{"id":275762,"date":"2023-08-26T20:44:21","date_gmt":"2023-08-26T18:44:21","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=275762"},"modified":"2023-08-26T20:47:05","modified_gmt":"2023-08-26T18:47:05","slug":"paper-straws-contain-toxic-forever-chemicals-could-be-worse-than-plastic-study","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/climatescience.press\/?p=275762","title":{"rendered":"Paper straws contain toxic \u2018forever chemicals\u2019 \u2014 could be worse than plastic: study"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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From ClimateDepot<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By\u00a0Marc Morano<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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https:\/\/nypost.com\/2023\/08\/25\/paper-straws-more-toxic-than-plastic-study\/<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

By\u00a0Ben Cost<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Paper straws might not be the \u201ceco-friendly\u201d drinking tube they\u2019ve been promoted to be: Belgian researchers found that these so-called \u201cgreen\u201d utensils are toxic and therefore potentially worse for the environment than their much-vilified plastic counterparts, according to a new study\u00a0published<\/a>\u00a0in\u00a0the journal Food Additives & Contaminants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cStraws made from plant-based materials, such as paper and bamboo, are often advertised as being more sustainable and eco-friendly than those made from plastic,\u201d Thimo Groffen, Ph.D., study author and an environmental scientist at the University of Antwerp,\u00a0said<\/a>\u00a0in a statement. \u201cHowever, the presence of PFAS [poly- and perfluoroalkyl-based substances known as \u201cforever chemicals\u201d because they last for a long time before breaking down] in these straws means that\u2019s not necessarily true.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The new research comes following multiple initiatives enforced by numerous US cities,\u00a0including New York,\u00a0<\/a>and\u00a0restaurant<\/a>\u00a0chains to ban disposable plastic suckers comprised of polypropylene and polystyrene, which take hundreds of years to decompose and are linked to health problems from liver problems to birth defects.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cTheir time has come and gone. I believe we should get rid of plastic straws,\u201d NYC Mayor de Blasio said\u00a0in 2018 after the City Council\u00a0<\/a>introduced a proposal to prohibit restaurants and bars from distributing plastic sippers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Cities across the US have rolled out bans on one-use plastic suckers.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

SEE ALSO<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\"The<\/a><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

City Council passes bill to stop NYC eateries from offering plastic straws<\/a><\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, countries such as Belgium and the UK have already ditched these implements in favor of the supposed eco-conscious plant-based alternatives.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, according to the new research paper, this is a total \u201cstrawman argument\u201d \u2014 as these alleged environment-saving slushie siphons are potentially packed with more PFAS than the \u201cevil\u201d plastic version.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

To deduce this a-straw-calyptic theory, researchers analyzed the PFA concentrations of 39 brands of drinking straws, which were comprised of five materials: paper, bamboo, glass, stainless steel, and plastic.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

They found that paper straws were the most PFA-filled with a whopping 90% of paper straws containing the chemicals.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, bamboo straws \u2014 another highly touted green alternative \u2014 clocked in second with 80%, followed by 75% of plastic straws, 40% of glass straws, and none in steel straws.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Not to mention that some of these so-called\u00a0\u201c100% recyclable\u201d straws\u00a0<\/a>are actually anything but.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It\u2019s unclear how these substances \u2014 which have been used\u00a0since the 1940s to repel water and grease<\/a>\u00a0in everything from cookware to carpets \u2014 ended up in the straws, although the presence of them in every brand suggests they were added on purpose as a liquid repellant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Other potential PFA sources could be the soil the plant-based materials were grown in as well as the water used in their manufacturing, per Phys.org.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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The plastic straw scare was bogus.

So is the scare about PFAS in paper straws.

Here's a database of studies on PFAS built by green groups for trial lawyers. https:\/\/t.co\/Eq8NNlHeGx<\/a>

Find me a credible study. None show PFAS causes harm.https:\/\/t.co\/HCeUR1AHBt<\/a> via @nypost<\/a><\/p>— Steve Milloy (@JunkScience) August 25, 2023<\/a><\/blockquote>