Alarmingly, plastic is wreaking havoc on our planet and the world’s collective consciousness has become heightened to this looming ecological crisis. Consequently, many restaurants in the United States are taking a stand and swapping single-use plastic for paper straws to reduce their footprint.
How Plastic Straws Lead to Environmental Deterioration
When it comes to disposable plastic straws, the environmental impacts are far-reaching and long-lasting. Single-use plastic straws are not biodegradable, meaning they take around 200 years to decompose, and during this time they break down into smaller pieces of plastic, or microplastics. This has huge implications for the environment, particularly our oceans and marine life.
Landfill Waste
Plastic straws have been identified as a leading contributor to landfill waste and environmental pollution. The estimated 500 million plastic straws used daily in the US constitute a significant amount of non-biodegradable waste — especially when considering customers often use them only once with their drinks. As they are made from petroleum-based chemicals, these straws will remain in our environment for hundreds if not thousands of years. Plastic straws also pose a serious threat to wildlife, who can mistake them for food or get tangled up in them.
Ocean and Waterway Pollution
Plastic straws are a major source of ocean and waterway pollution. As plastic products, straws never really breakdown, down but instead photodegrade into smaller pieces that are ingested by marine life. These pieces can be mistaken for food and ingested, leading to blockages in their intestines which can cause them to starve or cause other fatal health risks. Microplastics from straws can also attach themselves to plankton, the basis of the marine food chain, meaning that the pollutants enter our seafood supply as well.
On top of this physical danger, plastic straws can also have an environmental impact on marine ecosystems through chemical pollution. In addition to the chemicals released during the production and disposal of plastic materials, plastics absorb additional pollutants such as PCBs and DDT when exposed to seawater. These chemicals have been found to accumulate within organisms higher up in the food chain including humans who consume seafood contaminated by microplastics from discarded straws.
What’s more, plastic straws often become entangled with other larger debris, forming huge floating masses of rubbish in our oceans that cannot be broken down naturally. These agglomerations impede fishing nets as well as damage any ships or boats that happen to come in contact with them, further harming our aquatic ecosystems and habitats. Plastic debris accumulations also provide an ideal breeding ground for mosquitoes that carry diseases such as malaria and dengue fever – presenting yet another threat posed by plastic straw pollution on both land and sea.
Air Pollution
The use of plastic straws adds to the growing problem of air pollution. Firstly, their production and incineration release a wide range of hazardous pollutants into the atmosphere. The burning of plastic releases toxic chemicals such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), which are known to have adverse effects on human health and the environment. Furthermore, when plastic straws are burned they generate black carbon particles, which is a significant contributor to global warming.
Additionally, plastic straws can be difficult to recycle; burning plastic adds 850 million metric tons of greenhouse gases to the atmosphere every year. Therefore, due to their small size and complex structure, meaning that many end up in landfills where they accumulate rather than being broken down by bacteria or diverted away from incinerators.
Microplastics created from degraded plastic straws can also enter the atmosphere through wind erosion or volatilization. These microplastics can then travel far distances and cause further air pollution wherever they land. The small particles can easily be inhaled by nearby people and animals, leading to respiratory problems such as asthma and bronchitis.
Bans on Plastic Straws
Current research has revealed the overwhelming issue that plastic straws present. Although some cities, like Seattle and San Francisco, have attempted to prohibit plastic straws in establishments, we must take further action if our actions are going to make any discernible improvement toward resolving this waste problem.
Plastic straws are being banned in the US to reduce plastic waste and address the environmental impacts of disposable single-use products. Cities across the country, such as New York City, Charleston, South Carolina, and Miami Beach, Florida have already enacted local ordinances prohibiting restaurants from providing plastic straws.
These laws typically require restaurants to provide straws only upon request or opt for alternative materials like paper or bamboo. Seattle became the first major US city to ban single-use plastic straws and utensils in July 2018. Additionally, some major corporations have implemented corporate-wide bans on single-use plastics such as plastic straws.
Plastic vs Paper Straws
The production of paper straws and plastic straws differ in terms of materials used, energy consumption, sustainability, and cost.
Paper straws are made up of natural components like wood pulp and cellulose fibers, which can be quickly sourced, processed, and manufactured into a finished product. This makes the production process relatively more environment-friendly compared to plastic straws. However, these components require a high water usage rate which is not very sustainable in the long run.
Plastic straws are composed of chemicals such as polypropylene or polyethylene resins, which require a higher degree of energy to be produced than paper straws and cause pollution in air and water bodies. Also, these chemicals often become waste which hurts soil fertility. On the other hand, plastic straws are cheaper to produce than paper because many of their components are synthetically derived from fossil fuels or oil.
