{"id":{"repo_id":"uiuc","oai_identifier":"oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/129582"},"canonical_url":"https://search.dev.ndltd.org/etd/uiuc/oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/129582","repository":{"repo_id":"uiuc","name":"University of Illinois - Urbana-Champaign","base_url":"https://www.ideals.illinois.edu/oai-pmh"},"display":{"title":"The effect of single-use plastic bans on coastal litter: Evidence from straw and foam container policies","abstract":"Submission published under a 24 month embargo labeled 'U of I Access', the embargo will last until 2027-05-01","abstract_html":"Submission published under a 24 month embargo labeled 'U of I Access', the embargo will last until 2027-05-01","abstract_has_math":false,"creators":["Schaefer, Jenna"],"institution":"University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign","degree_name":"M.S.","degree_level":"Thesis","degree_discipline":"Agricultural & Applied Econ","degree_department":null,"school":null,"contributors":["Taylor, Becca","Endres, Renata","Skidmore, Marin"],"advisors":[],"committee_chairs":[],"committee_members":[],"year":2025,"date_issued":"2025-05-06","date_published":"2025-05-06","updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:25:05Z","subjects":["Litter","plastic","single-use plastic bans","citizen science"],"languages":["en","eng"],"rights":["Copyright 2025 Jenna Schaefer"],"rights_urls":[],"identifier_entries":[]},"links":{"outbound_url":"https://hdl.handle.net/2142/129582","outbound_label":"Handle","outbound_source":"dc:identifier"},"metadata_groups":[{"id":"people","label":"People","entries":[{"key":"dc:contributor","label":"Contributor","values":["Taylor, Becca","Endres, Renata","Skidmore, Marin"]},{"key":"dc:creator","label":"Author","values":["Schaefer, Jenna"]}]},{"id":"academic_context","label":"Academic Context","entries":[{"key":"dc:date","label":"Dc Date","values":["2025-05-06","2025-05"]},{"key":"dc:type","label":"Dc Type","values":["text","Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_discipline","label":"Discipline","values":["Agricultural & Applied Econ"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_level","label":"Degree Level","values":["Thesis"]},{"key":"thesis:degree_name","label":"Degree Name","values":["M.S."]},{"key":"thesis:institution_name","label":"Thesis Institution Name","values":["University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign"]}]},{"id":"subjects_keywords","label":"Subjects and Keywords","entries":[{"key":"dc:subject","label":"Dc Subject","values":["Litter","plastic","single-use plastic bans","citizen science"]}]},{"id":"language_rights","label":"Language and Rights","entries":[{"key":"dc:language","label":"Dc Language","values":["en","eng"]},{"key":"dc:rights","label":"Dc Rights","values":["Copyright 2025 Jenna Schaefer"]}]},{"id":"identifiers","label":"Identifiers","entries":[{"key":"dc:identifier","label":"Identifier","values":["https://hdl.handle.net/2142/129582"]}]},{"id":"additional","label":"Additional Metadata","entries":[{"key":"dc:description","label":"Description","values":["Submission published under a 24 month embargo labeled 'U of I Access', the embargo will last until 2027-05-01","The student, Jenna Schaefer, accepted the attached license on 2025-04-25 at 11:07.","The student, Jenna Schaefer, submitted this Thesis for approval on 2025-04-25 at 11:31.","This Thesis was approved for publication on 2025-05-06 at 16:19.","DSpace SAF Submission Ingestion Package generated from Vireo submission #21980 on 2025-10-19 at 19:16:19","Plastic pollution is an environmental issue of great concern. With so many of the world’s goods being produced with plastic and intended for one single use, much of this plastic is bound to end up as litter. States and municipalities have enacted policies to restrict single-use plastics in recent years, and this thesis aims to determine whether these policies have also been effective in reducing single-use plastic litter. Using citizen science litter data and a staggered event study design, I examine the effect of policies that restrict polystyrene foam and single-use plastic straws across the United States. I find that foam bans are effective in reducing foam food container litter, with a statistically significant 51% decline in the amount of food container litter collected per volunteer in the first year of the foam ban. I also find that foam bans and straw bans are weakly effective in reducing foam cup and plate and plastic straw litter, while policies making straws available upon request have no effect on straw litter. This research has important implications for policymakers considering future regulation of single-use plastic items."]},{"key":"dc:format","label":"Dc Format","values":["application/pdf"]},{"key":"dc:title","label":"Title","values":["The effect of single-use plastic bans on coastal litter: Evidence from straw and foam container policies"]}]}],"canonical_facts":{"dc:contributor":["Taylor, Becca","Endres, Renata","Skidmore, Marin"],"dc:creator":["Schaefer, Jenna"],"dc:date":["2025-05-06","2025-05"],"dc:description":["Submission published under a 24 month embargo labeled 'U of I Access', the embargo will last until 2027-05-01","The student, Jenna Schaefer, accepted the attached license on 2025-04-25 at 11:07.","The student, Jenna Schaefer, submitted this Thesis for approval on 2025-04-25 at 11:31.","This Thesis was approved for publication on 2025-05-06 at 16:19.","DSpace SAF Submission Ingestion Package generated from Vireo submission #21980 on 2025-10-19 at 19:16:19","Plastic pollution is an environmental issue of great concern. With so many of the world’s goods being produced with plastic and intended for one single use, much of this plastic is bound to end up as litter. States and municipalities have enacted policies to restrict single-use plastics in recent years, and this thesis aims to determine whether these policies have also been effective in reducing single-use plastic litter. Using citizen science litter data and a staggered event study design, I examine the effect of policies that restrict polystyrene foam and single-use plastic straws across the United States. I find that foam bans are effective in reducing foam food container litter, with a statistically significant 51% decline in the amount of food container litter collected per volunteer in the first year of the foam ban. I also find that foam bans and straw bans are weakly effective in reducing foam cup and plate and plastic straw litter, while policies making straws available upon request have no effect on straw litter. This research has important implications for policymakers considering future regulation of single-use plastic items."],"dc:format":["application/pdf"],"dc:identifier":["https://hdl.handle.net/2142/129582"],"dc:language":["en","eng"],"dc:rights":["Copyright 2025 Jenna Schaefer"],"dc:subject":["Litter","plastic","single-use plastic bans","citizen science"],"dc:title":["The effect of single-use plastic bans on coastal litter: Evidence from straw and foam container policies"],"dc:type":["text","Thesis"],"thesis:degree_discipline":["Agricultural & Applied Econ"],"thesis:degree_level":["Thesis"],"thesis:degree_name":["M.S."],"thesis:institution_name":["University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign"]},"updated_at":"2026-07-22T22:25:05Z"}