A few facts...
*Straws date back to the Mesopotamioans who drank water out of reeds.
*A Sumerian tomb from 3000 BCE had a gold tube inlaid with lapis lazuli and was most likely used to drink beer without sucking up the solids leftover from the fermentation process.
*In the 1800's, rye grass straws were used but were useful for only short bits of time as they quickly disintegrated. The first paper straw was created in 1888 by Marvin Stone. Paper straws were popular until the 1960's when plastic straws entered the market.
*Plastic straws account for 99% of the global straw market. Only 1% is made up of paper, glass or metal.
*Today, Americans use 500 million straws daily.
From the NPS.gov website - "Americans use 500 million drinking straws every day. To understand just how many straws 500 million really is, this would fill over 125 school buses with straws every day. That's 46,400 school buses every year! Americans use these disposable utensils at an average rate of 1.6 straws per person per day."
Is this a problem?
Yes! This is a problem for multiple reasons. Here are a few...
*Most straws are made of polypropylene, which is a by-product of petroleum, which is a fossil fuel that takes an incredible amount of natural resources and energy to extract and refine.
* Most straws, which are made of a recyclable plastic, do not get recycled. They fall through the cracks. Literally! They fall through the conveyor belts (as do bottle tops)
that are used to sort recyclables and end up in landfills or our ocean.
* Once straws make their way to the landfill or ocean, they will stay for a very long time as the are not biodegradable - along with plastic grocery bags - but that's a topic for another day.
*They hurt marine life. Have you seen this video? If you are not bothered by a little graphic language and blood, see how a sea turtle is effected by a straw. https://youtu.be/4wH878t78bw If you cannot watch it, and I totally understand if that is too difficult to see, just know that a precious sea turtle was living with a plastic straw embedded up his nose. We need to take action to help stop such atrocities. Animals on land and in sea are effected by our lack of awareness for using straws and plastic in general - so let's get aware!
Is there a solution?
I believe there is always hope! So how can we make a difference? One straw, one choice at a time.
~ Pledge to invest in re-usable straws. I have an awesome company to recommend!! Check out my post called ECO at Heart Reusable Straws!
~ Pledge to say, "No ,thank you." to a straw in restaurants, bars and cafes. #skipthestraw #refusethestraw
~ Pledge to spread awareness about this issue and possible solutions.
~ Check out websites like The Last Plastic Straw and Skip the Straw to learn more.
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