Environmental concerns have increasingly impacted businesses over the years and the different supplies that they use. For example, most fast food companies used to use foam packaging in order to keep the food hot for customers. In the early 1990s, however, they switched to different materials as the public realized the environmental harm the foam was causing. The modern concern is straws.
Governments and companies are taking this action because of the staggering volume of waste generated by something most people don’t need. An estimated 7.5% of plastic in the environment comes from straws and stirrers, according to an analysis by a group of pollution research nonprofits called Better Alternatives Now.
Straws are also related to health issues. For example, drinking through straws introduces air to the digestive tract, which can cause problems such as gas and bloating. Using straws can also increase the likelihood of cavities by guiding streams of liquid into smaller areas of the teeth and eroding them, which could also cause tooth decay. Most single-use straws are composed of polypropylene, a type of plastic that is commonly made from petroleum. Though it is thought to be safe by the Food and Drug Administration, there is evidence that chemicals from the polypropylene can leak into liquids and may release compounds that can affect estrogen levels.
Straws, like other similar plastics, have a surprisingly short life span as they are normally used only once and then discarded into a landfill, where they never biodegrade and take hundreds of years to break down. They then end up in oceans by the thousands, making them one of the top items picked up on beach clean ups, according to the Washington Post.
“The straw stays in our environment without decomposing for hundreds of years,” New York City Councilman Rafael Espinal told The Daily News. “We’re seeing cities across the country and the globe phasing out plastic straws, and it has no impact on the consumer or small business.”
California, Washington, New Jersey, Florida, and other states are starting to see straws being banned in various locations. As of now, according to the sustainability coordinator, Christopher Johnson, Winthrop’s dining services isn’t taking any special initiatives for this concern.
“While straws are the popular item to hate today, it is important that we continue to educate people about the impacts all single use items have to human and natural systems,” Johnson said. “This approach allows people an opportunity to make an informed personal choice to stop using those items or at least reduce the number of single use items they use.”
So not only can these plastics harm animals and the environment, but they, as well as the toxic chemicals within them, can hurt people.
“One of many options to reduce single use items is to select ones that are recyclable over ones that are not or simply select something that is reusable,” Johnson said. “When in a restaurant, telling the server ‘no straws’ is a way to start a dialogue with friends and employees. Personal choices do make a difference.”
