Maddie Pieper
Starbucks, an internationally and insanely popular coffee chain, announced to globally eliminate plastic straws from all of their locations by 2020. This announcement is in regards to the overwhelming amount of plastic in our ocean, and how it’s killing at least 100 million marine animals annually. So much plastic is dumped into our oceans, killing 700 species of animals. While Starbucks’ promise to ban plastic straws form their facilities won’t solely fix the problem, it will help decrease the amount of plastic in our oceans.
However, the cost of saving our ocean ecosystem is the price of the straw manufacturers. By converting to no straws, nearly 2,000 jobs would be lost in New York City, 8,000 in California, and 400 million dollars in economic activity. If no one is ordering plastic straws, the manufacturers will go out of business. Banning plastic straws sounds like a great plan when thinking short term, but long term, could it do more harm than good? The California State Water Resources Control Board released a study that said, “mere substitution would not result in reduced trash generation if such product substitution would be discarded in the same manner as the banned item” (The Daily Wire). Even though reusable straws are environmentally more friendly, if we continually dispose of them as we did prior to the ban, our oceans will still be affected by the waste. The table below shows the cost and effects of banning plastic straws in New York City alone. In total, it would cost approximately 91.3 million dollars to eliminate plastic straws from only one city.
See link here to table here for more information
The plastic straw ban has been controversial for years now, regaining popularity in the news due to Starbucks’ promise (Starbucks Newsroom). Plastic straws are something so ordinary and a part of our everyday culture, many wouldn’t think have how big of an impact they have on our earth and our economy. Are the jobs lost worth the reduction of the trash in the ocean, or will skipping the straw help us more in the long run?
Works Cited
Lockhart, Keely. “Plastic Straw Removed from Turtle's Nose by Marine Biologists in Heartbreaking Video .” The Telegraph, Telegraph Media Group, 22 Mar. 2016, www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/03/22/plastic-straw-removed-from-turtles-nose-by-marine-biologists-in/.
“Plastikmüll Im Meer.” Syrdallschoulen, portal.education.lu/syrdallschoulen/KIDS/News-fir-Kids/ArtMID/4828/ArticleID/560209/Plastikm252ll-im-Meer.
“Starbucks to Eliminate Plastic Straws Globally by 2020.” Starbucks Newsroom, 9 July 2018, news.starbucks.com/press-releases/starbucks-to-eliminate-plastic-straws-globally-by-2020.
“These 5 Marine Animals Are Dying Because of Our Plastic Trash ... Here's How We Can Help.” One Green Planet, 5 Feb. 2017, www.onegreenplanet.org/animalsandnature/marine-animals-are-dying-because-of-our-plastic-trash/.
“Http://Www.ijaerd.com/Papers/finished_papers/IJAERDV03I0528370.Pdf.” International Journal of Advance Engineering and Research Development, vol. 3, no. 05, 2016, doi:10.21090/ijaerd.030517.
I think that with they trade-off we kind of loss because we either loss the environment that kills hundreds of animals and that could lead up to extinction. Or we have over 2,000 people without jobs so they have no income and then many people will lose their homes,families even. I think that they should find a way that they could create the straws that if you buy a drink you have to use the same straw and cup so that they have to keep the straws that they had and that they would have to buy a new cup and the drink because they need the straw with the cup to be able to get something.
ReplyDeleteI never thought plastic straws would create such a controversy. There is this constant decision that you have to make, either harming the sea turtles or having thousands losing jobs around the world. But what if the solution is not removing plastic straws? Instead of removing plastic straws and banning their existence why don't we just throw the plastic somewhere other than the ocean. There are more than just sea turtles that are being harmed from the plastic in the ocean, so instead of harming one species or having thousands of lost jobs, is the real solution just stop dumping plastics into the ocean?
