Starbucks, American Airlines, and Hyatt all have one thing in common and it’s not that people spend way too much money on each of them every year. These companies and many others have decided to ban plastic straws because of its single use and then being thrown right into the garbage. Plastic straws are not the main problem in our oceans. Though they are single-use plastic, they are too small to have a big enough impact on the pollution in the ocean. The problem in our oceans is not straws but, single-use plastics.  We have to reduce the amount of single-use plastic we are throwing away. I am going to be talking about plastic straws are too small, the biggest plastic pollutants, how single-use plastics get into the ocean, and what else we can do to reduce the amount of single-use plastic.

Firstly, plastic straws are too small. Too small of an object and too small of a problem to be banning them in every restaurant or store we walk into. According to National Geographic’s article by Sarah Gibbens published on January 2, 2019,  plastic straws make up only 0.025% of the plastic in the ocean. That small amount is nothing compared to the eight million tons of plastic that flow into the ocean each year. Plastic straws find there way to our oceans from being left on the beach, dropped on sidewalks and streets, fall off boats, or blown out of trash cans. Even if someone were to recycle a plastic straw, they are too light. When recycled goods are being filtered through the plastic straws do not have enough weight to go through with the heavier items. The straws continue through the garbage filters and end up in landfills and eventually into our oceans. Scientific scholars have also not yet identified plastic straws a threat to marine wildlife. If people want to help save our oceans we need to know what the biggest plastic pollutants are.

Secondly, the biggest plastic pollutants in the ocean. Some of the greatest threats to our oceans when it comes to plastic pollutants are fishing gear, balloons, and plastic bags. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is the world’s largest patch of floating trash. This very wide stretched patch of trash is often described as “larger than Texas.” This is not just made up of bags and bottles, it is mostly made up of abandoned fishing gear. World Ocean Fest’s website says that abandoned fishing nets can travel long distances and remain in the ocean long after they are discarded. There is an estimated 640,000 tons of fishing gear left in the ocean. All released balloons, including ones labeled “biodegradable latex” return to Earth and our oceans as a huge pollutant. Balloons kill many animals and cause dangerous power outages on our planet this information is from One Green Planet article by Arianna Pittman published in June of 2018. Everybody has heard about single-use plastic bags being bad for our oceans and, unfortunately, the rumors are all true. The Center for Biological Diversity website says that Americans use 100 billion plastic bags a year and the average American family brings home 1,500 plastic shopping bags a year. Waste Management says only 1% of plastic bags are returned for recycling. That means that the average family only recycles 15 bags per year. The rest of the bags that are not recycled end up in landfills. Plastic has to get into the ocean to cause actual harm. So how does that even happen?

Thirdly, how plastic items get into the ocean. Even if plastic is recycled and put into a landfill. Green Peace article by Louissa Casson, from August 2017 states that there are many risks that come with keeping plastic in landfills because it is so lightweight. They are at risk of blowing away out of the landfill and ending up in oceans and rivers. Plastic items can be carried by wind and rain into our drainage lines then flow into the ocean. Once the plastic is in our ocean it flows through currents all across the world. This is affecting islands in the Atlantic and Pacific. These islands are becoming dumping grounds for the plastic that flows throughout the oceans. Throwing plastic in a bin when it could be recycled is a very common thing for most people. After people throw plastic in bins they end up in landfills and end up blowing away because they are so little in weight. Littering is another big way that plastic gets into our oceans. When somebody drops a plastic bottle on the street it doesn’t stay there. Plastic is carried to streams, from wind and rainwater. Once the litter is in the drain it goes right to the ocean. Illegal dumping of waste adds a bunch of plastic in our seas. Whether people think it does or not, plastic does get into the ocean even if they don’t mean for it to happen.

Lastly, what we can do to reduce the amount of single-use plastic? Single-use plastics are bad for our environment and here are some ways to not use as many. Wherever a person may live, the easiest way to help our oceans is to reduce suing single-use plastics. Oceanic Society article by Brian Hutchinson says that the best way to reduce a person's use of single-use plastics is to refuse single-use plastics that are not needed. When going out to a restaurant, store, or even a farmers market refuse to use a plastic bag. Ask for a paper bag or maybe even bring a reusable bag to the store. Reusable bags are typically made out of fabric such as canvas or natural fibers. At a restaurant when the server brings a drink, ask for it with no straw. We all know how to drink out of a cup, don’t waste a straw that isn’t necessary. I think at fast food restaurants or cafes, plastic straws should not be given out. If somebody really wants a straw they can ask for it. People can live their lives by not using single-use plastics and have reusables instead. Wherever a person may live, the easiest way to help our oceans is to reduce using single-use plastics.

In conclusion, after reading about plastic straws are too small, the biggest plastic pollutants, how single-use plastics get into the ocean, and what else we can do to reduce the amount of single-use plastic. These are all things to think about in a person's everyday life. Don’t use a plastic straw when eating out take lunch to school in a reusable plastic container The problem in our oceans is single-use plastics. We need to reduce the number of single-use plastics that are being used. The amount that is being thrown away is affecting our oceans in a very significant way. They are polluting our oceans and killing marine life. With Starbucks, American Airlines, and Hyatt all banning plastic straws they are having a small impact on the amount of plastic that is in the ocean but, not nearly enough. We need more to be done about single-use plastics. Refuse to use single-use plastics when going out to eat or getting groceries. It is going to be a lengthy process to get our oceans back to 100% plastic free, if ever. Hopefully reducing the amount of single-use plastic we use every single day will keep our oceans and marine life safe.