Loyalist College changes the rules for students using plastic straws

By Lori-Anne Little

BELLEVILLE – There has been a small change to the typical lunch routine of students at Loyalist College, since plastic straws have been removed from the school’s cafeteria.

Straws are still available to students, but now they have to ask for them. In the past they were beside all of the pop machines and students could take any number of them they wanted. The change is in hopes that students won’t waste straws.

Plastic waste is a problem that the school wants to help tackle, according to Sustainable Loyalist’s website. Each year 8 million tonnes of plastic end up in our oceans, according to the United Nations environmental sector.

The initiative to ban plastic straws has been a big topic of debate online for the last year. Environmental enthusiasts say that every little bit helps.

Straws are a bigger problem then they seem, says the UN’s website. “Straws seem harmless: slim, measuring no more than 20 cm, they adorn cocktails, juices and soft drinks. But they are also among the top ten plastic items littering our oceans and coasts.”

Theres such an ignorance around the #banstraws movement honestly it's ridiculous pic.twitter.com/emAl1uj2PB

— S. M. MITCHELL – Writing Coach & Book Marketing (@smmitchauthor) February 6, 2019

But others say that banning straws is too far and that we should be focusing on bigger issues.

https://twitter.com/senatorshoshana/status/1093302136878874624

The change took place last Monday as a green environmental innovative for the school.