Welcome! We are the St. Albans and Harpenden #refusethestraw campaigns. Inspired by Plastic Free July, and the film “A Plastic Ocean“, we are working to rid our towns of plastic straws. We are proudly affiliated with the Plastic Free Pledge, a national movement to #destraw the whole of the UK!
Why?
It seems like a small thing in a world of big problems, doesn’t it? We are targetting plastic straws because they are used for less than an hour, and are not usually recycled, because they are small and fiddly. The plastic they are made from takes around 500 years to break down, and is causing terrible environmental problems. TheLastPlasticStraw.Org estimate that 80% of all marine debris comes from the land, and 80-90% of that is made from plastic. Plastic breaks down into tiny pieces which are ingested by animals and make their way into our food chain.
In short, this is an unnecessary problem that can be fixed really easily! Most of us can do without a straw, and there are lots of cheap and easily available biodegradable or reusable alternatives for anyone who cannot.
What can you do to help?
We are asking that…
- Customers – politely refuse plastic straws
- Businesses – provide eco-friendly straws, or if that’s not possible, straws on request only
Let us know how you get on. We believe that all of the small changes we make matter, because they add up to a big impact, and would love to share your successes on social media.
*Big love and thanks to our friends at Plastic Free Pledge for the graphics, as always x
Refuse the Straw 