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. 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]. A 2018 study of coral reefs in the Asia-Pacific has confirmed that plastic waste deposited on coral reefs promotes outbreaks of diseases that gradually destroy whole reef colonies [12]. It is predicted that each year 8 million tons of plastic end up in the ocean, with 1.152.41 tons of that plastic being carried there by major rivers all over the world. 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. 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. Here are a few more tips for ridding your life (and your community) of single-use plastics for good. A laboratory photograph of microplastics found in the Corsica River in the Chesapeake Bay watershed, Maryland, An albatross found dead with a belly full of plastic on Midway Atoll. The explanation is quite simple. This is because the customers voluntarily reduce their consumption of plastic bags, which in turn provides enough time for retailers to find suitable alternatives and switch to them. In effect, nature has designed this plastic for disassembly. 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. Companies are trying to sell communities on a toxic solution to the plastic pollution crisis. 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. Plastic is not the largest contributor of pollution and the . 6461 garfield street hollywood, fl. Plastics also permeate freshwater systems like rivers and streams. Even if plastic doesnt end up in the ocean, recycled plastic is often exported from high-income countries to developing countries to process. Ms. LISA PAI . In this essay on should plastic be banned, it is very important to put forth the fact that there are many bodies of health and environmental governance around the world who argue that plastic ban can be problematic stating the following reasons-. Is the Tide Turning on Our Plastic Addiction? However, as an environmental enthusiast, heres what I think about this ban. Making just one simple swap, like purchasing a reusable water bottle, can spare the environment hundreds of plastic bottles each year. Using a straw directs a concentrated stream of liquid onto a localized area of the teeth, which can cause the enamel to wear away and lead to dental disease. 2. Recently, however, plastic straws have been the subject of many plastic bans in an attempt to help the environment.
PDF Skip the Straw - Florida Department of Environmental Protection Additionally, awareness raising campaigns create a social pressure that should inspire local government and institutions to help in making changes at a bigger scale, like a regional ban or levy.
10 reasons why plastic straws should be banned They are a part of our modern lives, and we dont tend to think much about them. Why? In fact, it is estimated that up to 10 million plastic bags are used every minute around the world [1]. What about you? For example, in Botswana, the consumption of plastic bags dropped by 50 percent after the introduction of the tax in 2007. Plastic bags being the major component of the trash thrown away, most of it ends up on the streets. They are tinier than a palm of your hand and appear so fragile when struggling across the beach to make it to the sea. While we may not pay for plastic bags directly when we go shopping, they are anything but free.. These microscopic plastic fragments, no more than 5 millimeters long, are hard to detectand are just about everywhere.
Why Should Plastic Straws Be Banned? - Nationwide Plastics Greenwashing Alert: Chemical Recycling Isnt Actually Recycling. female pomeranian temperament; splinterlands terms and conditions; carbon emissions data by company; ( ) + . . As plastic bags tend to get caught in recycling machinery, most recycling facilities do not have the capacity to recycle plastic bags and therefore do not accept them. If the environmental movement drew up a Most Unwanted list for 2018, the plastic drinking straw surely would land And cracker plantswhich break, or crack, ethane molecules, a component of natural gas, into the chemical building blocks of plastic productsare energy intensive and highly polluting. Shuddering and unable to breathe, he vomited up five plastic bags. Animals living in the ocean might frequently confuse the plastic for food. Have a look yourself to imagine the suffering of these animals.
10 Reasons Why Plastic Straws Should Be Banned - manufacturer, factory The Natural Resources Defense Council works to safeguard the earth - its people, All rights reserved. The second, more fundamental imperative is to get plastics out of our waste stream. About half the cost of making biodegradable polymers is the cost of feedstock. Manufacturers began replacing traditionally paper or glass staples with lighter or more durable and affordable plastic alternatives; plastic jugs replaced milk jars, for instance. A recent report showed that plastic production contributes to planet-warming greenhouse gas emissions at every point in its life cycle. However, one thing we know, is that by introducing a pollutant that may never break down in the environment can have implications that will far exceed any of our predictions. InCalifornia, a bill to ban straws unless requested at dine-in restaurants is awaiting a signature from the governor. How? Thats nearly equivalent to the weight of the entire human population. Communities with good awareness about negative impacts of plastic bags have been more successful at enforcing the ban [20]. This blog covers a variety of topics including plastic pollution, renewable energy, electric vehicles, and much more. Microplastics are plastic debris that measures less than five millimetres, or 0.2 inches, in diameter.
