The Chicago White Sox announced on Thursday in a press release that they are ending the use of plastic straws at Guaranteed Rate Field for the remainder of the 2018 season. Concessionaires are on board with the effort to #SheddTheStraw introduced in 2017 by Chicago’s Shedd Aquarium. Starting on Sunday, April 22 patrons at White Sox games will not be served beverages with plastic straws, rather they must request a biodegradable straw.
Save The Seals
If you are too inconvenienced by this move than you probably club baby seals. The White Sox are the first major league team to eliminate plastic straws from the ballpark and it is an environmentally conscious move with immediate impacts. Plastic is a man-made, non-biodegradable substance that stubbornly exists forever. Despite their chemical makeup, plastic straws are incredibly difficult to recycle and eventually end up in our waterways.
Such mass disposal of waste has created an enormous ocean-bound landfill called the Pacific Garbage Patch. The nefarious collection of refuse is a toxic attraction for marine wildlife and poses health threats to humans as well. Surface debris confuses many aquatic species as easy prey and cycles its way through the food chain to humans who consume fish and other seafood.
According to The Ocean Cleanup, 700 species have encountered marine debris, 92 percent them with plastic. Sea Turtles are particularly vulnerable since they are migratory surface-feeders and TOC has found instances where 74 percent of the fluttering sea creatures’ diets are composed of ocean plastics. Besides sealife consuming plastics that eventually reach human stomachs, Sea Turtles and other species are vulnerable to ensnaring themselves in tangled plastic nets and the all too common plastic soda-can rings.
Squirt Needs Your Help
A recent report published in March 2018 explains that 1.8 trillion pieces of plastic weighing 80 metric tons is currently drifting off the Pacific coast of California and it is rapidly expanding.
By adopting the initiative with Shepp Aquarium the White Sox alone will keep 215,000 straws from being flushed into our waterways.
In a press release from the White Sox media relations department Dr. Bridget Coughlin, president and CEO of Shedd Aquarium shared her thoughts on the Southsiders’ willingness to take the lead.
“Earth Day is a moment each year for the world to stop and consider how we impact our planet and the ways we can protect it. We commend the White Sox for helping us highlight small changes like ‘Shedding the Straw’ that can make a huge impact for the health of our oceans, lakes and rivers. We are proud to stand as a partner for organizations and individuals looking for ways they can help aquatic animals.”
Brooks Boyer, White Sox senior vice president of sales and marketing added, “we are thrilled to team up with Shedd Aquarium and help lead by example in the way of sustainability within our gameday operations. We are honored to be the first ballpark to take the step of reducing our single-use plastic straws for nearly a full season, but we certainly hope that we will not be the last as there is more work to be done to protect our environment.” Boyer praised Delaware North Sportservice, Gibson’s ChiSox Bar & Grill and Levy for their cooperation in this initiative.
Shedd experts will be available at the White Sox game against the Astros on Sunday to share educational materials with fans and handle giveaways. Sunday marks the second year for #SheddTheStraw and sends a positive message for Earth-Day celebrations.
