What do the bans accomplish? Made from fossil fuels 3. Interestingly, these granules contain the seeds of their own destruction: enzymes that break the polymer down when it is needed for food. Activists Say Straws Should Be Banned Because They Are a 'Gateway Plastic' Advocates hope a straw ban will be the first step toward broader plastic prohibitions. Lizzie Carr is shining a light on what is floating through the worlds waterways, and breaking athletic records along the way. Growing public concern has inspired movements to ban single-use plastics, most notably straws. 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. Although single-use plastic pollution accumulates most visibly on our streets, in fact our water suffers even more. 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. Why? They suspect that it may add stress on the liver by introducing more pathogens into the body. By simply using less plastic, you can help keep marine life from eating and getting entangled in garbage. These steps are pretty straight forward and depend on your own initiative. We should do likewise. Here are 3 reasons why plastic straws should not be banned, explained in a simple and easy-to-understand manner: 1. So, retailers incorporate this cost hiddenly into prices of other items sold at stores. For those governments that are opposed to full bans on plastic bags, another option is to institute a plastic bag tax, where consumers or retailers would pay a small fee for each plastic bag. We do not know the full impact of microplastics exceeding the mass of plankton in the ocean. Then, the straw got stuck in the turtles nose after she/he tried to cough the straw back out. It is possible to enhance ones risk of developing cavities by using a straw while consuming liquids that are either sweet or acidic. Plastic is more sanitary and safer to use than other alternatives. 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. Well, a possible alternative solution could be to encourage businesses to only give out plastic straws on request. They contribute to the contamination of our landfills and seas when they are discarded after use. Straws make up roughly 4 percent of the plastic waste in terms of the number of pieces, but a far smaller percentage in terms of the weight.Due to the fact that the typical weight of a straw is just around one sixty-seventh of an ounce, or 42 grams, the total weight of all those billions of straws combined only accounts for roughly 2,000 tons of the almost 9 million tons of plastic debris that enters the sea each year. Straws don't provide as much utility as bags, so for many this is an easy adjustment. Plastic bag litter has even caused great problems in some areas. Pack it alongside reusable cutlery (like wood, bamboo, or metal chopsticks) for sustainable eating on the go. (Source: Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment), Stanford scientists are among a growing number of researchers harnessing artificial intelligence techniques to bring more realistic representations of ubiquitous atmospheric ripples into global climate models. India, for example, generates 25,940 tons of plastic waste every day but collects only 60 percent of it. Reduce Aesthetic value of your neighborhood. Summary: Reduce your use of single-use plastics. We add another 8 million tons each year thats about five grocery bags full of plastic waste on every foot of shoreline around the world, according to a recent study. You can share this article on social media by using the share buttons below. The phthalate DEHP, as just one example from dozens, is often added to plastic goods like shower curtains and garden hoses to make them more flexiblebut was also found to be a probable human carcinogen by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency. However, if a plastic straw ban is properly implemented with education about single-use plastics, then the ban could encourage the public to reduce their usage of other single-use plastics as well. Well, before putting it into the laundry basket, take a look at it closely. Oil and natural gas are non-renewable fossil fuel-based resources and through their extraction and production, they emit greenhouse gases, which contribute to global climate change. Then, they have a propensity to break down into microplastics, which then clutter the ecosystems in question. To make matters worse, if plastic straws get into the ocean, they can be mistaken for food by marine animals. Why is plastic bad for the environment? Our plastic addiction is having a devastating impact on our oceans, our wildlife, and our health. Most drop-off collection points accept plastic bags made from high-density polyethylene (plastic number 2) and low-density polyethylene (plastic number 4). 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. This type of plastic is derived from petroleum. JIM LEAPE: Our oceans are currently swimming with plastics. Animals living in the ocean might frequently confuse the plastic for food. National Geographic made a video on how helpless it feels to be caught in a plastic bag. CRIDDLE:Cost is a huge issue. They are also capable of being ingested by fish, seabirds, and marine mammals, which in turn causes the animals injury and, in the case of fish, allows them to enter the human food chain. Plastic waste that clogs water drainage channels and river tributaries of many Asian cities increases exposure of residents to water-borne diseases, as it creates a toxic soup that remains stranded in one place for prolonged periods of time. This measure should encourage people to switch to reusable alternatives. This blog covers a variety of topics including plastic pollution, renewable energy, electric vehicles, and much more. For most, straws are not a necessity, but a convenience. By comparison, an estimated 46 percent of all pollution in the ocean is made up of lost or abandoned fishing gear (Vox). The single biggest reason why people want to ban plastic straws is because of their negative effects on the environment. China doesnt want our plastic waste anymore. We are a couple of environmentalists who seek inspiration for life in simple values based on our love for nature. As it turns out, many microorganisms make moldable bioplastic polymers that are fully degradable. What does occur in most instances is that when out in the environment, the plastic breaks up into tiny microscopic pieces that get deposited in soils (where we grow food) or contaminate waterways. 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. Plastic straws are not the first iteration of straws. There are many uses for plastic that are not only reasonable but important, such as surgical gloves, or straws for people with disabilities. PLASTIC STRAWS CANT BE BROKEN DOWN BY NATURE. Plastic, in general, is one of the biggest pollutants in the world. Consumer outrage about the plastics crisis is already commanding attention from big companies and from many governments. We use them to drink beverages at home and we get them at almost every restaurant. A Ban Could Harm Local Businesses If It may not seem like much, but when you imagine how many bags they have to provide throughout a year, you will quickly realize that plastic bags are costly. Accompanied by high social accountability and musical garbage trucks, that strategy has proved wildly effective: the island now reports recycling rates above 50 percent. 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. They're not alone. 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. These examples could go on for a long time. Criddle has evaluated use of microorganisms to biodegrade plastic materials and to synthesize biodegradable bioplastics from waste feedstocks. Plastic is not the largest contributor of pollution and the . The Natural Resources Defense Council works to safeguard the earth - its people, American beaver populations are booming in the western United States as conditions grow hotter and drier. Start from yourself and slowly expand to your family and friends. This form of ban could lead to a reduction in landfill across the country, going a long way to protect the nature and serenity of the area. (Photo credit: Shutterstock). In effect, nature has designed this plastic for disassembly. 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].
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