Straw Overboard!

 This past year, my family and I took a vacation to Hawaii. Because my kids are college age, and they are moving into starting their own lives, I thought of this as our last big vacation together and wanted to make it memorable.

When we were in Hawaii, specifically Maui, we experienced a collective and concerted focus on protecting and honoring nature and the environment, unlike what we have seen on the continental United States. I found it quite amazing, yet it was so seamless. Life seemed to go on very normally, and a few ‘green’ initiatives were a commonplace part of life and easily followed. And it pays off; the waters of Hawaii seem so clean and clear and are a real pleasure to be in.  The waters of Hawaii teem with life – all sorts of fish, sea creatures, green turtles, whales.

One of the ‘initiatives’ they have adopted is not using plastic straws. It turns out that plastic straws rarely get recycled because they are so small they fall through the machinery that sorts plastic. And even though they are small, when added all together, they are huge. Eco-cycle reports that 500 million straws are used every day and that is enough to fill up 127 school buses every day. Now imagine taking those and dumping them right into the ocean – 127 school buses of straws 365 days a year. Essentially that is what we do and we end up damaging and killing the ocean’s inhabitants for our single use convenience.

Apart from the eeek! factor of dumping straws into the ocean (I mean, who wants to go boogie boarding and end up with a straw in your bathing suit?!), straws are very damaging and deadly to those that call the ocean home. A sea turtle was found with a straw up its nose (you can watch the video but let me warn you it’s tough to watch, there is explicit language, and thankfully the straw is extracted after much effort); sea birds die due to ingesting plastic.

And because Americans spend more money eating out than eating at home, you can imagine how that has exponentially grown the problem.

So here is a perfect example of how small steps lead to massive action. When more and more people opt to not have plastic straws for their drinks, we tell the restaurants we frequent and the companies we buy from that we don’t want them, which sends a message and leads to change.

Now please, don’t misunderstand me. There are legitimate needs for straws. There are people with disabilities that need straws, and I am not suggesting taking away straws from those that need them. My grandmother had a condition that made it impossible to her to drink directly from a cup, so I’ve seen firsthand how straws are essential for some people. What I am suggesting is that for many of us, we can almost effortlessly eliminate straws from our everyday actions, collectively make a huge impact, and not even miss them at all.

When we were in Hawaii, one of the excursions we got to do was to snorkel.  We even got to snorkel near Green Turtles, which are majestic and graceful. I feel very lucky to have had that experience; snorkeling gave us the chance to connect with each other, connect with and experience nature, and has provided memories that will last a lifetime and for which we will all cherish and recount fondly. I want the turtles to thrive so generations of people can have that same incredible experience.

Even though eliminating straws from our daily beverage habit is a small step, every small, baby step leads to big change, collectively.  Straws make a good first step; imagine what other single-use plastics you can stop using after straws!

We’d love to hear your thoughts. Have you decreased or eliminated using straws? Are there other ways you are decreasing your use of plastics or other ways you are positively affecting the environment? Please share what you are doing to create positive change. Every baby step leads to big changes.