News Disney removing plastic straws and more by mid-2019

Phil12

Well-Known Member
I thought this was already in effect - when I was there early March it was no straws and no lids. I have a hand tremor and it made getting our food through the crowds incredibly difficult.
The next thing you know they're going to get rid of the cups too. We'll have to lean in under the spigot and press the button to shoot the beverage directly into our mouths!
 

michmousefan

Well-Known Member

mm121

Well-Known Member
Ban is now in effect for WDW

Paper straws taste so gross. And they get soggy if you let a drink sit for a bit.

I so hate this initiative as most people properly disposed of plastic straws so they weren't a problem.

Not sure why there wasn't a push to make straws out of corn based biodegradable plastics instead of forcing us back a few decades.

Paper straws totally destroy the enjoyment of a beverage with their PAPER taste.
 

Nubs70

Well-Known Member
Paper straws taste so gross. And they get soggy if you let a drink sit for a bit.

I so hate this initiative as most people properly disposed of plastic straws so they weren't a problem.

Not sure why there wasn't a push to make straws out of corn based biodegradable plastics instead of forcing us back a few decades.

Paper straws totally destroy the enjoyment of a beverage with their PAPER taste.
It's not the paper taste, it's the epichlorohydrine.
 

BalooChicago

Well-Known Member
The next thing you know they're going to get rid of the cups too. We'll have to lean in under the spigot and press the button to shoot the beverage directly into our mouths!

I’m surprised they haven’t had slip fall issues, they were all over filling and spilling behind the counter. I’m sure there must be more customer spills too. That kind of fine motor control makes my tremor worse. At one of the restaurants I couldn’t eat for half an hour waiting for my tremor to calm down.
 

GoofGoof

Premium Member
Oh goodie. Because getting rid of those plastic straws will counteract the massive pollution that their Diesel fueled busses and jet engine trams expel, massive electricity carbon footprint used by the monorails and the daily park usage and the pollutants thrown into the air nightly by the numerous fireworks shows.... but at least there are no straws to pollute the oceans that are no where near Walt Disney World.
Not polluting the oceans is still a positive thing no matter how far they are from WDW...even though it’s only an hour drive to the ocean anyway. Some buses are being phased out for a gondola that runs on electricity. Maybe they can/will convert some busses or trams to electric. The massive carbon footprint from electricity can and is being reduced. They already added some solar panels. They aren’t close to 100% clean yet, but small steps in the right direction. There’s been talk of replacing fireworks but I personally still enjoy those shows. Maybe there is a cleaner way to do or they add additional show elements to reduce the number of fireworks. Funny thing is the doom and gloom crowd will whine and cry about cost cutting if they do remove fireworks and say the environmental concerns are just an excuse.

Rome wasn’t built in a day. Things can be improved a little at a time. A number of smaller steps added up can get to significant positive change. Part of the reason it’s so hard to get a lot of things done in this country is so many people have this all or nothing mentality...like If a change doesn’t solve all of the environmental problems in the world then what’s the point.
 

peter11435

Well-Known Member
Oh goodie. Because getting rid of those plastic straws will counteract the massive pollution that their Diesel fueled busses and jet engine trams expel, massive electricity carbon footprint used by the monorails and the daily park usage and the pollutants thrown into the air nightly by the numerous fireworks shows.... but at least there are no straws to pollute the oceans that are no where near Walt Disney World.
What a terribly misinformed post
 

GoofGoof

Premium Member
Yes, but doesn't the "all or nothing" mentality also apply to the environmental crowd? How many times have we heard that the earth was going to burn up or be destroyed in 10 or 20 years.
I started hearing about doom and gloom, all or nothing panic mentality with the "hole in the ozone layer", before that it was acid rain, then the earth was going to burn up 10 years after 1987, then in 1990 ABC reported the earth was going to burn up in 50 years, then in 2005 Al Gore said the earth was going to burn up in 10 years, and most recently AOC said the earth has 12 years left, and some environmental "scientists" said that we now only have until 2100.

And they all say if we don't fix everything right now...we will all die.
So....let's talk about "all or nothing".
Nah, it’s never been about all or nothing. Just about anything positive attempted related to the environment is always going to be a small step and always has been. Your views are likely clouded by politics which is fine but not a topic allowed here so I have nothing further to add on that.
 

