As part of an initiative with Lonely Whale, Alaska Airlines removes plastic stir straws and citrus picks from its flights starting July 16. The initiative is part of the airline’s goal to reduce in-flight waste per passenger by 70 percent.

In 2017, Alaska Airlines distributed 22 million plastic stir straws and citrus picks to passengers. The items are non-recyclable and known to kill birds and other marine life. White birch stir sticks and bamboo citrus pick alternatives replace the plastic straws moving forward. Non-plastic, marine-friendly straws are available upon request only.

“Whether providing fantastic service or leading in sustainability, caring about people and communities is in our DNA,” said Diana Birkett Rakow, vice president of external relations, Alaska Airlines. “Without a doubt, we fly to some of the most beautiful places on earth, including many communities that depend on healthy oceans. We’re thrilled to partner with Lonely Whale to take this next step in our sustainability journey, and help keep the places we live and fly beautiful for years to come. It’s especially appropriate now as ending plastic pollution was the theme for Earth Day this year.”

“Building on our grassroots, employee-led recycling program, we’re thrilled to take the next step to protecting our land and oceans by removing single-use non-recyclable plastic straws from our planes,” added Jacqueline Drumheller, sustainability manager, Alaska Airlines.

The airline already replaced bottled beer with aluminum cans, lighter and easier to recycle. Additionally, in-flight crew now refill plastic cups during beverage service, rather than offering new cups throughout the flight. Since it began auditing its recycling efforts in 2010, Alaska Airlines reduced passenger waste to landfills by 54 percent, cutting its waste in half. Since then, flight attendants gathered approximately 12,000 tons of recycled material.