SELINSGROVE, Pa. -- California recently became the first state to ban plastic straws in restaurants.
Susquehanna University is the latest place to ditch them.
Students eat lunch Friday at the main dining hall at Susquehanna University in Selinsgrove. They have glasses with drinks but something that's missing is straws. Susquehanna University recently announced it is ditching plastic straws on campus starting with the main dining hall.
Derek Martin is the sustainability coordinator at Susquehanna University. He says although plastic straws are little, they are part of a big problem.
"It uses a lot of resources and ends up in landfills," said martin. "Straws, in particular, are of importance because they're so small and can get into waterways and then into the oceans."
Four out of the five dining areas on Susquehanna University's campus still use plastic straws. But within the next year and a half, they're going to disappear, too.
Susquehanna University's goal is to be plastic straw free by 2020 and switch to biodegradable straws.
"When we can find vendors who can give us as many as we need, it takes time to ramp up to the production levels of our university," said Martin.
Many students, like junior Jenny Charles, use plastic straws.
"Yeah, I definitely don't think about it when I'm putting it into my cup I guess."
All the students Newswatch 16 spoke with are willing to ditch their straws for the environment.
"I think it's a great initiative. A lot of them do get just tossed in the trash, and because plastic is not really a fast biodegradable source, switching over to a biodegradable source is better for the environment," said senior Kyle Kern.
Susquehanna University will still make plastic straws available upon request.
The switch to biodegradable straws at Susquehanna University is set to happen over the next year and a half.