Overall, both types of straws have their own set of advantages and disadvantages when it comes to production; however paper straws offer better environmental benefits due to their natural ingredients while plastic ones provide economic advantages through their cheaper cost structure.
Environmental Impact of Paper Straws
The use of paper straws is becoming increasingly popular due to their perceived environmental benefits, as an alternative to plastic straws. Paper straws are often seen as a more sustainable option, however, they have both pros and cons associated with them.
Benefits of Using Plastic Straws
They are Biodegradable
Paper straws are beneficial for both our planet and its inhabitants. Not only do they biodegrade within 3 days, but since these eco-friendly items consist of 100% paper, it eliminates the 300-year decomposition period that plastic drinking straws endure in landfills. This is a great way to help reduce single-use plastics which cause so much damage to our environment!
They Don’t Pollute Waterways
Paper straws are the better choice when it comes to keeping our waterways clean and pollution-free. Unlike plastic straws that remain in the environment for hundreds of years, paper straws degrade in a matter of days and leave no trace behind. Studies have shown that paper straws break down into harmless organic substances, meaning that they don’t contribute to any additional water pollution or marine debris.
Additionally, since paper straws are biodegradable, they can be disposed of in compost bins and will provide nutrients for plants instead of taking up space in landfills. In this way, paper straws prevent the leaching of toxic chemicals into the soil and groundwater from plastic materials, reducing their environmental impact even further. Therefore, when given the choice between paper or plastic straws, opting for paper is a much more eco-friendly option as it does not pollute our waterways or harm wildlife.
They are Easier to Recycle
Paper straws are an increasingly popular alternative to plastic straws due to their biodegradability and recyclability. Paper straws are relatively easier to recycle because they are typically made from post-consumer paper that has already been recycled, such as cardboard or newspaper. Additionally, paper straws often contain fewer chemicals and additives than traditional plastic straws, so the recycling process is simpler and much less energy intensive.
Furthermore, paper straws can often be composted in home composting systems or industrial composters when they have reached the end of their useful life. As a result, paper straws offer an environmentally friendly alternative to traditional plastic straws that is both economical and earth-friendly.
Drawbacks of Using Plastic Straws
They Lose Structural Integrity
The low quality of many paper straws also presents another major disadvantage. Paper straws can also soften too quickly when exposed to liquid, meaning they tend to lose their structural integrity faster than plastic straws. This affects the lifespan of the product and means businesses must continually replenish their supplies more often than if they were using plastic alternatives.
Energy Intensive Process
Straw production is also energy intensive and releases significant amounts of greenhouse gases into the atmosphere during its manufacturing process. This tends to be especially true when chlorine-bleached pulp is used in the production process – something that many cheap paper products rely on heavily. The fact that chlorine bleaching can release large amounts of hazardous chemicals into the environment further exacerbates their environmental impact.
They Cost More
Another disadvantage of paper straws is their cost. Paper straws can sometimes be a bit pricier than traditional plastic ones due to their higher production costs, which can lead people and businesses away from using them together despite their potential positive environmental impacts.
Waxed Straws are Harder to Decompose
Some manufacturers apply a wax coating to their products to prevent them from absorbing too much liquid or decomposing too quickly – however this also means that these coated straws take longer to decompose, thus contributing further to landfill waste.
Commercial Adoption of Paper Straws
Businesses in the US are taking great strides to reduce plastic pollution and abandon single-use plastics. Plastic straws are a major part of this effort, as they can be found everywhere and are difficult to recycle. Companies like Starbucks, Disney, Hyatt, and American Airlines have made a difference by replacing plastic straws with environmentally friendly alternatives.
Starbucks has become the first major company to move away from plastic straws, replacing them with recyclable lids on most of their iced drinks. Customers who need or want a straw will still be able to request them, but these will not be made of plastic. Additionally, Disney has also announced that it will eliminate all single-use plastic straws and stirrers from its locations by mid-2019.
Hyatt is also taking steps towards reducing its environmental impact by making plastic straws and drink picks available only upon request. Taking it one step further, American Airlines is set to replace all plastic straws from its lounges with biodegradable eco-friendly straws and wood stir sticks. To raise even more awareness about the issue of single-use plastics, Alaska Airlines partnered up with the non-profit Lonely Whale initiative in early 2018.
These companies are doing an amazing job at addressing the issues of single-use plastics and promoting greener alternatives for businesses. Moreover, these efforts will help reduce the amount of waste generated by these businesses which will ultimately benefit our environment.