We are proud to announce that (drum roll please…)

WE ARE PLASTIC STRAW FREE!

Actually, we have been part of The Final Straw community since the end of 2017, and we were one of the first. Saying no to single-use plastic straws is a simple action but it makes an enormous difference. Right now, a staggering 50% of the plastics we use are single use. Plastic straws take up to 200 years to decompose and when there are so many alternatives, joining The Final Straw felt like something we just had to be involved in. We have switched up our plastic straws for paper ones, and obviously you can also say no to straws altogether.

We used to use around four cases of straws per year so that’s forty thousand straws. That means, over the next twenty five years, we will stop one million plastic straws from damaging our environment, ending up in landfill and polluting our oceans. Saying no to straws is a simple action but it makes an enormous difference!

You just have to look at where we are and you can see exactly why protecting our environment and our oceans is so important to us. At The Bowgie, we have incredible sea views across Crantock Bay and The Gannel, it’s truly epic. Every day there are surfers, dog walkers, paddle boarders and families enjoying the ocean and it’s our responsibility to protect our environment and make sure they can enjoy Cornwall to its full potential. As soon as we were approached by The Final Straw, we knew that we should absolutely support this campaign.

Cornwall is an area of outstanding natural beauty, and it is well within our power to keep it that way. We love our beaches! It is such a blessing to have all this on our doorstep and protecting it is our duty. Even the smallest actions can have big impact – how about filling one of the poo bags you take with you on your daily dog walk with microplastic and bottle tops? (Microplastics are tiny bits of plastic that have broken-down from larger plastic items.)

Beach cleans are a great way to get involved with the community and bring everyone together, and it’s all for a worthwhile cause. You can even give marine litter new life! We’ve seen hammocks made of washed up fishing nets and beautiful sea glass jewellery.

Not to bring the mood down, but plastic pollution is hugely detrimental to the environment and plastic is being ingested by sea-life every second of the day. Plastic bags can look like jellyfish to hungry turtles, microplastics look just like plankton and if that isn’t enough to worry you, humans are also eating marine litter, in the fish and shellfish we consume.

We’re really proud to be part of the movement which is helping Cornwall become the first plastic straw-free county in the UK. Do you know a business who should join us? Spread the word and say no to plastic straws!

Find out more: http://finalstrawcornwall.co.uk/ and join the movement on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FinalStrawCornwall