No Straws

Dallas-Fort Worth airport gives plastic straws the heave-ho

These are on their way out.

Joining a snowballing environmental movement, Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport is phasing out single-use plastic straws.

The airport announced the new ban via tweet, with a video detailing its decision.

According to their figures, more than 4 million straws are used at the airport annually, amounting to almost 2 tons of plastic. The video notes that straws cannot be recycled, and may end up in a landfill or the ocean.

According to the airport, this change has been in process for some time, as part of its efforts to reduce its environmental impact.

"Most vendors will have an alternative to plastic straws; this can include lids designed to be strawless," the airport stated.

DFW joins a growing number of airports and airlines that have banned plastic straws, including American Airlines, Alaska Airlines, and United Airlines. Dubai will eliminate plastic straws in all airports by 2020.

The Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport was also considering an airport-wide ban on plastic straws, as well as a ban on plastic bags and styrofoam, part of a city-wide initiative.

In August, San Francisco International Airport took it to the next level with a ban on single-use plastic water bottles. The airport has installed more than 100 free water-filling stations for glass or aluminum bottles.

Numerous cities have also instituted city-wide bans, most recently Miami, which is banning straws as well as plastic stirrers.

sustainability

Weed News

Texas AG Ken Paxton sues Dallas over decriminalization of marijuana

Photo courtesy of US Fish & Wildlife

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The City of Dallas has been sued by Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton for its efforts to decriminalize marijuana.

According to a release, Paxton has sued the city for adopting a city charter amendment that would decriminalize marijuana-related offenses and prohibit police from enforcing Texas law.

That amendment was Proposition R, or Dallas Freedom Act, which decriminalizes possession of four ounces of marijuana or less. Voters passed the amendment in the November 5 election, with 67 percent voting in favor.

The lawsuit, filed against the Dallas City Council, alleges that Proposition R is unconstitutional and violates Texas drug laws criminalizing any amount of marijuana.

Paxton says that cities can't "pick and choose which state laws to follow." He's proposing a permanent injunction to stop Proposition R from going into effect.

"The City of Dallas has no authority to override Texas drug laws or prohibit the police from enforcing them," says Paxton in a statement. "This is a backdoor attempt to violate the Texas Constitution, and any city that tries to constrain police in this fashion will be met swiftly with a lawsuit by my office.”

Before the recent election, possession of two to four ounces of marijuana could result in a punishment of 180 days in jail and a $2,000 fine.

Ground Game Texas, the activist nonprofit that has also helped get marijuana decriminalization on the ballot in elections across Texas, first got the issue on the ballot in July with the necessary 50,000 signatures.

Dallas is not the only city to be sued; Paxton also filed lawsuits against five other cities in Austin, Denton, Elgin, Killeen, and San Marcos in January for their ballots and policies decriminalizing marijuana.

Both Austin and San Marcos had a judge overturn their cases, according to a FOX 4 report.

marijuana