Straws are still a problem for marine life

You probably remember a few years ago, there was a big push for people to stop putting plastic straws in their drinks because of the effects single-use drinking straws are having on our oceans, marine life and even our land. Despite these campaigns, plastic drinking straws are still a big environmental threat. Organic Authority reports that each year in the United States, more than 500 million disposable plastic straws are used.

While straws have been around a long time, plastic straws were not developed until the 1960's. Most plastic straws are not biodegradable and are not recyclable so they end up sitting in landfills and littering our beaches and oceans.

According to choosetobestrawfree.com, out in the ocean, litter collects into these floating garbage patches filled with plastic. One patch called the North Pacific Garbage Patch is twice the size of Texas with about 3.5 million tons of trash.

All this trash not only affects our ecosystems, it also puts our wildlife in danger as well. Seabirds and marine mammals like dolphins and whales accidently ingest the plastic straws putting their lives in danger.

Think about your daily life and how often you use plastic straws. Do you have a supply at home or only use them when you go out to restaurants? Do your kids take juice boxes to school every day? You might be surprised how quickly it adds up.

Just recently, the Tampa Bay Times reported that Julie Featherston and her son who live on Treasure Island have started a new campaign to clean up their local beaches. She told the news that at a recent visit to the beach that they collected a handful of plastic straws in just 10 minutes. She took to Facebook to get people's attentions to the dangers to wildlife and the environment, and in less than 24 hours, her post received over 5,000 likes. She has since started a new Facebook page, No Plastics on Our Beaches, where she is challenging her followers to take action.

Ready to say goodbye to plastic straws? Take one of the personal challenges gathering storm like The Ocean Conservancy's Take the Last Straw Challenge, The Last Plastic Straw or even Featherston's. Besides considering carefully your own usage, talk to your local restaurants as well to see if they are willing to reduce their use of straws. Ask them to only give straws to patrons who specifically ask for them.

If you can't completely give them up, try more eco-friendly versions like those made of bamboo, glass or metal. There are even plant-based straws. Many are washing-machine safe and reusable. Check out Glass Dharma, Strawsome and Life Without Plastic for earth-friendly products.

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