On February 10, President Trump signed an executive order directing the federal government to resume the use of plastic straws, reversing the policy of encouraging the use of paper straws in the Biden era in pursuit of environmental sustainability.
Last Friday, Trump revealed this information on the “Truth Social” platform, pledging to sign the executive order to “end the absurd measure of promoting ineffective paper straws by Biden,” adding: “Back to the plastic era!”
On Monday, Trump told reporters at the White House when signing the order: “We are going to start using plastic straws again.” He added that paper straws “don’t work,” stating, “I have used them many times, and sometimes they break.”
He went on to say, “If something is hot, they don’t last long, it’s a matter of minutes, sometimes seconds, it’s ridiculous.”
White House Office Director Will Scharf stated that the impact of paper straws and plastic straws on the environment is “completely unclear” and has wasted a lot of U.S. government funds.
Last year, President Biden announced a plan to gradually phase out all disposable plastics by 2035. At the time, Biden stated at the White House that the production of plastics and the increase in waste “pollute our oceans, poison the air in communities near production facilities, and threaten public health.”
According to Biden’s directive, it is not entirely clear what materials will replace the straws used by the federal government (if any), as other types of straws including paper straws may also pose environmental and health issues.
A 2023 study found that nearly all types of straws, including paper straws and bamboo straws, contain compounds known as PFAS, which can make the materials waterproof but may be toxic.
Disposable paper straws degrade faster than plastic straws and do not require as much fossil fuel consumption during production. However, consumers criticize the limited durability and flexibility of paper straws. Compared to plastic straws, they may contain more “persistent chemicals”.