10 reasons why plastic straws should not be banned We are a couple of environmentalists who seek inspiration for life in simple values based on our love for nature. 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. 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? Driven by public pressure, governments and corporations are considering eliminating or phasing out single-use plastics such as straws. How To Make A Bracelet Out Of Plastic String? There is only one requirement these plastic bags need to be dry and clean, otherwise they contaminate the entire batch and your effort will do more harm than good. As a result, they are thrown away and frequently wind up in the ocean, where they pollute the water and eventually kill marine birds, animals, and fish. 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. If environmental zealots and sycophants get their way, you won't be allowed to sip it through a plastic straw. They store these polymers inside their cells as tiny granules. Here's a quick list of the ways plastic straws may be harming your health: 1. 10 reasons why plastic straws should be banned. Yes, it should. Greentumble is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com. Martin Grimm/Picture-alliance via Associated Press. Consumer outrage about the plastics crisis is already commanding attention from big companies and from many governments. According to market research firms, Americans use about 350 million plastic straws every single day. Plastic Straws: Is Paper Really Better for the Environment? 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. How exactly does the use of plastic do harm to the environment?Plastic has a very long half-life in the environment, during which it poses a danger to animals and spreads toxic chemicals.Additionally, plastic is a contributor to the warming of the planet.Nearly every type of plastic is manufactured using chemicals that are leftover from the manufacturing of fossil fuels, which contribute to global warming (gas, oil and even coal). In 2008, a crocodile in Australia died because of 25 plastic bags filling its stomach [11]. the eight worst source of ocean plastic pollution, Impact of Plastic Bags on the Environment, non-renewable fossil fuel-based resources, Plastic Bag Degradation: What You Should Know, Serious Effects of Plastic Pollution on Human Health. We all are just trying to do our job well. 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]. The cashier usually understands, only had to do what instructed and what most customers expect (unfortunately) from him or her. When you sign up you'll become a member of NRDC's Activist Network. The decrease in demand for plastic bags forces manufacturers to reduce their production and consider expanding in a supply of alternative products. 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. In the spirit of eliminating waste, plastic straws appeared to be a way to further the cause: straws aren't essential to the dining experience, and by banning them, oceans, streets, and general society would theoretically benefit. Plastic straws, being so lightweight and non-biodegradable, are readily carried into the water, where they eventually break down into smaller and smaller pieces of microplastic. 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. Plastic bags have become such a nuisance because we as consumers use them excessively even when not needed and authorities havent figured out effective ways of dealing with them as waste. Each year on two far-flung Australian islands, more than half a million hermit crabs die after becoming trapped inside our plastic waste. Sea turtles are not the only species suffering from plastic bag pollution of the environment. We all know what the debate is between plastic and paper straws but paper straws are horrible they will immediately break apart in your mouth and feel horrible. The single biggest reason why people want to ban plastic straws is because of their negative effects on the environment.
Activists Say Straws Should Be Banned Because They Are a 'Gateway Plastic' Criddle isdirector of StanfordsCodiga Resource Recovery Center,a member ofStanford Bio-Xand an affiliate of thePrecourt Institute for Energy. How can you help to ban plastic bags in your area? We are working hard to improve our content. 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. Problematic degradation 4. According to the findings of a study that was carried out in 2019 by students at the University of Washington, 78 percent of respondents used straws made of biodegradable materials that are in compliance with the prohibition, and 68 percent used utensils that are in compliance with the ban. The bottom line of any plastic ban is that we must use less single-use plastics overall. 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. By simply using less plastic, you can help keep marine life from eating and getting entangled in garbage. They contribute to the contamination of our landfills and seas when they are discarded after use. Animals can also easily become entangled in this plastic waste. 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. They're bad for the environment, kill marine life and damage human health.
Don't Ban Straws - Reason.com 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. Considering what important source of food plankton is for many other species, it is clear that plastic gets distributed across the marine ecosystem. This includes grocery plastic bags, Ziplock-type bags, dry cleaning bags and bread bags. Other country that has decided to enforce the country-wide plastic bag ban after suffering of negative consequences was Mauritania. If the answer is yes, you should know that this inadvertent overconsumption of single-use plastic carries with it a very high cost to the environment, which in turn also negatively affects our health. This is the case particularly in Southeast Asia, which has begun to import much of the plastic that used to go to China for recycling. In 2015 a mere 24 of these ethane cracker facilities in the United States had the combined carbon output of 3.8 million passenger vehicles. But only a few of us realize that each time we accept those disposable plastic grocery bags at store checkout, we actively participate in wasting energy and depleting non-renewable resources.
