pollution and the . Accompanied by high social accountability and musical garbage trucks, that strategy has proved wildly effective: the island now reports recycling rates above 50 percent. Plastic bags are a convenient way to carry our purchased goods when we go shopping. 2. Plastic bag bansideally accompanied by a fee on paper bagsare also catching on. A calf had to be put down because of indigestion caused by 8 plastic bags in its stomach. On average, plastic bags cost retailers about 3-5 cents each. 13.07.2022 Harry Brown THE TOP 10 REASONS TO DO NOT USE THE STRAW O This requires the usage of 500 million straws Straws and other items made of plastic are harmful Every day in the United States. Such materials already exist in nature. A straw with our iced coffee, a plastic bag to carry our takeout, a wrapper on a candy bar: taken individually, each seems harmless. Your email address will not be published. There are numerous reasons why PLA straws are not the right substitute for plastic straws . By 2030, CEO James Quincey has pledged to use 50 percent recycled material in its bottles and cans and recycle one bottle or can. We shouldnt ban plastic straws if it creates an accessibility issue. Each day, the United States of America uses 500 million drinking straws. Though plastica chain of synthetic polymers, essentiallywas invented in the mid-19th century, it wasnt until the 1970s that its popularity skyrocketed. Lizzie Carr is shining a light on what is floating through the worlds waterways, and breaking athletic records along the way. Its because Asian and US coastlines release large amounts of plastic waste in the ocean [7]. In 2008, a crocodile in Australia died because of 25 plastic bags filling its stomach [11]. that do collect plastic bags and other plastic films and send them for proper recycling. Polyethylene terephthalate, one of the most commonly recycled plastics and the material that makes up most water and soda bottles, can be turned into everything from polyester fabric to automotive parts. India, for example, generates 25,940 tons of plastic waste every day but collects only 60 percent of it. Paper vs. TIME for Kids | Should Plastic Straws Be Banned? Let us know if you liked this article. Beached whales have been found with stomachs full of plastic trash. By being aware about these issues, you will be ready to present some strong arguments why plastic bags should be banned in your area and answer questions of people who will become your ally if you will persuade them about your good intentions. Shuddering and unable to breathe, he vomited up five plastic bags. Arguments Why Plastic Should Be Banned - Green Matters Therefore, a plastic straw ban by itself is unlikely to be very effective in actually helping the environment, although it could act as a gateway into the reduction of other single-use plastics. Nows the Time. And will a plastic straw ban actually be effective when it comes to saving our oceans and environment? They are tinier than a palm of your hand and appear so fragile when struggling across the beach to make it to the sea. Banning Straws and Bags Won't Solve our Plastic Problem Have you ever seen endangered sea turtles hatch? These modern conveniences are so ubiquitousand so quickly thrown outthat they hardly register in our minds. Talk to the owners of the restaurants you frequent. Skip the Straw - Florida Department of Environmental Protection You can use some easy online locators to see the closest plastic bag drop-off. There is a lot of research now underway on the health effects of ocean plastics, but we already know that some plastics, and the chemicals that attach themselves to plastics in the water, can cause cancer, genetic disruptions and other ill effects. A recent report showed that plastic production contributes to planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions at every point in its life cycle. Exposure to microplastics, as well as the chemicals that are added to plastics during processing, harm our health. . Once a paper product has been contaminated with food or drink, it must be disposed of in a landfill. High costs for cleanup 8. What never leaves, Read More Sustainable Diving & Snorkeling: How to Prevent Damage to Marine EcosystemsContinue, Top 3 Ways Kids can Help the Earth! The trend has already started. 2. The small pilot whale, found in a Thai canal this past June, is another symptom of a crisis in the worlds oceans. 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. The decrease in demand for plastic bags forces manufacturers to reduce their production and consider expanding in a supply of alternative products. Should Plastic be Banned Essay for Students in English - VEDANTU 1. 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. Single use plastics wreak havoc on wildlife and the earth. McDonald's recently announced . Plastic pollution is one of the biggest problems facing our world today. Most drop-off collection points accept plastic bags made from high-density polyethylene (plastic number 2) and low-density polyethylene (plastic number 4). Such changes could have outsized benefits for vulnerable populations that rely on rivers for their water supply. 