BOZEMAN — This morning when I got coffee, the cup looked a lot like plastic—but I learned it was actually compostable, all the way down to the straw. And with a plastic ban coming to Bozeman in May 2025, cups like that could become the new norm.
“We go through tens of thousands of cups a year. And that feels like a lot of waste,” says Natalie Van Dusen.
Natalie is the founder of Treeline Coffee Roasters, which she started back in 2013.
“From the beginning, we were really thoughtful around how we can have less waste in the system," she says.
If you were to walk into Treeline, you’d have a few options. If you’re sipping in house? You’ll get a ceramic coffee cup or mason jar. They also encourage folks to bring in their own cups.
“On Tuesdays, if you bring your own cup, you get free drip coffee,” says Natalie.
But if you’re sipping to go?
“All of our single-use products are compostable," Natalie says.
From their hot and cold to-go cups to their silverware, all the way down to their straws. All the materials come from a local business called Eco-Montana. So, I asked if a plastic ban would even affect their business.
“It actually doesn’t. We don’t have any products that we have to change with the new plastic ban,” says Natalie.
So, what inspired this plastic ban?
“Microplastics and nanoplastics? They’re in the hydro cycle. They’re in the aero cycle. They're in the water and the wind, everywhere. So, it’s a massive public health problem,” says Meghan Wolff.
John Meyer and Meghan Wolff work with the nonprofit Cottonwood Environmental Law Center and fought for over a year to get this plastic ban on ballots. And this year? It passed with flying colors.
“I’m really excited about this initiative. It’s the first one in the country where local residents have decided to say ‘no’ to plastic,” says John.
But this plastic ban isn’t actually banning plastic for good.
“This law doesn’t make it illegal to have or use a straw. It just means if you want one, you have to say, ‘Hey can I have a straw,’ rather than having one automatically given to you,” says Meghan.
It does completely prohibit businesses from distributing single-use plastic bags and styrofoam containers. And although businesses are only technically required to limit plastic straws and beverage stirrers to “requested items,” Meghan tells me this ban is a first step in the right direction.
“The hope is really to get people off the habit of just automatically taking and tossing stuff. They’re kind of courtesy items that we didn’t need in the first place,” says Meghan.
“We survived without straws for a long time before they were here. I think we’ll do fine without them” adds John.
According to John, there’s a provision in this initiative—which means the city is allowed to make changes to this ordinance that goes into effect in May 2025. So I asked Natalie if more plastic items were added to this ban, how it might affect some businesses.
“Any time you make a product change, it’s challenging. But there’s some really awesome businesses you can work with in town that offer compostable goods. And while it might be challenging in the near term, it’s totally worth it in the long run."
