10 Reasons Why Plastic Straws Should Be Banned? You as an individual have the power to make a gradual change in your community. 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. It is possible to enhance ones risk of developing cavities by using a straw while consuming liquids that are either sweet or acidic. Once the wheel starts spinning, it leads to even more positive changes. Reasons Why Plastic Straws Should Be Banned? CRIDDLE:We need to think about what incentives will promote a culture of recycling and innovation with respect to waste streams. It was first invented in 1907 by Belgian-American chemist Leo Baekeland. Among the U.S. cities to outlaw plastic straws are Malibu, Berkeley, Seattle, and Miami Beach. O This requires the usage of 500 million straws, Straws and other items made of plastic are harmful, Every day in the United States. The subtropical gyres of the North Pacific Ocean are also documented to contain the highest concentrations of plastic. However, we are all too familiar with situations when a cashier automatically puts your items in a plastic bag before you can oppose it. Those global companies can be important levers in driving change and shifting to a regenerative, circular economy. Plastic bags and plastic products overall contain substances that are harmful to our health. When the monsoon rains start, streets get waterlogged just after the first few minutes because the water cannot pass through clogged sewerage pipes. Heres everything you need to know about the most ubiquitous (and avoidable) kind of plastic waste: the kind made to be tossed in mere minutes. (Everything You Need To Know). 5 Metals in your Home that can be Recycled for Cash, How exactly bidets offer a healthier, green option for your bathroom, A Closer Look at General Motors (GM) Sustainability Initiatives. 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. Getting rid of a single plastic straw may not have a very large effect on the environment. The people of Macon, Georgia, saw through it. Companies are trying to sell communities on a toxic solution to the plastic pollution crisis. Do you also have that overflowing kitchen drawer full of plastic bags you bring from your shopping trips? 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 decrease in demand for plastic bags forces manufacturers to reduce their production and consider expanding in a supply of alternative products. It started with cardboard straws, but once plastic production in America increased, people realized it was quicker and cheaper to produce plastic straws. 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. Theyre in about a quarter of the seafood in our markets, and even in table salt. 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. Already in 2001, researchers found that the mass of microscopic plastic fragments in the North Pacific Central Gyre was 6 times higher than of plankton. What is the root of the problem (consumers or municipal waste management)? How can you help to ban plastic bags in your area? TOP 10 10 reasons why plastic straws should be banned BEST and NEWEST In my opinion, plastic straws should not be banned outright, because many disabled people require plastic straws to drink. A study analyzes water transactions that leave water in the river, and shows how they could be scaled up to avert cuts for major water users while supporting imperiled ecosystems. As it turns out, many microorganisms make moldable bioplastic polymers that are fully degradable. 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. Plastic pollutionwhether in our oceans, piling up on our coastlines, or contributing to our climate crisisimpacts vulnerable communities first. Natural Resources Defense Council 2023 Privacy Policy These examples could go on for a long time. Many of the chemicals in plastics are known endocrine disruptors,and research has suggested that human exposure could cause health impacts including hormonal imbalances, reproductive problems like infertility, and even cancer. 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. 10 Reasons Why Plastic Bags Should Be Banned | IUCN Water Plastic bags are often mistaken for food by animals, birds, and marine life. Have some dirty clothes that you just wore today? You can share this article on social media by using the share buttons below. Reducing plastic use is the most effective means of avoiding this waste (and the impacts linked to plastic production and use). Companies are forced to innovate, rethinking their designs and sourcing sustainable materials. Summary: Reduce your use of single-use plastics. This means that you need to first educate yourself about the problem. The country instituted the ban in 2013 to minimize livestock deaths. The consumed plastic congests the digestive tracts of these animals, and can lead to health issues such as infections, painful intestinal blockage, starvation or death by suffocation. Using these non-renewable resources to make plastic bags is very short-sighted, considering that the typical useful life of each plastic bag is about 12 minutes and that the worlds oil reserves contain enough oil to cover our needs through 2050, as the U.S. Energy Information Administration estimates. Martin Grimm/Picture-alliance via Associated Press. If it looks clean, smells clean (and sounds clean! The first country to ban single-use plastic bags was Bangladesh in 2002 when plastic bag litter clogged drainage channels and contributed to destructive floods. Look for another place that does accept or use alternative packaging, such as small local stores that use paper wraps or compostable bags. This blog covers a variety of topics including plastic pollution, renewable energy, electric vehicles, and much more. 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. On average, plastic bags cost retailers about 3-5 cents each. This could negatively reflect on their income. Theyve even made their way up to the secluded Pyrenees mountain range and down to the bottom of the Mariana Trench. 