ReplyDeleteLukas Zabel^
ReplyDeleteI never really thought about it from the standard of the ocean or the jobs before. It was great to hear about that specifically. I only thought about how it will affect the business at Starbucks. For one, how are you supposed to easily drink a frappe without a straw, and even though you're not supposed to, how do you drink a coffee and drive? These questions are things many customers of Starbucks are having and now wondering where to turn after they can't drink their iced chai latte while rushing to practice. This could seriously hurt their business. People might not want go their anymore. How can they continuously attract customers, while saving the turtles and keeping jobs?
ReplyDeletePreviously, when hearing about the plastic straw ban I only thought about how a lot of sea life was being affected and how plastic in the oceans is a big deal. I swayed more towards the side of saving the oceans. However with the idea that many jobs would be lost, this makes me think a lot more towards keeping straws. Many studies have shown that plastic straws are not even the biggest issue when it comes to plastic in the waters. So the economic impact eliminating straws would make, it may not be worth eliminating straws.
ReplyDeleteColin Pham
ReplyDeleteWhat do you think about the idea of making some sort of easily biodegradable kind of straw? Such as something that is not necessarily paper like in Hawaii, but some sort of composition or material that if people just throw them into the garden of the grass, they will break down and help plants grow. Would that be a potential product to fix this harmful problem? Plastic doesn’t break down easily and I feel like this way, even if people do litter, little harm would be done to the earth and its flora.
ReplyDeleteThere is actually a biodegradable straw made from plants that a straw manufacturing company could start producing thus eliminating job and economic loss from banning plastic straws while still maintaining environmental benefits. I present to you: The pasta straw (https://www.bbc.com/news/av/uk-england-bristol-44008960/pasta-straws-replace-plastic-at-bristol-restaurant). A biodegradable solution that doesn't crumple up in your cup. Farmers may also benefit as the demand of wheat will increase, perhaps decreasing price per bushel, but may also take care of record surpluses (https://www.reuters.com/article/us-usa-grains-storage-analysis/grains-piled-on-runways-parking-lots-fields-amid-global-glut-idUSKBN17D0EO).
DeleteIt's interesting to hear about the different sides of this event, as most people only take into consideration the ocean life being affected by using plastic staws. Like many others, I never thought about how manufacturers and their employees would suffer, with jobs being lost and companies going out of business. I'm interested to see how far this ban will go and how truly detrimental it will be to the businesses involved.
ReplyDeleteBefore reading this article about the sea life being affected by the plastic in oceans, I never looked at the economic viewpoint of this controversial topic. I always felt bad and wanted solutions for the poor animals that were dying. Now looking at the economic side of this problem I realized how impactful the removal of straws on our economy. The removal of straws will cause a loss of jobs and cause our unemployment rate to increase.
ReplyDeleteThis is the kind of trade off that many companies wouldn't be willing to make. Losing out on $400 million is not the kind of loss that goes lightly. However, major establishments need to look at what is more important. Eliminating straws in Starbucks alone by 2020 would have a bigger impact than most believe. I truly believe that such a move would but an incentive upon other establishments to do the same.
ReplyDeleteI believe that this would be a trade-off of sorts, because if you get rid of the straws the plastic will have to go somewhere else like the lid due to the need to have a stronger lid so that the liquid wont fall out. Like you would have to use more plastic just to make something more stronger so basically all the plastic is just going into the lid making the same plastic waste as before. I do believe we need to find better ways to cut down on our plastic use entirely rather than just using plastic somewhere else which still creates massive amount of waste no matter what.
ReplyDeleteLike other people have mentioned it is all about trade-offs. If many chains follow in Starbucks footsteps and choose to ban straws, many people will be jobless. But if plastic straws continue to be used, we risk many marine species extint. At the same time, the situation doesn't have to be all or nothing. Straws could be continued to use, but there could be more laws about how straws and other plastic is disposed. Even if many chains choose to ban straws and jobs are lost, more jobs could be created in an effort to help remedy the problem straws and plastic has already caused, and find an enviromentally friendlier solution.
