Long Island Straw Ban
At the beginning of 2020, restaurant owners in Suffolk County, New York are saying goodbye to distributing plastic straws and hello to eco-friendly straws for customers, after the county legislature passed a new law banning plastic straws.
Suffolk County, Legislature signed a bill on April 26, 2019, banning plastic straws from being served at restaurants. On January 1, 2020, the bill goes into effect. Environmentalists contend the new straw ban will help prevent clogging of the waterways, accidental ingestion of straws to marine life, and the amount of pollution in the environment, according to The Surfrider Foundation. Plastic straws are not biodegradable and cannot be broken down naturally by bacteria and other decomposers into non-toxic materials. Straws are broken down into smaller particles that release chemicals into soil, air, and water that are harmful to animals, plants, people, and the environment, according to ACC, Association of Zoos and Aquariums. Suffolk County has been historically known as a national leader in environmental protection. Restaurants began making eco-friendly changes. Customers will be given a paper straw as per request.
Notable changes such as the straw ban is an accomplishment for experts because it’s helping save the ecosystem. “Straws are a silent killer and they need to go,” said Rachel Zacharczyk, an Environmentalist from Citizen Campaigns for the Environment (CCE). “Five hundred million straws are being used each day and there is absolutely no reason for that,” she said. The CCE has been successful in programs that advance the natural environment. “Seventy-one percent of seabirds and thirty percent of turtles alone have been found with plastic in their stomachs and that’s not even all the animals that we have,” said Rachel Zacharczyk. “The team and I have been advocating for quite a while about plastic straws and the damage it does to our environment, change is finally coming, and I couldn’t be anymore happier,” said Adrienne Esposito, executive director of Citizen Campaigns for the Environment. “Being that the law will be effective soon gives restaurant owners a little time to clean out their plastic.”
The Greene Turtle Sports Bar and Grill in Smithtown was one of the first restaurants to start serving paper straws at request to customers. “We value marine life,” said Layla Nielson, the company’s franchise owner. “Straws are unnecessary and by getting rid of them we are helping our ecosystem.” The Greene Turtle transitioned from plastic straws in 2018 when the ban was first announced by the County Legislature. “Many animals are being killed by these plastic straws and the world needs to wake up and realize what damage this is doing to us,” said Cynthia Thomas, a bartender at the restaurant. “People think plastic straws are the only option, a paper straw can do the exact same thing.” The Greene Turtle offers paper straws at the customer’s request.
The green turtle has been evolving for years since they opened to become eco-friendly. “I’ve been going to The Greene Turtle since they’ve first opened, and I’ve seen so many changes they’ve done to become eco-friendly,” said Ted Pusey, a customer from The Greene Turtle. “Hopefully the other restaurants in Suffolk County follow this example.”
Residents are accepting the change of the straw ban that is going to take place. “The first time I ever used a paper straw was at Swell Taco in Babylon, at first I was confused but there wasn’t really any difference no change in the taste of my beverage,” said Jamie Morse, a local resident of Suffolk County. “Banning plastic straws and bringing in paper straws is a good step for Suffolk, we know how to lead people on the right path.”
Long Island restaurants have begun replacing plastic straws with paper. “My job switched to paper straws last week, staff didn’t realize until two days after they came in, we tested them out on several drinks, hot-cold you name it and they work perfectly fine,” said Jeffery Gaskin, a waiter at Sweet Mamas in Smithtown. “When customers request a straw and they see the paper they get skeptical at first, but we haven’t had a complaint yet about it.” The owner of Sweet Mama’s donates money to the Plastic Oceans Organization to help find new ways to reduce the plastic in the ocean.
Suffolk County legislature continues to strive to maintain the reputation as a national leader in environmental protection. The straw ban is not the last change for Suffolk County. There are more things planned to help the environment. Teams of environmentalists are thinking of new ideas to make everyone have a better and healthier life. “If we do nothing, we are on track to see more plastic than fish in our oceans by the year 2050,” said Adrienne Esposito.
