Why paper straws are better

If current waste management trends continue, it is estimated that 12,000 million metric tons of plastic waste will litter landfills or nature by 2050.

This according to a study published in 2017, which revealed at the time that no commonly used plastics are biodegradable. These days, biodegradable plastic is becoming more mainstream.

But according to Plastics SA, this should not be seen as “a quick-fix solution to the country’s litter problems”. The organisation advocates for the use of traditional plastic, arguing that these items are recycled, which reduces landfill pressure, as opposed to oxo-biodegradable products, which risk contaminating the recycling waste stream and reducing the value of plastics.

But one poignant statement remains: “Plastics don’t litter. People do.”

The war on waste can be better aligned to the three Rs: reduce, reuse and recycle. Single-waste plastic is the enemy of the human race, but it is strange to picture life without it. One such single-use plastic item is so commonly used that it doesn’t seem harmful to the environment.

The culprit is the plastic straw. It was introduced to restaurants and supermarkets in the 1960s and has continued to grow. Plastic Europe declared that in 1950, 1.5 million tons of plastic was produced. But in 2015, 322 million tons were produced – roughly equal to the mass of two-thirds of the global population.

Compared to 2014, just one year later, plastic production increased by 3.4%. Since 1950, of the 5 800 million tons of primary plastic waste, just 9% has been recycled.

Our World in Data estimates that two billion people live within 50km of coastline, which translates to roughly eight million tons of plastic in the oceans every year. Straws comprise 0.025% of this. Scientists estimate that as many as 8.3 billion plastic straws are littered along the world’s coastlines.

Each piece of plastic in the ocean breaks down into micro plastics, which are consumed by marine life. Litter chokes turtles and seals, kills birds and ends up in the fish we consume. And with plastic straws still in circulation, humans run the risk of being outweighed by the very plastic we consume.

In most parts of Africa, plastic waste is inadequately managed. But if we are to stay ahead of the curve, small steps, such as replacing plastic straws with paper ones could help humans clean up the mess they have created.

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