The environmental load of plastic straws

Any plastic object, even the smallest one and seemingly irrelevant, if not recycled, has a large environmental impact. The same goes for straws, whose damage is much more serious than what you might think, especially since used in huge quantities.

Let's just view some examples to get an idea of the vastness of the problem:

• A restaurant uses an average of45,000strawsper year;


• An international knownFast Foodchain said that every day their clients use 60 milions of straws;


• It is estimated that 90% of seabirds, whales, dolphins and turtles had ingested plastic, including straws;


• The production of these small objects is based on petroleum, a nonrenewable resource, whose extraction and processing cause, in turn, disastrous consequences for the environment;


• The plastic straws degrade very slowly and, if abandoned, remain in the wild for decades.

It is just some data, however, it leads you to some thinking. In a tough milestone in which waste and its disposal are more pressing urgency, it is natural to wonder what the real use of these disposable items is, unless, in most cases, only satisfying the pure pleasure of sipping a drink.

For several years, this doubt is creeping between the owners of bars, restaurants and clubs, participating with increasing frequency in awareness programs, designed to reduce or eliminate plastic straws. This is the case of the recent Colombian countryside \"“Mejor sin pitillo“(Better without straws), promoted by La Ciudad Verde, an independent movement engaged in the design of public policies based on sustainability.

The effort, however, should not only concern business owners. Although so prevalent, these objects are not necessary and anyone can use them to give up, without any effort. But if, out of laziness or habit, it is just hard to do without it, just remember that eco-friendly alternatives are valid, such as biodegradable straws 100% or reusable ones, produced from materials such as glass or stainless steel.

Simple choices, in short, can make a substantial difference to the environment.

Author: EVELYN Baleani -Freelance Web Content Editor. Deals with media content (TV and web) since 2000. After working for some years in newsrooms of TV production companies and Web Agency, has decided to take off with an activity of her own. Her greatest passions besides the environment? The Web, writing and Spain.

This resource has been translated from Italian. Follow this link for the original source.