ReplyDeleteEither way, we do lose a lot either the marine life or the jobs, the opportunity costs in this situation are very high. I don’t think that the U.S. is going to ban plastic straws because of how much of an impact it would have on our economy. Marine life conservation or even the environment in general tends to take a back seat when it comes to economic decision making. If the U.S. were to ban plastic straws, wouldn’t they also ban cigarettes(tobacco is harmful to soil, as well as people) or even plastic bags(similar effect as plastic straws, although, arguably more harmful). Thing is, we don’t, because by taking these items off the market, the U.S. would lose millions of jobs and our economy would take a hit. While I do love sea turtles, I don’t see many companies following starbucks approach to trying to conserve marine life.
ReplyDeleteI strongly agree the fact that companies should start banning plastic straws so many people in this world litter and hurting the environment around them affecting the population. So many animals are being affected by this because they have no idea that when they eat the plastic, that seconds later it could even kill them. With so many people littering, it may not affect the human population but it affects the wildlife population because of so many people littering all around the world. Even if you go downtown Milwaukee driving by all the highways, there’s litter everywhere when it comes to plastic bags, soda cans, boxes, etc.
ReplyDeleteI think that in order to save the oceans of all of the plastic that gets dumped in there, a lot more than plastic straws would need to be eliminated. Getting rid of other things, like plastic bags, would have a much bigger impact, but companies don’t want to make that decision. If getting rid of straws will cost them $400 million dollars, then getting rid of something that’s used more often will cost more. I never thought about how getting rid of straws would also cost people their jobs. Maybe there’s a way to reduce the use of straws, but not get rid of so many people’s jobs.
ReplyDeleteOctober 5th: That’s what economics is all about. Every single decision in one way or another affects something else. From the smallest decision to not buy that cereal at the store, to the largest economic decisions like Starbucks refusing to buy straws. Every action has negative or positive externalizes. Heck, one of the positives not mentioned in this is the fishing or marine industry. Over time as the amount of turtles in the ocean increases due to lack of ocean plastic, the natural population of the ocean will increase, then more fish will appear and more revenue can be made in the industry.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
DeleteFurthermore, as we clean up plastic already in the ocean through programs like The Ocean Cleanup, there's more room for plankton and algae to grow, providing a larger food source for marine life and further increasing the benefits in the fishing industry caused by reversing the effect of our plastic waste on the environment.
DeleteEliminating plastic straws has both a positive and negative affect. People would lose their jobs, but if we found a substitute for the plastic straws, people who works in that industry could hop right to the new one. Maybe we could use biodegradable straws. This could still potentially hurt animals, but it wouldn't quite hurt the environment. The real problem is the people who litter, not the plastic straws.
ReplyDeleteI believe that no longer having straws with plastic would be much more beneficial in the long term. Yes, it would have people lose jobs across the world, and it wouldn’t make too much of a difference right away or by itself, but if we don’t start to eliminate the amount of plastic in our oceans in some way, then it will never happen and the problem will get even worse. Killing off more and more marine animals.
ReplyDeleteObviously plastic straws in our oceans is really bad, and seems to be only getting worse. Although Starbucks is a huge company, just their elimination of straws will not be enough to save our oceans. Also, I wonder how many jobs would be lost if just starbucks eliminated their use of straws? There are also so many more pieces of garbage in the ocean that we could be eliminating. I know it would be hard, but I wonder what the impact on the ocean would be if the government introduced a tax on all single use plastics that have a high risk of injuring or killing animals in the ocean?
ReplyDeleteStarbucks is not driven by the employment of workers; they are driven by revenue. Corporations are not people and only respond to people if it is in their self-interest. This is a prime example of how decreasing the use of plastic in the product can actually increase revenue by decreasing the amount of raw material that goes into each unit, whilst also increasing their public image by decreasing their direct effect on the environment. Many companies are ditching single use plastics so that they don't need to produce or buy that good, and many more such as amazon are finding creative ways to decrease the amount of raw materials such as cardboard so that they don't need to use as much. As far as starbucks goes, the lid that they have developed that one can drink from seems like the most reticent solution because it uses the smallest amount of raw material.
