Trump Plans to Reverse Biden’s Plastic Straw Ban

US President Donald Trump is set to overturn yet another of President Joe Biden’s policies. According to The Guardian, this time the ban will be on plastic straws in U.S. government buildings and national parks. “I will be signing an executive order next week ending the ridiculous Biden push for paper straws, which don’t work. BACK TO PLASTIC!” Trump said in a Truth Social post.

He added in a separate post that Biden’s “mandate” for paper straws was now dead: “Enjoy your next drink without a straw that disgustingly dissolves in your mouth!!!”

The move comes as part of Trump’s push to reverse Biden’s efforts to phase out single-use plastics by 2035, a policy aimed at curbing plastic pollution. Despite environmental concerns, Trump has repeatedly criticised paper straws.

California pioneered the push against plastic straws in 2019, with several other states, including New York and Washington D.C., following suit.

The Guardian also reported that global plastic production has doubled since 2000, reaching around 460 million tonnes annually, and it’s expected to quadruple by 2050. However, less than 10% of plastic waste is recycled, and the rest ends up polluting the environment. Experts estimate that a truckload of plastic is dumped into the ocean every minute. “Much of this trash is composed of single-use plastics, such as straws, which make up about 40% of plastic production,” The Guardian reported.