Lensman

Well-Known Member
Some buses are being phased out for a gondola that runs on electricity. Maybe they can/will convert some busses or trams to electric.
Back in 2015-2016, WDW converted its bus fleet to run on R50 biodiesel. Though not perfect, it reduces the nonrenewable footprint from the bus system.

Electric buses haven't caught on as quickly in the U.S. as they have in China. Bloomberg reported that as of 2017, 99% of the 385,000 electric buses in the world were operating in China. Shenzhen is the first city with an all-electric public transport network. That said, battery powered electric buses are starting to catch on in the U.S., as manufacturers are coming to market with products with the range and reliability that metropolitan transit authorities need.

I was also surprised to learn that Disney, partnering with Harvest power, has a biofuel facility at the Reedy Creek energy facility that generates 5.4 MW of combined heat and electricity from food waste. (sadly a worker died there last year after falling into a vat of oil)

all or nothing panic mentality with the "hole in the ozone layer"
Luckily, the Montreal Protocol on Substances that Deplete the Ozone Layer has leveled off or reversed the amount of various chlorofluorocarbons that were destroying the ozone layer and created the hole over the Antarctic. Of note, this treaty was ratified by every country in the world.

before that it was acid rain
The EPA initiated its Acid Rain Program in 1995 as the implementation of the 1990 Clean Air Act to create market incentives to reduce the emission of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides. Since then, annual emission of sulfur dioxide have reduced from 17 million tons to 9 million tons. Over the same time period, regulations in the EU reduced emissions there even more (by 70%).

I think it's great when problems threatening all of us are identified and responded to in a timely fashion, leading to mitigation and reduced mortality. Isn't that the way things are supposed to work?
 

Ismael Flores

Well-Known Member
I used the paper straws in this weekend and dont see what the issue is. they dont leave an after taste and are very sturdy. also didn't hear any complains.

what i did see is people still grabbing them by the handful and then leaving half of them on table or throwing in trash.
if people learned to grab only what they needed then maybe it wouldn't be to much of a problem.

people complain but they don't want to add to the solution. no need to grab more of what you need and that includes ketchup packs, plastic utensils, plastic lids and straw
 
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Epcot_Imagineer

Well-Known Member
I mean... Animal Kingdom has been doing this since the park's opening, correct? I'm not too worried about this change. It's a publicity stunt, that costs nothing, to make the parks look more environmentally friendly. According to some posts on Twitter, there are still multiple locations around the parks that were still giving out plastic straws despite the ban.

I wouldn't lose my head over this; I'm sure if you ask, there will still be straws available as they're still needed for people with disabilities.
 

GoofGoof

Premium Member
I mean... Animal Kingdom has been doing this since the park's opening, correct? I'm not too worried about this change. It's a publicity stunt, that costs nothing, to make the parks look more environmentally friendly. According to some posts on Twitter, there are still multiple locations around the parks that were still giving out plastic straws despite the ban.

I wouldn't lose my head over this; I'm sure if you ask, there will still be straws available as they're still needed for people with disabilities.
According to the blog Mickey post from a page or 2 back the policy didn’t officially go into effect until today so it’s too soon to say whether plastic straws will still be around long term. They should at least use up the ones they have on hand. No point in throwing them away unused.

Just curious, what kind of disability requires a plastic straw in favor of a paper one? Plastic allergy?
 

Tony the Tigger

Well-Known Member
Just let us use our resort mugs in the parks then. Problem solved

Or...

Maybe people can stop thinking they need an endless stream of soda and coffee in their faces 24/7. Empty calories, zero nutritional value, too much caffeine and sugar - but apparently drinking that garbage quickly through a paper straw is some kind of deprivation.

They also make you more thirsty.

Drink water = drink less.

But everyone carry on whining like you can’t figure out how to get liquid into your mouths.
 

DisneyJoe

Well-Known Member
Oh goodie. Because getting rid of those plastic straws will counteract the massive pollution that their Diesel fueled busses and jet engine trams expel, massive electricity carbon footprint used by the monorails and the daily park usage and the pollutants thrown into the air nightly by the numerous fireworks shows.... but at least there are no straws to pollute the oceans that are no where near Walt Disney World.
 

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