ReplyDeleteI think the extent to which this ban does damage is dependent on which perspective you consider -- economical or ecological. Secondly, while the plastic straw industry may be negatively impacted by the controversy, other industries focused on making supplemental products that replace plastic straws will benefit. The demand for products like metal and paper straws will increase and as a result the supply of those products will increase. While some industries may suffer, others will benefit, and, though it may be small, the ecosystem will benefit as well.
ReplyDeleteDespite the compelling information presented in this article, I still believe it to be beneficial to limit the use of plastic straws. Yes, the elimination of plastic straws would put many people out of jobs. However, allowing it to pollute wildlife in the waters threatens the jobs of fishermen, marine biologists, and anyone else who works with water or marine wildlife. As well, resources from underwater sea plants and animals are also in jeopardy from plastic. For example, squid ink, which is used in different foods, is high in iron and better enables the circulation of red blood cells throughout the body. In eliminating plastic, one must consider the trade-offs that will come from it. A better option could be to lessen the amount of plastic used or possibly find a substitute material (also, why can't you just drink with your mouths?). A balance would need to be found and set in order to limit the trade-offs and their impact. Finally, the money saved from producing less plastic straws could be used to research and make a better disposal system than dumping plastic into the water.
ReplyDeleteI have heard of this straw controversy before and I agree that it would be beneficial short term for us to ban straws, but I never realized all of the jobs that would be lost and how expensive it would be to perform a “simple task”. I had also heard that the substitute for plastic straws would be to use paper straws. They are decomposable and safer for the environment. I feel like this would be a better option in the long run since it can make up for the lost jobs in the factories and could potentially even create more jobs if more business decide to go down the same road. And overall, this could boost the economy. Although this may be the more expensive choice, it could possibly benefit the environment and economy more in the long run.
ReplyDeleteThe argument against plastic straws is completely plausible however eliminating them as a whole from the chain isn’t just going to stop the problem. With how popular the chain is, it makes sense that it would make a significant dent in the amount of straws landing in the ocean. There are more plastic straws in the world than just the Starbucks company. However I agree that this is the right thing to do. Following along the trend of ending plastic straw production could be other companies as well as help eliminating the pollution. I agree with Maddie’s stance of losing jobs to help limit the pollution as a whole. Losing those jobs obviously hurt our economy but it’s more of a help never having to clean up the ocean rather than having to.
ReplyDeleteI personally think that the negative of jobs lost due to banning straws outweighs the benefit of cleaner oceans. Solely banning plastic straws will not clear the oceans of all debris, but it will hurt thousands of families who now don’t have an income. While plastic straws may not seem important, the removal of them would deeply impact the economy.
ReplyDeleteI think this is really interesting outside of the context of straws, because the use of plastic is becoming increasingly harmful to the environment since plastic doesn't break down and isn't being recycled correctly. This could be the beginning of a large decrease in plastic products similar to straws. Although this does effect jobs, it also gives opportunities for people to work to find alternatives. There may be economic problems that occur by stopping the use of straw or eventually decreasing plastic use but I believe that it will be balanced out in time. Even if an alternative is more expensive, it's price will decrease if more people start to use it, and companies can mass produce it.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your argument that the loss of thousands of jobs will out way the effects of straws being in the ocean long term. Although straws are terrible for our oceans there may be other solutions that are not banning all plastic straws. By banning the straws there not only will be many people without a job but people will have to look to other solutions for the plastic straw deficit and it is possible the solution will cause the same problem and harm the environment and out oceans in the same way.
ReplyDeleteI agree with your idea that many jobs will be lost because of the decrease in production of plastic straws, this could impact a large part of the workforce and economy. However, Starbucks may have also made the move to no plastic straws because of the slowing popularity of their business. They need to continue to stay relevant, so it may have just been a business move. But, I agree with the other commenters who mention the fact that they are trying to help this environmental issue by using their brand popularity to make the issue more well known, which they have.
