Plastic straws are soon to be a thing of the past, thanks to inventions like the Final Straw. As awareness of the damage caused by plastic straws grows, more and more people are demanding that they are banned in cities across the world. In America alone, we use over 500 million plastic straws per day. And where do the majority of plastic straws end up? Tossed carelessly in the trash, littered, not recycled, and ultimately, in the ocean.

When these straws (and other plastic waste) pollute our oceans, they break down into microplastics. These tiny particles of plastic are then ingested by animals, which causes health concerns or even death. But, keep in mind that it takes a long time for plastic to decompose fully; about 200 years for plastic straws. What we’re left with is bits of plastic floating around the ocean, causing injury and sickness to sea life, and eventually ending up in our seafood.

It’s easy to think that tiny plastic straw you use in your soda won’t really affect anything. But, factor in the millions of straws everyone else is using with all of the other sources of plastic, and it becomes apparent that we have a serious problem on our hands. Plus, the movement to reduce plastic waste has to start somewhere, so why not use straws as the gateway?