New York City Council passes plastic straws upon request bill!

Another victory against plastic pollution in NYC! Early May, the New York City Council passed a bill to reduce plastic straw usage. The bill dictates that establishments will only be allowed to give out a plastic straw if a person asks for one in the city. This is not a full ban on plastic straws in order to accommodate people with disabilities who may require the use of a straw. This bill was sponsored by councilwoman Helen Rosenthal and will be another great step to combat plastic pollution in NY and protect our beaches and oceans. The bill will take into effect on November 1st 2021. 

Now that we have a plastic bag ban and a straw upon request bill, NY is heading in the right direction to continue to tackle single use plastic. However, we cannot stop there! One other great way to tackle single use plastic is to advocate for plastic utensils upon request from restaurants. In the NYC Council, Bill Int 1775B, Skip the Stuff Bill, is doing exactly that. It would ask for restaurants, food delivery apps, and online delivery platforms to give out single use plastic utensils only when it is requested by the customer. This would also eliminate a very large part of our plastic consumption and pollution. To advocate for this bill take a few minutes to send a message to your council member to ask them to support this bill! Sign this action alert here.