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. The majority of this pollutiondominated by single-use plastic wastecomes from countries lacking infrastructure to properly manage waste, particularly in Asia. Quick Navigation for Reasons Why Plastic Shopping Bags Should Be Banned REASONS 1. Learn how your comment data is processed. These modern conveniences are so ubiquitousand so quickly thrown outthat they hardly register in our minds. 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. Ideally, to be suitable for recycling, bags need to be clean to be accepted, which is often a problem, considering that we use them to carry groceries and potentially leaky goods. So that free plastic bag isnt so free after all. by TFK Kid Reporter Maria Suarez, 10 Bellaire, Texas Plastic straws should not be banned until we can find alternatives that are affordable, environmentally friendly, and acceptable for disabled people. Avoid plastic wrap altogether by storing leftovers in reusable containers. Activists Say Straws Should Be Banned Because They Are a 'Gateway Plastic' Her Stand-Up Paddleboard Is a Platform for Campaigning Against Plastic Pollution, A Growing Concern: Microplastic Pollution on Farm Fields. Scientists are showing that we are sending tons of tiny plastic particles into our soils each year, potentially affecting crops and our health. 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. 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.) 1. Plastic straws (like most plastic) are non-biodegradable, meaning that it cant be naturally broken down by decomposers. Large producers of single-use plastics can make a big environmental impact. 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. Plastic bags are a convenient way to carry our purchased goods when we go shopping. Also, giving a speech in . Search for jobs related to Reasons why smoking should be banned articles or hire on the world's largest freelancing marketplace with 22m+ jobs. 10 Reasons Why Plastic Bags Should Be Banned | Greentumble Even if you can't go zero waste entirely, it's high time we all ended our reliance on single use plastics. Here are 3 reasons why plastic straws should not be banned, explained in a simple and easy-to-understand manner: 1. They contribute to the contamination of our landfills and seas when they are discarded after use. Plastic bag litter has even caused great problems in some areas. Polypropylene is a form of plastic that is frequently used in the production of straws. As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. If youd like to learn more about how plastic straws negatively impact the environment, you can check out this article I wrote about the environmental impact of plastic straws. The majority of plastic bags are made of polyethylene, a substance that is derived from crude oil refining and natural gas processing. By comparison, an estimated 46 percent of all pollution in the ocean is made up of lost or abandoned fishing gear (Vox). (Everything You Need To Know)Continue, Many restaurants have banned plastic straws due to their harmful effects on the environment, and have switched to paper alternatives instead. To date, around 60 countries and municipalities around the world have instituted plastic bag bans, and additional seven countries are planning to enforce the law in the closest future. Why? Ultimately, we can further decrease costs and achieve economies of scale through decentralized production systems and perhaps also at large biorefineries. India, for example, generates 25,940 tons of plastic waste every day but collects only 60 percent of it. This type of plastic is derived from petroleum. These actions are a response to calls for change and shifting consumer habits. A wave of single-use plastic bans is sweeping the country and the globemost often on plastic bags, straws, stirrers, and takeout clamshells. And will a plastic straw ban actually be effective when it comes to saving our oceans and environment? (Some places are going so far as to ban single-use plastics entirely; most notably, India intends to go this route by 2022.) 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. 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. Logically, the key to starting a change in your community is education. What Is Plastic Made Of And How Is It Manufactured? Some experts estimate that more than 1 million sea animals are killed each year by straws and other types of plastic trash. Recycling more plastic, more frequently, reduces its footprint. On average, taxpayers end up paying about $88 per year just on plastic bag waste [15]. Reasons why smoking should be banned articles jobs Buy a metal or bamboo reusable straw. 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. 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. What do the bans accomplish? There are some great initiatives that strive to provide jobs for women in rural communities with limited possibilities of securing monthly income. It means that most bags can be recycled. McDonald's recently announced . 12 Reasons for Banning Plastic Bags: Plastic Bags Are Made With Non-Renewable Energy Plastic Bags Use Up Lots Of Energy Plastic Bags End Up In The Ocean Beach Plastic Litter Is On The Rise Plastic Bags Kill Millions Of Animals Every Year Plastic Takes A Long Time To Disintegrate Plastic Is Harming The Ocean's Coral Plastic Bags Contain Toxins Some microplastics are even small by design, like the microbeads used in facial scrubs or the microfibers in polyester clothing. Coca-Cola makes an estimated 110 billion plastic bottles a year. We use them to drink beverages at home and we get them at almost every restaurant. Should Plastic Straws Be Banned? | Persuasive Writing | Scholastic A calf had to be put down because of indigestion caused by 8 plastic bags in its stomach. State Disclosures. Plastic straws are also the 6th most common trash item found during ocean cleanups. 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. This way, disabled people can continue to be served, while also reducing the number of plastic straws that we use. You should examine what alternatives are available and whether local retailers, who often operate with a limited monthly budget, have the ability to make the switch. 23 Reasons Why we should ban Plastic Bags | Environment Buddy Banning plastic straws is also increasingly popular.

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