When Dianna Cohen travels, she packs as if she were headed into battle. And in a way, she is. Her enemy is single-use plastics.

To combat her foe, which appears in such disguises as water bottles, straws and bags, Cohen always carries a stainless-steel cup by Hydro Flask and a S’well bottle that she fills up at hydration stations and taps. For purchases, she thwarts plastic sacks with a reusable Micro ChicoBag. She also throws in To-Go Ware bamboo utensils, a folding spork, titanium plates and two metal straws.

“I found out that it wasn’t very polite of me to pull out a straw without one for a friend,” said the chief executive of the Plastic Pollution Coalition, an alliance working to cleanse the planet of plastics.

Unfortunately, her arsenal can’t always protect her from the omnipresent material. In these situations, she will switch to a defensive position.

“Please don’t put any plastic in my drink,” Cohen will inform the server or bartender when placing her order.

The world is drowning in plastic, and the travel industry is enabling our habit. The disposable items turn up on planes (cups, stirrers, water bottles), hotels (toiletries, breakfast utensils, laundry bags) and cruise ships (straws, straws, straws). For instance, Hurtigruten uses 390,000 plastic cups and 960,000 straws on its cruises each year. A typical limited-service Marriott hotel in North America blows through 23,000 toiletry bottles annually. Last year, Alaska Airlines handed out 22 million plastic stirrers and citrus picks.

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“There are huge amounts of plastic in the travel industry,” said Erik Solheim, executive director of the United Nations Environment Program. “It’s basically everywhere.”

If you missed International Straw Free Day on Feb. 3 – perhaps you were too busy celebrating Ice Cream for Breakfast Day or Elmo’s birthday – you’ll have more chances to nix plastic this summer. International Plastic Bag Free Day falls on July 3, or take the whole month off with Plastic Free July, a movement that originated in Perth, Australia, in 2011.

You might also consider de-plasticizing your vacation. Many destinations, airlines, hotels and cruise lines are phasing out single-use plastics and introducing more environmentally friendly alternatives, including edible styles. Now, you can toast your plastic-free summer with a festive cocktail accessorized with a straw that could end up in your gullet but never the landfill or ocean.

What’s happening where

Rwanda was a pioneer, banning nonbiodegradable polyethylene bags a decade ago. The effort has worked. “Kigali has to be one of the cleanest cities in Africa,” Michael Sheldrick, vice president of global policy and government affairs at Global Citizen, said of Rwanda’s capital. “You don’t see bags floating in the streets or hanging from trees.” Since then, more than 40 countries have enacted laws on plastics. The restrictions vary from mild (a nominal bag tax in Denmark) to serious (up to $40,000 in fines or four years in jail in Kenya). Here is a sampling of measures around the world.

n United States: California recently introduced a bill reigning in straws at restaurants. In New York, lawmakers have floated several proposals, including a statewide bag ban and, in New York City, an embargo on the sale of water bottles in public parks and beaches and the distribution of straws in drinking and dining establishments. One law under consideration in Hawaii would punish violators caught selling or offering straws with a three-figure fine and hours of community service, such as removing litter.

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n Canada: Starting on July 1, the country will no longer sell beauty and oral-care products seeded with plastic microbeads. Cities are also baring their anti-plastic fangs. Montreal’s ban on bags went into effect Tuesday; Victoria will follow suit in July.

n Central America: Belize will celebrate Earth Day 2019 by ridding itself of straws, bags and utensils. Costa Rica has equally grand ambitions: The eco-friendly country intends to eliminate all single-use plastics by 2021, the same year it plans to become carbon neutral.

n Europe: The European Union released its three Rs platform in January: The 28 member states must shift to recyclable plastic packaging by 2030, reduce consumption of single-use plastics and restrict microplastics. However, many European countries have already shown plastics the door.

n In Britain, the prime minister recently announced a ban on all single-use plastics, including stirrers and cotton swabs, starting as early as next year. Even Queen Elizabeth II is on-message: Her Royal Highness ousted straws and plastic bottles from the royal estates, including the gift shops and cafes.

n Africa: Several African countries have banned or taxed plastic items, including Botswana, South Africa, Uganda, Zimbabwe, Ethiopia, Morocco and Tanzania.

n Asia: In February, Taiwan announced a multiphase plan to wean itself off plastic products by 2030. The island nation will kick off the uncoupling with no straws in chain restaurants in 2019 and end with a complete ban on bags, food containers and utensils.

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Getting on board

In April, Carnival announced a by-request-only policy for straws on its 26 ships. One exemption: frozen drinks.

Passengers aboard Royal Caribbean’s newest vessel, Symphony of the Seas, won’t find straws, stirrers or picks on the world’s largest cruise ship.

On July 16, Alaska Airlines will substitute plastic stirrers and citrus picks with a white birch version on all domestic and international flights and in airport lounges. The carrier will accommodate passengers who request a straw with a marine-friendly variety.

In hotels and motels

Larger chains with thousands of rooms are casting out straws. Among them: Four Seasons Hotels and Resorts, and Marriott, which has removed straws at 60 British properties and replaced toiletry bottles with shower dispensers at 1,500 North American hotels.

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Some Hilton hotels are testing edible straws made of sugar and cornstarch.

When you go

When packing, follow the BYO principle. At the very minimum, carry a refillable bottle that can handle hot and cold liquids and a metal spork. Fancy a reusable straw? Pick your flavor: stainless-steel, paper, glass, bamboo and even pasta. For shopping excursions, bring collapsible bags. Don’t forget a mesh or cloth sack for laundry.

On planes, Cohen suggests you forgo the plastic cup on the beverage cart and instead hold out your reusable chalice and smile.

Countries with unsafe tap water is one of the biggest challenges for the plastic-averse. If you are staying at a hotel with treated water, fill up your flask each day. If your room has a kettle, boil water then let it cool and pour it into your vessel. Also, hydrate creatively. In India, Cohen drank hot chai and carbonated water sold in glass bottles.


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