MiSustainable Holland: Holland youth urge the community to ‘Skip the Straw’

Meredith Walters
·2 min read

HOLLAND — The Holland Youth Advisory Council, a group of local high school students aiming to raise awareness about important issues in the community, is urging locals to "Skip the Straw."

The HYAC Environmental Committee has been working on several projects to help Holland be more environmentally conscious. The most recent, in collaboration with downtown Holland restaurants, is promoting National Skip the Straw Day on Friday, Feb. 24.

National Skip the Straw Day was established by high school students from Whitehall, Michigan, in 2017.
National Skip the Straw Day was established by high school students from Whitehall, Michigan, in 2017.

The national day of awareness was established by high school students from Whitehall, Michigan, in 2017.

Plastic straws are a small but significant part of plastic pollution. Plastic has a devastating effect on the environment as it floats in waterways, where wildlife can ingest or get caught in it. Some plastic could be recyclable but gets contaminated, while other pieces simply don’t make it into the recycling bin.

By 2050, it's estimated plastic trash will outweigh all the fish on earth.

With statistics like that, it's easy to get overwhelmed by the seemingly endless sources of environmental harm from billions of pieces of plastic. But small steps can help.

Plastic straws aren't biodegradable. They can take up to 200 years to decompose, and yet, aren't essential for the average person. Not using a straw might seem like an insignificant change, but when you consider that 500 million straws are used in the U.S. daily, a small lifestyle change could drastically reduce the amount of straws that contribute to plastic pollution.

The Holland Youth Advisory Council, a group of local high school students aiming to raise awareness about important issues in the community, is urging locals to "Skip the Straw."
The Holland Youth Advisory Council, a group of local high school students aiming to raise awareness about important issues in the community, is urging locals to "Skip the Straw."

Even replacing plastic straws with reusable straws or paper straws would make a difference, and it makes the insurmountable obstacle of plastic pollution a little bit easier to confront.

Restaurants participating in "Skip the Straw" include Big E’s, Bowerman’s on Eighth, Crane’s in the City, HopCat, Hops at 84 East, Mizu Sushi, New Holland Brewing, OI Asian Bistro, The Curragh Irish Pub and Waverly Stone Gastropub.

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Think twice before you ask for a straw, and you'll be taking a small, important step toward a more sustainable Holland.

— Meredith Walters is secretary of the Holland Youth Advisory Council’s Environmental Committee.

About This Series MiSustainable Holland is a collection of community voices sharing updates about local sustainability initiatives. This Week’s Sustainability Framework Theme: Environmental Awareness/Action: Environmental education and integrating environmental practices into our planning will change negative outcomes of the past and improve our future.

This article originally appeared on The Holland Sentinel: MiSustainable Holland: Group urges community to ‘Skip the Straw’