Did Ditching Plastic Straws Do More Harm Than Good? | One Small Step

Raise your hand if you swapped your plastic straws for reusable metal ones 🙋‍♀️ These experts are sharing why the movement to ditch single-use straws might’ve actually done more harm than good.
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In 2018, as straw bans passed across the country, searches for metal straws on Etsy went up 208% and reusable straw companies sold out. But did this movement really help?

PhD candidate and researcher Takunda Chitaka did her thesis on the environmental footprint of different kinds of straws. She found that metal straws were less likely to be littered and end up in the ocean, but because of the environmental impacts of mining, refining, and shipping, a metal straw would have to be used 37 times for its impact to be less than that of plastic straws.

Emy Kane is the senior director of digital at Lonely Whale, a nonprofit founded by actor Adrian Grenier that focuses on decreasing plastic pollution. Lonely Whale created the viral, celebrity-led #stopsucking campaign in 2017.

#Straw #EcoFriendly #StopSucking #Earth #Environment #Science #NowThis

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