Plastic straw ban 'kick in the teeth' for disabled people, advocate says

Thursday, 30 August 2018

Esther Woodbury talks about why a straw ban ignores the needs of disabled people.

Plastic straw bans are a 'kick in the teeth' for disabled people, an advocacy group says.

As businesses flocked to outlaw the single-use plastics, those who relied on them were being ignored, Disabled Persons Assembly spokeswoman Esther Woodbury said.

The bendy straws allowed many people to drink independently and the paper and metal alternatives provided were dangerous.

Bendy straws were created for people with disabilities, Woodbury said.

'It's really embarrassing as a disabled person to always have to insist on your rights.'

**READ MORE:

Hospitality New Zealand spokesman Nick Keene said a sensible approach was needed to banning straws.

* Wellington City could go straw-free

* Paper straws to take on 'nasty' plastic

Environmental group Sustainable Coastlines picked up over 65,000 straws from New Zealand beaches in the past ten years.

* Plastic straw ban won't save the ocean**

Plastic straws have been labelled one of the worst items polluting the marine environment. Mistaken for food, they were eaten by marine life and plastic traces were found in the human food chain.

In February, Wellington Hospitality Group announced they would stop using the straws in their 25 city venues and council and environmental groups eyed a city-wide ban.

Woodbury said disabled people didn't want an 'us and them' issue, but wanted others to understand that blanket bans didn't work for everybody. The Wellington woman wanted businesses to let customers have the choice.

'We spend enough time managing in an inaccessible world and this is just another thing.'

Many of the eco-friendly replacements weren't suitable for disabled people.

'Paper straws dissolve and can become choking hazards and metal straws are obviously very hard; they can hurt someone with spasticity or a tremor.'

Metal straws weren't safe for hot drinks and, while some people could expect disabled people to carry their own straws, it wasn't always practical. Cornstarch straws were a good option for businesses to provide.

This week, Auckland's Uptown Area announced it would no longer supply plastic straws; but didn't say how businesses would cater to disabled people, Woodbury said.

'Either the voice given to disabled people is so small that these businesses remain ignorant of the issue or the voice of disabled people is so little valued that it's seen as okay to ignore them.'

Uptown Business Association manager Gary Holmes said he had 'absolute and total sympathy' with the issue raised by Woodbury.

Businesses wanted to get rid of plastic straws - and provide alternatives - as a way to limit damage to the environment, he said.

'An unintended consequence of this is cafes might not have been aware there was a group that would be affected by it.

'Now that we're aware of this we'll certainly make sure all our people are aware of this.'

Hospitality New Zealand's spokesman Nick Keene said a sensible approach was needed.

'While we are keen for our members to go plastic straw-free in the main, if people need to use straws that bend to enjoy their outing then they should be able to access these, and should let the restaurant, cafe or bar know.'

Environmental group Sustainable Coastlines picked up over 65,000 straws from New Zealand beaches in the past ten years, general manager Ryley Webster said.