2. Plastic bag litter has even caused great problems in some areas. Greentumble was founded in the summer of 2015 by us, Sara and Ovi. This blog covers a variety of topics including plastic pollution, renewable energy, electric vehicles, and much more. This includes grocery plastic bags, Ziplock-type bags, dry cleaning bags and bread bags. Plastic utensils are convenient and straws are fun for kids, but much of that plastic eventually winds up in a landfill or as litter. You can share this article on social media by using the share buttons below. Coca-Cola makes an estimated 110 billion plastic bottles a year. We add another 8 million tons each year thats about five grocery bags full of plastic waste on every foot of shoreline around the world, according to a recent study. But you should also consider the other perspective what effect single-use bags have had on the local economy and product affordability. Thanks for signing up. Made from fossil fuels 3. Oil and natural gas are non-renewable fossil fuel-based resources and through their extraction and production, they emit greenhouse gases, which contribute to global climate change. Pack it alongside reusable cutlery (like wood, bamboo, or metal chopsticks) for sustainable eating on the go. Such is the case with many environmental crises: the worst effects are pushed onto overburdened communities with the fewest resources to fight back. Once in the ocean, plastic pollution is extremely dangerous to marine life, and plastic straws are no exception. The most common are inorganic dyes that are added to change the color of plastic bags. Single-use plastics are a glaring example of the problems with throwaway culture. Those global companies can be important levers in driving change and shifting to a regenerative, circular economy. Forty years after the launch of the first universal recycling symbol, only 14 percent of plastic packaging is recycled. Thats bad news for our carbon reduction goals: if plastic production continues unabated, its greenhouse gas emissions could reach 1.34 gigatons per year by 2030equal to adding nearly 300 new coal-fired power plantseven as the need to curb global climate change becomes more urgent. Plastic straws are one of the most common forms of pollution found on beaches and in oceans all over the world. Its Plastic Incineration. The second, more fundamental imperative is to get plastics out of our waste stream. Plastic pollutionwhether in our oceans, piling up on our coastlines, or contributing to our climate crisisimpacts vulnerable communities first. On their long journey, they will encounter many difficulties and only a small portion of them will survive. Straws have been found stuck in a sea turtle's nose and wedged in the stomachs of dead birds and dolphins. Ms. LISA PAI . In fact, plastic bags are considered by many recycling facilities the number one contaminant and their removal from the recycling stream costs municipalities close to $1 million a year [18]. We will Paper straws cannot be recycled in any way. The explanation is quite simple. 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. They suspect that it may add stress on the liver by introducing more pathogens into the body. Only then would a plastic straw ban be able to actually help preserve the environment. Other states such as Hawaii, cities such as Seattle and New York, and corporations such as Amazon and Starbucks are also considering or have initiated plastic phase-out plans. Greenwashing Alert: Chemical Recycling Isnt Actually Recycling. NRDCs Eric Goldstein gives the scoop on the latest environmental villain and explains why plastic straws really are a big menace to our oceans. ), then its clean! By simply using less plastic, you can help keep marine life from eating and getting entangled in garbage. Refineries where crude oil is turned into plastic make up one of the most greenhouse gasintensive industries in the manufacturing sector. Buying a product through my link comes at no extra cost to you, and I only recommend products that I believe in. As for reusable straws, they arent flexible as plastic ones and can be easily forgotten at home. 300 to 700 plastic bags pass through the hands of an average American in just one year [8] and a survey of the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs concluded that the average household in the United Kingdom stores around 40 plastic shopping bags at home [2]. What do the bans accomplish? 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. Low rated: 2. [PDF] Skip The Straw - 10 Reasons Fact Sheet - Kids. As it turns out, many microorganisms make moldable bioplastic polymers that are fully degradable. (Some places are going so far as to ban single-use plastics entirely; most notably, India intends to go this route by 2022.) They are also capable of being ingested by fish, seabirds, and marine mammals, which in turn causes the animals injury and, in the case of fish, allows them to enter the human food chain. Plastic straws have an especially high propensity to end up in our rivers after being thrown away. Yeah I end up going through like 5 paper straws because they keep disintegrating and I can't drink my drink anymore. So, for example, companies need to not only make products that are recyclable, but actually make them out of recycled or truly biodegradable material. Petroleum-based plastic bags are composed of very resistant synthetic polymers that may take up to 1,000 years or never until they completely degrade in natural environments [6]. Why Plastic Bags And Straws Should Not Be Banned It is estimated that there are now 150 million metric tons of plastic in the ocean. Litter can be the first stage in a waste stream that enters waterways as plastics tossed on the street are washed away by rain or travel via storm drains into rivers and streams. 