UK says bye to straws and cotton buds, as world looks to sustainability

The United Kingdom is set to become greener, with Prime Minister Theresa May promising to ban plastic waste in an attempt to protect the environment and clean up the oceans.

Last week, May called for a ban on single-use plastic items,calling them “one of the greatest challenges facing the world”. Brits dump more than 8.5 billion plastic straws each year, according to The Sun, and many fast-food outlets across the UK have already phased in paper straws as a result. But the UK isn’t stopping there.

Cotton buds, which many people use to clean their ears, could also face a ban, while coffee stirrers, coffee lids and disposable plastic cups are also facing the chopping block.

It’s not the first time the UK has banned such items. While Australia is gearing up for a plastic bag ban at major supermarkets later this year, it’s something the UK has already implemented in most stores. British customers have been forced to pay for bags for a number of years now, resulting in nine billion fewer bags being made and distributed through stores. The country also banned tiny plastic microbeads, that were going down drains and harming marine life, from face wash items and shower gels.

There are now questions as to whether Australia should follow suit and if so, what should be banned. A quick look in any household across the country would find that plastic is present in dozens of daily items. If you went to your pantry, chances are chips, lollies, biscuits, pasta and other items are wrapped in plastic. Furthermore, there’s been a growing trend in Australia of fresh fruit and vegetables being sold in plastic packaging.

Anyone stepping out for a quick takeaway coffee will get a plastic lid and stirrer with their drink, takeaway meals often come with plastic cutlery. Then there’s plastic water bottles. Australians buy more then 118,000 tonnes of plastic drink bottles a year. Each 1-litre bottle takes up to 3-7 litres of water and 1 litre of oil to produce, and more than 40 per cent of these bottles aren’t recycled.

In the bathroom, most toothbrushes are made of plastic, while plastic toothpaste caps also get dumped in landfill. There’s plastic shaving razors, mouthwash bottles, liquid soap dispensers and shampoo bottles, just to name a few.

Plastic is also found in cigarette lighters, clothing tags, shoelace tips, milk bottle caps, clothes pegs, phone cases, cooking utensils and more.

Prime minister Malcolm Turnbull, who was in London for the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting when May made her announcement, said Australia wouldn’t be as tough as the UK when it came to a ban on plastic.

“The banning of plastic bags and other items of plastic has been debated in Australia over many years; it’s largely a matter of state regulation, the Productivity Commission has had a look at it, it’s something that will come up for review,” he told reporters last week, according to SBS.

“It’s not a simple matter, because it can impose additional costs and can create additional pollution, so the important point is to ensure plastic waste does not find its way into our oceans.”

According to GreenPeace, 9.8 trillion kilograms could end up in landfill or the environment by 2050 if our current plastic habits aren’t changed. More than 8,300,000,000 metric tonnes of plastic has been created since the early 1900s. 

What do you think? Should plastic be banned in Australia? Would your life be impacted if plastic was to be replaced or taken away altogether?