Campaign asks Albertans to stop using straws for a day

There’s a new battle of Alberta brewing as a campaign asking bars in Edmonton and Calgary to go straw-free for 24 hours gets underway this week.

Modelled after a competition in Toronto, bars and restaurants in both cities can help keep thousands of plastic drinking straws out of Alberta landfills by signing up for Last Straw Alberta.

Isabelle Couture with campaign organizers Plastic-Free YYC said 50 million straws are tossed into the trash every day across Canada.

“They end up in landfills and rivers, which is harmful to wildlife, both in-land and on our coasts,” Couture said.

“The purpose of this initiative is to tackle Alberta’s contribution to this global problem. And the question is, which city will make the biggest impact?”

Restaurants that sign up will not be serving straws with beverages on July 14

Over 150 restaurants and bars in Toronto participated in the event this past April.

The Alberta city with the most registered pledges will be declared the champion at the end of the campaign and will have bragging rights over their provincial rivals.

Coun. Druh Farrell is backing the campaign, saying it’s a chance for Calgary’s hospitality industry to help cut down on waste.

“The Last Straw campaign is a fantastic opportunity to raise awareness of plastic waste, bring this issue closer to home and encourage Albertans to be part of the solution by reducing their plastic consumption,” she said in a statement. “We look forward to tackling this issue with Edmonton and seeing the results from this friendly competition.”

Calgary-area restaurants can sign up by visiting laststrawcalgary.ca. or by sending an email to info@plasticfreeyyc.com, and can share their progress using the hashtags #StopSuckingYYC and #LastStrawCalgary.