“Straw-less summer”: Balancing sustainability and disability rights on the Eastern Shore

Although she hates plastic, 71-year-old Jacqueline Williams drinks from plastic disposable straws every day.

She doesn’t have much of a choice.

“I can’t swallow fast enough, my neck was broken,” said Williams, who was in a near-death car accident nine years ago. “I have no control, that’s why I use a straw.”

After the accident, she said she didn’t go anywhere for almost three years. Paralyzed from the neck down, she uses a wheelchair controlled by her head to get around.

But now that Williams is used to the change, she frequently goes out to eat, on vacations to nearby cities or for shopping.

Although it’s difficult at times to get in and out of public places and it sometimes bothers her when people stare, it’s important to her to do the things in life that she enjoys. She said it’s disappointing when others don’t consider access for people with disabilities.  

This is the concern that has been raised in recent months by the disability community in response to efforts to decrease disposable straw use, setting up a national debate between environmentalists and disability rights activists. 

Straws are one of the top trash items found on beaches, according to a 2017 International Coastal Cleanup report. Recycling nonprofit Eco-cycle estimates that the U.S. uses 500 million straws daily.

Environmental movements gained momentum in the aim to reduce disposable plastic straw use during the past year, including a successful “Straw-less” summer campaign in Ocean City.

National companies such as Starbucks, Marriott, Hyatt Hotels and cities including Seattle, Miami Beach and Berkley have either banned straws or committed to handing out straws only upon request.

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Across the Eastern Shore, restaurants and other businesses have also taken up the push to reduce disposable straw use as a method to decrease trash in the ocean. The Ocean City chapter of the Surfrider Foundation asked that restaurants in the town hand out straws on request only for the 2018 summer to reduce straw waste.

63 businesses have signed their pledge, as well as 451 individuals.

“We are pleased, the city is pleased as well,” said Jane Robinson, chair of the Ocean City Surfrider chapter. She readily acknowledged that straws are a very small part of plastic consumption, but hopes the movement can incite larger change. “We all have to start somewhere and this is a good place to start.”

Halfway through the summer, the effort has reached major businesses including Seacrets and Ocean City's Roland E. Powell Convention Center, as well as a number of local staples.

Zoe Koch, who has worked at Satellite Coffee for three years, said she has noticed a marked decrease in straw use since the business joined the campaign.

Some Eastern Shore restaurants, like Tall Tales Brewery and Rise Up Coffee Roasters, have transitioned entirely to more environmentally friendly straws. The biodegradable straws served by Tall Tales look and feel very similar to typical plastic straws, so much so that many customers don’t even know the difference.

Rise Up coffee shop locations in Salisbury and Ocean City serve only paper straws with their drinks. General manager Dana Fields said they no longer keep any plastic straws in the small chain's locations. 

"They are so bad for the planet, they don’t biodegrade, they get in the oceans," said Fields about plastic straws.

She said while they have gotten some complaints about the straws based on preference, she isn't aware of any customers that have needed a plastic straw due to a disability. 

"I haven't heard anything about that," she said. "I am not sure what we would do in that case." 

Jacqueline Williams said a paper or biodegradable straw would work for her needs.

But Kate Anderson, attorney at Disability Rights Maryland, said getting rid of plastic disposable straws can hamper the independence of some people with disabilities.

While alternative options may work for some, she said, reusable straws are difficult to clean, and paper straws disintegrate quickly and can be a choking hazard for those with limited jaw control. Biodegradable straws are often not as durable as plastic.

“Plastic straws are a really necessary resources for some people with disabilities so they can enjoy goods and services like grabbing a drink at their favorite coffee house,” Anderson said. “You can’t solve one problem by taking away an important resource for a marginalized community.”

Although Anderson doesn’t feel it is necessary to hand out a straw to every customer, she said restaurants should make it clear that single-use plastic straws are available for those who need them.

Ocean City Surfrider chair Robinson said that she agrees plastic straws should be available at restaurants. She hopes cities that undertake straw bans take the time to listen to the disability community before acting.

The Ocean City effort does not ask for restaurants to get rid of plastic straws entirely and Robinson said she supports the idea of keeping standard plastic straws on hand for those who need them.

Back in Georgetown, Delaware, Williams said she is hopeful that someone will come up with a solution to the problem soon.

“They will think of a way,” she said. “If they can do a 3-D (printed) gun, they will come up with a better straw.”

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