Banning Straws and Bags Won't Solve our Plastic Problem If you are constantly feeling gassy, then you should definitely consider drinking beverages the old fashioned way. Additionally, plastics in our digestive tract may affect absorption of some important trace elements (like iron) which we need for maintaining proper health [13]. We dont know how it will in the long term affect plankton-feeding species and their predators. Straws made of plastic contribute to the pollution of our seas and streams. China doesnt want our plastic waste anymore. 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]. Start from yourself and slowly expand to your family and friends. There are many uses for plastic that are not only reasonable but important, such as surgical gloves, or straws for people with disabilities. 2. Some countries have decided to do so after directly experiencing negative impacts of plastic bags, other countries have implemented the ban to reach their sustainability goals. The upshot of the Sydney study is that the California bag ban reduced plastic bag consumption by 71.5% - a huge decrease. It is good for our environment, health and global climate. Individual actions can lead to collective actions. So, retailers incorporate this cost hiddenly into prices of other items sold at stores. Plastic pollutionwhether in our oceans, piling up on our coastlines, or contributing to our climate crisisimpacts vulnerable communities first. This measure should encourage people to switch to reusable alternatives. Logically, the key to starting a change in your community is education. Plastic pollution is one of the biggest problems facing our world today. Once a person gets into the habit of bringing reusable bags when shopping, it is not much of an inconvenience at all. The process of drilling for plastics source materials, oil and gas, leads to methane leaking and flaring and is often combined with clearing forests and wetlands that otherwise would have sequestered carbon. 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. Why is plastic bad for the environment? Look around and you will notice that plastic bags are the most common litter. Left alone, plastics dont really break down; they just break up. Once the wheel starts spinning, it leads to even more positive changes. Only then would a plastic straw ban be able to actually help preserve the environment. Come with external costs 9. Instead of investing in quality goods that will last, we often prioritize convenience over durability and consideration of long-term impacts. This leaves few other alternatives other than plastic straws. But, getting rid of all single-use plastics definitely will. 10 Reasons Why Plastic Straws Should Be Banned? Starting in the 1960s, plastic straw manufacturing took off. The country instituted the ban in 2013 to minimize livestock deaths. If you are a kid reading this, and you want to get green and help the Earth, you are at the right place.
Why Plastic Straws Are Being Banned - Square Reusable shopping bags are very durable and can be reused many times over the course of their useful life. Criddle has evaluated use of microorganisms to biodegrade plastic materials and to synthesize biodegradable bioplastics from waste feedstocks. Nows the Time. 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. Instead of searching for another buyer, maybe some soul-searching is in order. 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. Enter your email address to subscribe to this blog and receive notifications of new posts by email. Plastic straws are one of the most common forms of pollution found on beaches and in oceans all over the world. Disney is eliminating single-use plastic straws and stirrers at all its theme parks, resorts and properties. 4. Thanks for signing up. Thoughtful laws are needed to control the problem and at the same time encourage innovation. Learn how your comment data is processed.
What Are Single-use Plastics and Should They Be Banned? But should plastic straws really be banned? Which brings us to the second part. Many people with disabilities rely on flexible straws to drink safely and independently.
Arguments Why Plastic Should Be Banned - Green Matters Reasons why smoking should be banned articlestrabajos Plastic items are more sanitary than other alternatives. It also took 100% of those plastic grocery bags out of the recycling system, where they bound up machinery and increased costs. These steps are pretty straight forward and depend on your own initiative. But the sheer amount of plastic waste inundates communities until they are drowning under thousands of tons of plastic trash. It topped 60 million tons (54.4 million metric tons) in 2010 based on a September 2018 report titled "Plastic Pollution."But China announced it plans to outlaw the production and sale of . Actress Nina Nelson and other celebrities made a video claiming that plastic. Tweet, call, or send letters to these companies to ask them to switch to more durable, recyclable, compostable, renewable, and/or recycled-content packaging with less fossil fuelderived plastic. While these countries and municipalities have been making strides in their part of reducing circulation of plastic bags, in total there are 195 countries in the world [19] and the issue of plastic pollution is still getting out of our hands. Made from fossil fuels 3. Although single-use plastic pollution accumulates most visibly on our streets, in fact our water suffers even more. Author: floridadep.gov. Killing wildlife 5. Unfortunately, such costs are typically not included in most economic analyses, as they are not easy to calculate because the equation would have to involve many indirect variables. A Ban Could Harm Local Businesses If They are also not biodegradable and cannot be broken down naturally by bacteria and other decomposers into non-toxic materials. Though plastica chain of synthetic polymers, essentiallywas invented in. Such changes could have outsized benefits for vulnerable populations that rely on rivers for their water supply. Although, really, these tips can be used by anyone, not just kids. On other issues, from overfishing to deforestation, we have seen that consumer-facing companies like McDonalds, Unilever and Walmart can be exquisitely sensitive to the concerns of their customers. The ban also kept them from littering neighborhoods and the environment. Skip the Straw - Florida Department of Environmental Protection Though plastica chain of synthetic polymers, essentiallywas invented in the mid-19th century, it wasnt until the 1970s that its popularity skyrocketed. Paper vs. PLASTIC STRAWS CANT BE BROKEN DOWN BY NATURE. In my opinion, plastic straws should not be banned outright, because many disabled people require plastic straws to drink. You as an individual have the power to make a gradual change in your community.
TIME for Kids | Should Plastic Straws Be Banned? Marine animals bear the burden of this influx of garbage into their habitats. So, plastic bag recycling facilities are few and far between and transportation to one could be expensive. Straws are notorious for being readily blown away by the wind.
Should Plastic Straws Be Banned? | Persuasive Writing | Scholastic