The San Francisco City Council voted on the 24th and agreed to ban the use of plastic straws and fluorinated materials in the city.
The ban is expected to become law by second reading next week and will take effect on July 1, 2019. At that time, San Francisco-based food and beverage establishments will ban these plastic products, such as customers who have not requested the use of napkins, take-away utensils and other take-away items, Operators are not allowed to provide it, unless a self-service point is set up for customers to use on demand to reduce unnecessary waste.
Congressman Katie Tang said that disposable plastic products are "great" to the environment. "Plastics is killing our marine ecosystem, scattered in the streets, and we are looking for alternatives to plastics."
The Associated Press quoted banned proponents as saying that fluorinated plastics are insoluble in water and oil, difficult to degrade, and damaging the environment. The research group 'Silent Spring Institute' said that fluorinated products are associated with human hormone secretion disorders, cancer and other health hazards. However, the American Chemical Industry Association 'American Chemical Council' said on the 23rd that the US Food and Drug Administration believes that fluorinated products currently used for packaging of take-away foods are 'safe'.
At this stage, many countries and cities around the world are beginning to cope with the growing pollution of plastics. The British government announced in April that it plans to ban plastic straws, stir bars and cotton swabs from next year. Plastic tableware and straws have been banned in Malibu, California, USA. , Seattle City and Miami Beach banned plastic straws. In addition, the US Starbucks company also plans to bid farewell to plastic straws and stir bars within two years.