Car Modifications for Electric Vehicles: Whats Possible. They prevent millions of tons of plastic from entering the waste stream each year. In the United States alone, statistics reach up to 12 million barrels of oil that are used each year to produce even more plastic bags 100 billion more, to give you the precise number [5]. Plastic bags being the major component of the trash thrown away, most of it ends up on the streets. Each day, the United States of America uses 500 million drinking straws. PLASTIC STRAWS CANT BE BROKEN DOWN BY NATURE. A last example of a true horror caused by plastic has been discovered just recently. 10 reasons why plastic straws should be banned When the monsoon rains start, streets get waterlogged just after the first few minutes because the water cannot pass through clogged sewerage pipes. Most of it is either dumped in landfills or ends up in the ocean. Plastic straws are also the 6th most common trash item found during ocean cleanups. Divers, for example, descend 130 feet under the water, seek unique-looking creatures, and observe the marine world in all its glory. Required fields are marked *. Come with external costs 9. For example, millions of discarded plastic bags clog water drainage channels and sewers in urban areas of Bangladesh. It is good for our environment, health and global climate. CRIDDLE:Cost is a huge issue. Plastic bags and plastic products overall contain substances that are harmful to our health. Beached whales have been found with stomachs full of plastic trash. 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]. Companies are forced to innovate, rethinking their designs and sourcing sustainable materials. 1 producer of plastic waste in the world. 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. They're not alone. 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. How? Should Plastic Straws Be Banned? [Pros & Cons of a Straw Ban] The inaccuracy of this number calls into doubt the veracity of the overall case against using plastic straws as a drinking implement. One recent survey found plastics in 94 percent of tap water samples in the U.S. and in nearly every brand of bottled water. How can you help to ban plastic bags in your area? 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. Summary: Reduce your use of single-use plastics. You probably already saw the video, but if you didnt, you can watch it below (WARNING: Graphic Content): Supporters of plastic straw bans claim that the ban will help reduce our use of 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. The trend has already started. The crucial challenge is to ensure that these bans are just a first step, offering a natural place to start with low-hanging fruit so long as its part of a much more fundamental shift away from single-use plastics across the value chains of these companies and our economy. About half the cost of making biodegradable polymers is the cost of feedstock. Participate in beach or river cleanups. If there is one piece of advice that everyone should remember, it would be that nothing is for free in this world. 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. Spare Yourself the Guilt Trip This Earth DayIts Companies That Need to Clean Up Their Acts, These Fanciful Sea Creatures Were Carried in on the Tide. 4. Starbucks recently announced that it would phase out use of plastic straws by the year 2020. 10 Reasons Why Plastic Straws Should Be Banned? In fact, it is estimated that up to 10 million plastic bags are used every minute around the world [1]. NRDCs Eric Goldstein gives the scoop on the latest environmental villain and explains why plastic straws really are a big menace to our oceans. 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. No! That is why the United Nations Environmental Programme Secretariat has recommended a ban on all plastic bags globally. BY Rob Jordan, Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment, As Colorado River wanes, water supplies and ecosystems hang in the balance, Riverfront forest restoration can deliver outsized benefits, Stanford Woods Institute for the Environment, An AI solution to climate models gravity wave problem, Beavers will become a bigger boon to river water quality as U.S. West warms. 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. According to the researchers, the turtle likely mistook the straw for food and swallowed it. You could either discuss with a store manager a possibility of bringing your own containers for these products. 2. 10 reasons why plastic straws should be banned What is the root of the problem (consumers or municipal waste management)? 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. They are a part of our modern lives, and we dont tend to think much about them. If this happens, there are a few scenarios you can follow: The best thing you can do with those old plastic bags that have been stashed in that overflowing drawer in your kitchen is to recycle them. Some microplastics are even small by design, like the microbeads used in facial scrubs or the microfibers in polyester clothing. Exposure to microplastics, as well as the chemicals that are added to plastics during processing, harm our health. What never leaves, Read More Sustainable Diving & Snorkeling: How to Prevent Damage to Marine EcosystemsContinue, Top 3 Ways Kids can Help the Earth! . A Ban Could Harm Local Businesses If Paper straws cost on average around 2.5 cents ($0.025), whereas plastic straws cost only half a cent ($0.005). Es gratis registrarse y presentar tus propuestas laborales. And they help shift consumer mind-sets, as people begin to recognize that exorbitant and avoidable waste is not sustainable. Similar fate has met dolphins, seals, cats, dogs, deer and many other animals which got severely cut on their bodies due to plastic bag entanglement. 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. Although single-use plastic pollution accumulates most visibly on our streets, in fact our water suffers even more. Reasons why smoking should be banned articlestrabajos Some Disabled People Require Plastic Straws to Drink For some people with disabilities, straws are the only way they. Help raise awareness of fellow consumers that means everyone when you think about it (unless they dont shopever). Considering what important source of food plankton is for many other species, it is clear that plastic gets distributed across the marine ecosystem. Then, you should try to explain your reasons for not wanting your products packed in plastic bags. 'Banning plastic straws will not be enough': The fight to clean the oceans The crucial challenge is to ensure that these bans are just a first step. Straws have been found stuck in a sea turtle's nose and wedged in the stomachs of dead birds and dolphins. Banning straws may confer 'moral license' allowing companies and their customers to feel they have done their part. For many of us it is hard to imagine that something as small as a plastic bag can actually cause flooding, but residents of some cities in Bangladesh have been struggling with this problem every monsoon season for the past two decades [3]. It started with cardboard straws, but once plastic production in America increased, people realized it was quicker and cheaper to produce plastic straws. 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. At the beginning of July 2018, Seattle became the largest U.S. city to ban plastic straws. Also, giving a speech in . This blog covers a variety of topics including plastic pollution, renewable energy, electric vehicles, and much more. Ill also go over whether or not plastic straw bans will actually help the environment, and explain everything else youll need to know. Greenwashing Alert: Chemical Recycling Isnt Actually Recycling. The most heartbreaking part of this is that the affected animals are not aware they eat something that will make them feel miserable and will slowly kill them. It has been projected that, if current trends continue, by 2050 the plastic in the ocean will outweigh the fish. 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. For example, a reusable jute bag should last at least 4 years, during which it can prevent the use of 600 single-use plastic bags. Why Plastic Straws Are Being Banned - Square The people of Macon, Georgia, saw through it. (Some places are going so far as to ban single-use plastics entirely; most notably, India intends to go this route by 2022.) The Last Straw: 5 Reasons You Should Ditch Plastic Straws that do collect plastic bags and other plastic films and send them for proper recycling. Another indirect danger of plastic bags has breeding ground in the pollution they create. Have you ever seen endangered sea turtles hatch? Starbucks plans to phase out plastic straws by 2020. 1. Here are 3 reasons why plastic straws should not be banned, explained in a simple and easy-to-understand manner: 1. Greentumble was founded in the summer of 2015 by us, Sara and Ovi. Plastic straws, drink stirrers and cotton buds will no longer be sold in Britain as part of a plan to eradicate "avoidable plastic waste" by 2042, and Prime Minister Theresa May actively called on other leaders in the Commonwealth to implement similar policies. Not only is plastic estimated to kill millions of marine animals and seabirds each year, but its also contaminating seafood that humans have relied on for millennia, particularly with microplastics in animals guts. We need to make fully biodegradable polymers that are cost-competitive. Should Plastic be Banned Essay for Students in English - VEDANTU