ReplyDeleteI agree with the idea that veering away from plastic straws could be beneficial for the environment,but the idea of losing all of these jobs could definitely negatively effect the economy. The move away from plastic straws could also have been a benefit for Starbucks because it gives them publicity and makes there company look as though they are making moves that will benefit marine life, something no one would be apposed to.
ReplyDeleteThis was a very interesting article to read because currently straws are a hot topic around the nation, especially with Starbuck's new campaign to avoid straw use when serving their beverages. Most of the time when reading articles about straws, there is a negative connotation discussing how it is harming marine life, however not yet have I seen the impact that eliminating straw usage can have on our work force. This is why I enjoyed reading this blog post, as it shows another side to the story. It brings up an interesting question, are we willing to save marine life to negatively impact our labor force?
ReplyDeleteThis article was very interesting for me to read...obviously as a teenage girl I enjoy Starbucks very much and I thought this was a smart move for the company. Harming our ecosystem is something I find very upsetting, and to see pictures of turtles swimming with plastic bags around their heads it’s very sad. Therefore, I really supported this idea to get rid of plastic straws by 2020. However, I never really thought about what it would do to the manufactures who provide the green straws for starbucks. I think this could potentially be a dangerous move. But, at this time in our economy we have more job openings then people who even want jobs! Therefore, I think losing these jobs there would be plenty more for others to fill.
ReplyDelete-Anika
I have recently heard that Starbucks is pushing to eliminate thier plastic straws. I always thought it would increase their business because more people would want to help save the environment and chose Starbucks over other coffee shops, increasing the demand for Starbucks. I did not take into consideration the lost jobs or the inconvenience of drinking coffee without a straw. Although there would be less suppliers in the straw industry, it could open up jobs for maintaining our oceans and land. With that said, in an efficient market economy, no one can become better off without making someone else worse off.
ReplyDeleteThis article struck my attention as I have heard and talked about this debate before. I recently visited Fort Myers beach in Florida with my friend jake and his family and every place within like in 3 miles of the ocean that served drinks where not allowed to serve plastic straws instead they had these thick paper ones that dissolve and turn soft when they are thrown away or into the ocean so that they are safe for the environment and the sea life. So instead of reusable straws could all Starbucks use these instead. I think plastic straw companies should start to make paper straws instead because this will not allow for the economy to be put at risk.
ReplyDeleteI remember when I first heard about Starbucks saying they were gonna eliminate all the straws by 2020 and the thought of the process sounds so beneficial for the environment but as I read on I had no idea thats how many jobs would be lost.
ReplyDeleteTo be honest it's pretty difficult to be on one side of the argument. From one perspective you can think from a activist/saving animals side of thing. If you were to eliminate straws then the amount of animals that'll die will go down a significant amount. However, if you were to look at the economist side of things, eliminating straws is to be honest with you a terrible idea. There's such a huge amount of money that's lost within the economy, 400 million dollars in annual activity is a lot and you won't be able to make that back up in other areas of focus. That's why I've came to the conclusion that just the economic impact that completely eliminating straws entails is way to much. This is a case where there is literally no right answers, and is at a point where you have to choose the better of two evils.
ReplyDeleteThese are very great arguments for both sides of this story,many people will be loosing jobs and it will cost millions of dollars to change the plastic straws.However if we don't reduce the use of plastic, it will keep getting littered into the environment which is killing and harming many different species of animals. We have to protect the animals and our environment from becoming polluted. Also there will be jobs for people in order to create non-plastic Eco friendly straws.
ReplyDeleteAs we live in a world surrounded by millions of businesses that provide our everyday resources and goods, us consumers we may not realize the damage we are doing to the environment through things we use like these plastic straws. While you mentioned above just how harmful these items are to the marine life and Starbucks is trying to fix this problem, what does that mean for other forms of life and will other businesses follow suit with what Starbucks has promised? The only way to really see a positive within this change is if all businesses soon revert to reusable items like the straws because even if one big company starts to do it, this doesn't mean others will go through the trouble of producing more costly renewable products.
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