Our Viewpoint: One little straw paints a much bigger picture

It’s easy to look the other way when when it comes to recycling. There are billions of people in the world. So what if you use one little plastic straw, right?

There’s an effort called the Strawless Ocean Movement. According to http://www.strawless ocean.org, Americans use more than 500 million straws each day. That’s a lot. The site explains that most plastic straws end up in the earth’s oceans, and that by 2050, straws will outnumber fish in the oceans (by weight).

The movement suggests alternatives to plastic straws including bamboo, metal, paper, glass, silicone or, heaven forbid, going strawless. Last year, a “Strawless in Seattle” campaign was aimed at ridding the city of plastic straws. Partners including Safeco Field, home of the Seattle Mariners, began offering compostable alternatives to plastic straws. And a citywide ban on plastic straws is coming this summer for all Seattle businesses that sell food or drinks.

We have to admit, asking for a straw at a restaurant doesn’t seem like a big deal. But 500 million across the country each day? It doesn’t make us feel so small.

A few years back, there was a local movement to get restaurants to switch out Styrofoam to-go containers for more Earth-friendly options. Straws are the new Styrofoam. News this week that Sanders County is no longer accepting plastics for its recycling program makes us think a little bit harder about the plastics we use, and throw away, each day.

Traveling to Missoula with recyclables in the back of your car does not sound appealing. It seems like a lot more effort than just taking our recyclables to the local transfer station.

But a single plastic straw can take up to 200 years to decompose. At 500 million straws a day in the U.S., it makes us think a little more about the choices we’re making. Who knows, maybe we’ll see a “Strawless in Sanders County “ campaign one of these days.