The Last Straw: Media exposure is causing a viral outpour to save marine life

THIS WEEK BBC Three’s Blue Planet 2 showed graphic footage revealing the intensity of how plastic is harming marine life. This has turned social media to make want to make a change.

A Twitter campaign has gone viral to stop the use of plastic straws.

The global movement organisation, ‘Project 0’ created the ‘Refuse the Straw’ campaign which aims to raise awareness of the importance of cutting down on the use of plastic straws, to help clean up the world’s oceans.

Project 0 aims to protect 30% of the ocean by 2030 and their emphasis on ‘Refuse the Straw’ will be one of many of their projects that will help to make this happen.

It has been estimated that 71% Sea-birds and 30% turtles have been found to have digested plastics. In this sense, marine life is said to have a 50% mortality rate (Wilcox).

With this crisis being on the rise, the Twitter Hashtag: #refusethestraw has since gone viral with even the likes of Vivienne Westwood sharing it.

Others have taken to Twitter with the hashtag to express their feelings about the matter:

It’s easy, you just make it part of your order: “vodka tonic, no straw”; “gin & tonic, ice and lemon, no straw”. Every time, it’s one less. Too easy. #refusethestraw pic.twitter.com/sZdwNBkK3u

— Gareth Llewellyn (@Mrgareth) 10 December 2017

Who else caught #BluePlanet2 last night? 1 million pieces of plastic for every square mile of ocean ? There’s plenty of small ways we can help so we’re now banning plastic straws at Hippo Inns! #refusethestraw @BluePlanetII pic.twitter.com/zGOCU9D2oE

— Hippo Inns (@Hippo_Inns) 11 December 2017

When it comes to Manchester, restaurants, pubs and nightclubs have become the first of many to take a stand.
Popular Mancunian locations such as 42’s Nightclub, The Alchemist and DockYard have all either stopped their use of plastic straws or placed a charge for them.

Staff at Dockyard said, “Our initiative was instigated by a horrible video on social media of a straw being prised from a turtle’s nostril.

“As a result, we have stripped our bar of plastic straws and now only use paper straws upon request. Plastic Straws are much cheaper to buy in, but at what cost to the planet.

“We felt compelled to make a change just like many bars in Manchester already have.”.

The video referred to went viral earlier this month revealing the severity of plastic and its harm to marine life.