These Alamedans would be happy to see plastic straws go altogether.

Should plastic drinking straws go by the wayside?

Terri Long: Eliminating plastic straws is a no-brainer. We need to wake up to the dangers of the many toxins that are harming our bodies and our environment. Straws are just the tip of the iceberg. It’s time to pay attention to everything we put in and on our bodies and in our landfills.

Kathy Manya: I think all straws should be paper and should be optional. Sometimes glasses and cans are handled or are just dirty and a straw is helpful. I understand the dangers of plastic and think those should absolutely be banned.

Kelli Pellegrini: We at Alameda County Industries support initiatives that prevent environmental impacts such as Skip the Straw because they help reduce what we send to the landfill. Remember to always reduce, reuse, recycle, and rot.

Cooper Freeman: Recent data reveals that only 9 percent of all plastic ever discarded since 1950 has been recycled. Meanwhile, plastics continue to consolidate in our oceans, where they will remain for hundreds to thousands of years as they breakdown slowly. Plastic bottles can take up to 450 years to decompose in the ocean. The only way to solve our plastic problem is to simply make and use less plastic. Plastic straws are but a step in the right direction.

Matthew Philips: I think we have to get down to eliminating the nitty-gritty of all of the waste we incur as a planet. I wouldn’t have thought about getting rid of straws or making them optional, but I think it’s a great idea. Straws aren’t necessary, but saving our planet is.

Kate Pryor: Here at Tucker’s Ice Cream we eliminated plastic straws a long time ago. It drives me crazy that people still use them. Often it is just because coffee shops or fast-food places have covers that they are in the habit of putting over cups. I’ll bet thousands of straws are being used on a daily basis in Alameda alone. If customers would complain about straws, maybe food services would change their ways. The straw ordinance that was passed in Alameda doesn’t appear to be taken very seriously and that’s a shame. Straw usage is ingrained in people’s habits but plastics ones must go.

Alejandro Salazar: I haven’t heard about this, but I think it’s a good idea. Why not eliminate them? After a while they won’t be missed. Let’s help the environment wherever we can.