LOS ANGELES (CelebrityAccess) Just in time for Earth Day, Live Nation is eliminating plastic straws from its amphitheatres and replacing them with a marine-friendly paper alternative.
The shift at the 45-plus sheds that Live Nation owns or operates in the U.S. is expected to spare the use of more than 3 million plastic straws, according to a statement. The change is part of the For A Strawless Ocean initiative beginning today, announced by Lonely Whale.
For A Strawless Ocean is a toolkit to reduce 8 million to 12 million metric tons of plastic that scientists estimate enter the ocean each year (See CelebrityAccess article “Glitter Just Ain’t Fun Anymore”). Single-use straws is the first step in the initiative.
“The ocean belongs to all of us and everyone deserves access to tools that empower us to keep our ocean free of plastic pollution,” Adrian Grenier, Lonely Whale Co-Founder and UN Environment Goodwill Ambassador. “The For A Strawless Ocean toolkit allows anyone to take the torch from Lonely Whale, and all of those who have come before us, to create independent waves of change For A Strawless Ocean.”
Lonely Whale’s campaign follows on the heels of its Strawless In Seattle and #StopSucking campaigns. Lonely Whale claims that, in the U.S. alone, an estimated 500 million single-use plastic straws are used daily and are one of the top 10 plastic itmes found in global beach cleanups annually.
Other participants are the City of Malibu, World Surf League PURE, Wildlife Conservation Society, Shedd Aquarium, Cachet Hospitality Group, and Loyola Marymount University, as well as the Chicago Athletic Association hotel and its onsite food and beverage partner Land & Sea Dept.