10 reasons why plastic straws should be banned - tmtnevins.com Without proper education, few people would know the purpose of the ban, and they would continue using other single-use plastics which could be even worse for the environment. The crisis is so serious that many people are saying that plastic straws should be outlawed. Some opposers of the plastic straw ban say that a ban is unlikely to actually help the environment, as plastic straws do not make up a large percentage of plastic in the ocean. Recycling more plastic, more frequently, reduces its footprint. The reason to worry is that scientists do not know how our metabolism and immunity will react to the increased concentration of plastic particles in our system. Straws don't provide as much utility as bags, so for many this is an easy adjustment. To make matters worse, if plastic straws get into the ocean, they can be mistaken for food by marine animals. Why are Plastic Straws Bad and What are the Alernatives? Most of it is either dumped in landfills or ends up in the ocean. Not only is plastic estimated to kill millions of marine animals and seabirds each year, but its also contaminating seafood that humans have relied on for millennia, particularly with microplastics in animals guts. Increased awareness about the negative effects of single-use plastics would help the environment a lot more than just a simple plastic straw ban. Criddle and Leape are also senior fellows at theStanford Woods Institute for the Environment. The crucial challenge is to ensure that these bans are just a first step, offering a natural place to start with low-hanging fruit so long as its part of a much more fundamental shift away from single-use plastics across the value chains of these companies and our economy. If there is one piece of advice that everyone should remember, it would be that nothing is for free in this world. So, retailers incorporate this cost hiddenly into prices of other items sold at stores. It also took 100% of those plastic grocery bags out of the recycling system, where they bound up machinery and increased costs. Beyond the costs associated with the production and purchasing of plastic bags by retailers, there are many external costs that are often not considered. The production of these bags is very energy intensive. Getting rid of a single plastic straw may not have a very large effect on the environment. Car Recycling: Everything You Need to Know (With Statistics), Sustainable Diving & Snorkeling: How to Prevent Damage to Marine Ecosystems, What Are Microplastics and Why Are They a Concern? If environmental zealots and sycophants get their way, you won't be allowed to sip it through a plastic straw. Reasons Why Plastic Straws Should Be Banned? Because of this, the plants and wildlife in the area have a potential risk of absorbing the microplastics through their diets and drinking water. Quick Navigation for Reasons Why Plastic Shopping Bags Should Be Banned, [1] https://wedocs.unep.org/bitstream/handle/20.500.11822/25496/singleUsePlastic_sustainability.pdf, [2] https://www.eco-business.com/opinion/getting-rid-of-plastic-bags-a-windfall-for-supermarkets-but-it-wont-do-much-for-the-environment/, [3] https://www.thethirdpole.net/en/2018/04/09/plastic-chokes-dhakas-drainage/, [4] https://1bagatatime.com/learn/plastic-bags-petroleum/, [5] https://abcnews.go.com/Technology/story?id=2935417&page=1, [6] https://www.nationalgeographic.com/magazine/2018/06/plastic-planet-waste-pollution-trash-crisis/, [7] https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.1088/1748-9326/10/12/124006/pdf, [8] https://www.mnn.com/earth-matters/animals/blogs/rare-sea-turtles-eating-plastic-at-record-rate, [9] https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1111/cobi.12126, [10] http://www.prijatelji-zivotinja.hr/index.en.php?id=934, [11] http://advocacy.britannica.com/blog/advocacy/2008/12/plastic-bags-and-animals-making-the-wild-safe-for-wildlife/, [12] http://science.sciencemag.org/content/359/6374/460, [13] https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2018/oct/22/microplastics-found-in-human-stools-for-the-first-time, [14] https://1bagatatime.com/learn/plastic-bag-clean-costs/, [15] http://www.bagmonster.com/2010/04/the-true-cost-of-single-use-bags.html, [16] http://www.cep.unep.org/cep-documents/unep-press-release-on-the-effects-of-plastic-waste-on-marine-ecosystems.pdf, [17] https://greentumble.com/can-plastic-bags-be-recycled/, [18] https://1bagatatime.com/learn/plastic-bag-clean-costs/, [19] https://www.worldatlas.com/articles/how-many-countries-are-in-the-world.html, [20] https://wedocs.unep.org/bitstream/handle/20.500.11822/25496/singleUsePlastic_sustainability.pdf. Ill also go over whether or not plastic straw bans will actually help the environment, and explain everything else youll need to know. Theyre in about a quarter of the seafood in our markets, and even in table salt. Problematic degradation 4. keep you informed with the latest alerts and progress reports. And Starbucks, which uses an estimated one billion plastic straws per year, is phasing them out in favor of paper ones. Most retailers will get your point, but it can also happen that they will not be willing to sell you some products without placing it in their plastic bags because of having to oblige with some hygiene and sanitary standards (for example when selling meat products). State Disclosures. This means that you are not consuming more resources every time you need to carry your groceries home. Prior the ban, 70 percent of livestock losses were attributed to plastic bag ingestion. The cashier usually understands, only had to do what instructed and what most customers expect (unfortunately) from him or her. edinburgh airport address. Plastic is more sanitary and safer to use than other alternatives. There are some great initiatives that strive to provide jobs for women in rural communities with limited possibilities of securing monthly income. If we ban single-use plastic straws we will have to turn to the dangerous alternatives.In source Divers, for example, descend 130 feet under the water, seek unique-looking creatures, and observe the marine world in all its glory. Ask if they have nonplastic alternatives to plastic straws, stirrers, or bags. 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. In fact, it is estimated that up to 10 million plastic bags are used every minute around the world [1]. So that free plastic bag isnt so free after all. These tiny plastic particles have been found in our oceans, soil, and even in the air. But a whopping 91 percent of all plastic isnt recycled at all. For example, a reusable jute bag should last at least 4 years, during which it can prevent the use of 600 single-use plastic bags.