The elephant in the room: straw
All plastic wastes annoy me, but I cannot bear to the plastic straw. You know what?
The world is now struggling to deal with its plastic pollution hangover.
Think that you need a straw? Are you a baby? If you are reading this, obviously not. Do you have any disabilities?
Straws were originally invented for people with disabilities and used in hospitals. Joseph B. Friedman created and sold the first disposable bendy straws as a tool to help reclined patients, and people with assorted other disabilities, drink easily from cups while laying on the bed.
Plastic straws are really annoying because they are everywhere when you go to a restaurant and request a drink, they bring it with straw. Why is that? Did I ask you? Even though it costs extra money for restaurants, why they insist on using it even if there is no offer.
One study estimated around 8.3 billion plastic straws pollute the world's beaches! And we know that more than 90% of all plastic produced isn’t recycled because they are too lightweight to make it through the mechanical recycling sorter.
It is everywhere, and it is used once, then thrown away! Straws are one of the culprits of unnecessary plastic pollution. Many types of straws cannot be reused or recycled. Most plastic straws are also not biodegradable and cannot be broken down naturally by bacteria and other decomposers into non-toxic materials. Even they are broken into ever-smaller particles, they contaminate the soil, air and water and enter into the food chain.
Thanks to the UK government for banning of this single-use plastics!
From October 2020, it is illegal for businesses to sell or supply single-use plastic straws, cotton buds and drinks stirrers as the government clamps down on avoidable plastic waste in England!
These unnecessary and non-recyclable wastes drive me crazy. Thanks to the countries banning the use of single-use plastic. What about the others?
You might not know that the oceans would have more plastics than fishes by 2050!
Millions of turtles, seabirds, and other wildlife die directly related to plastic consumption in each year. The studies estimated that 70% of seabirds and 30% of turtles have ingested some type of plastic from the ocean. Moreover, a study conducted by The UGA New Materials Institute discovered 100% of baby sea turtles have eaten the microplastics particles smaller than dust or powdered sugar. These baby sea turtles were likely dying because of ingested plastic pollution, which threatens the species’ survival.
Image: Sean A. Williamson.
Please refuse single-use plastic straws and save the ocean, animal and human beings = UNIVERSE!
How can you do it?
You can request your cold drink made without a single-use plastic straw. You should state this while giving an order.
You can also bring your own sustainable alternatives, they are small and easy to carry on.
Please use the alternatives: paper, metals, glass or bamboo, and even made by pasta!
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