Trump signs an order for plastic straws as he announces paper “don’t work” – Fox 5 Las Vegas

Washington (AP) – President Donald Trump said on Monday that he was banning federal use of paper straws, saying they don’t work and don’t last very long. Instead, he wants the government to move exclusively to plastic.

“This is a ridiculous situation. We return to the plastic straws, “Trump said, while signing an executive order to cancel federal purchase policies that encourage paper straws and limit plastic ones. The order directs federal agencies to stop buying paper straws, “and otherwise to ensure that paper straws are no longer provided in the agency’s buildings.”

Moving Trump-which has long stood up against paper straws and whose 2019 re-election campaign has sold reusable plastic straw Disposable plastic, including straws, from food, events and packaging operations up to 2027 and from all federal operations up to 2035.

Trump has announced President Joe’s policy “Dead!” In a social media publication over the weekend.

While plastic straws are accused of pollution of the oceans and the harmful of marine life, Trump said on Monday that he thinks it is “good” to continue using them. “I don’t think this plastic will affect the shark a lot while they eat as they break through the ocean,” he said in a White House message.

Several US states and cities have banned plastic straws, and some restaurants no longer automatically give them to customers. But plastic straws are just a small part of the problem. The environment is littered with plastic containers for disposable food and beverages-boils with water, take-off containers, coffee covers, market bags and more.

All over the world, the equivalent of a plastic garbage truck enters the ocean every minute of a number of sources, including plastic bags, toothbrushes, bottles, food packs and more, experts say. As these materials break down in the environment, microplastics appear in the stomach of fish, birds and other animals, as well as in human blood and tissue.

And plastic production releases greenhouse gases on the planet and other dangerous pollutants. More than 90% of plastic products are obtained from fossil fuels such as oil and natural gas, and millions of tons of plastic waste enter the world’s oceans every year. Many multinational companies moved away from plastic straws and made a reduction in plastic use within their operations, central to their sustainability purposes, which makes Trump’s solution into business in the world.

Trump’s order is “more for messages than finding solutions,” said Christie Levitt, director of the plastics campaign for the eco-friendly ocean, noting that most US voters require companies to reduce plastic packaging and food vessels for Disposable.

“President Trump is moving in the wrong direction of disposable plastics,” Levit said. “The world is facing a plastic pollution crisis and we can no longer ignore one of the largest environmental threats that our oceans and our planet face today.”

The plastic production industry applauds Trump’s course.

“The straws are just the beginning,” says Matt Seyhold, President and CEO of the Plastics Industry Association. “Back to plastic” is a movement that we all have to lag behind. “

More than 390 million straws are used daily in the United States, most of all in 30 minutes or less, according to the Advocacy Group Straws Turtle Island Restoration Network. The straws take at least 200 years to break down and pose a threat to turtles and other wild animals while decomposing into microplasty, the group says.

“In order to prevent another sea turtle from becoming a victim of plastic, we need to make personal changes in the lifestyle to fight for these species,” the group said in a message.

Each year, the world produces more than 400 million tonnes of new plastic. About 40% of all plastics are used in the packaging, according to the United Nations organization.

Globally, nations create a contract to deal with plastic pollution. The leaders met for a week in South Korea late last year, but did not reach an agreement. Conversations are resumed this year, as more than 100 countries are pursuing a pact that limits the production of plastic, as well as coping with cleaning and recycling.

The United States, China and Germany are the largest players in the world’s plastic trade. US manufacturers have asked Trump to stay on the negotiating table and return to the previous position of Biden, which focuses on the redesigning of plastic products, recycling and reuse.

White House Secretary Will Sharf, who presented Trump’s executive order, told him that the impetus of paper straws cost the government and the private industry “absolute tone money and left consumers across the country to be pleased with their straws. This is really something that affects ordinary Americans in their daily lives. “

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Associated Press writer Jennifer McDermott in Providence, Rod Island, has contributed to this story.

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