[DanBC]

The lids are easily recyclable. The paper cups have a plastic lining. They can be recycled, but not easily. Most recycling centres can't take them.

As an end user it's really hard for me to know what to do: is this single use hard to recycle plastic environmentally worse than ceramic mugs being washed or plastic reusable cups being reused maybe dozens of times if we're lucky.

Personally, I'd go for single use plastic / paper cups and high temperature incineration, but I have no idea if that's the right thing to do.

[parasubvert]

Interestingly, where I live (Calgary Canada), our recycling program says that lids are not actually recyclable here because they’re too small and light to properly classify. This is more common than people realize.

http://www.calgary.ca/UEP/WRS/Pages/What-goes-where/Plastic-...

They have to be larger than 7.5cm in diameter, eg. yogurt lids. So we are told to trash coffee lids, along with metal or plastic bottle caps, which also are too small. Other programs like Recycle BC can handle coffee lids.

And then Toronto accepts White Starbucks lids, but rejects all black plastic (!). https://mobile.twitter.com/cityoftoronto/status/978967494470...

Whereas all paper and plastic cups ARE recyclable here (and in BC), and it’s common for shops like Starbucks to have recycling for cups. Presumably they’re classified and shipped to one of the few batch pulpers. Toronto on the other hand says they can’t recycle such cups

It can get confusing.

[truckerbill]

Washing a ceramic mug is clearly the better choice environmentally-or bring your own reusable to-go cup.

[gridlockd]

> a ceramic mug

Not so fast! A ceramic mug takes a huge amount of energy to produce, so unless you reuse it many times, it won't break even:

https://terngoods.com/blogs/learn/cups-single-use-disposable...

Keep in mind that even a ceramic mug eventually becomes trash - with a far higher mass than paper/plastic cups.

Then of course there's the environmental impact of washing the cup, but I don't have any data on that.

[DanBC]

You say clearly, but the full lifetime calculation is difficult.

I have no idea how the clay is obtained, transported to the mug factory, how it's turned into mugs, how the mugs are transported to shops and then to cafés and homes. I don't know how to include the detergent used to wash them, or the dishwasher. I guess we need to include the hot water, but how much of the plumbing do we include?

I also don't know any of this for the paper/plastic cups.

[truckerbill]

True, can't pretend to know either. Reuse, in as many of those areas you mentioned as possible, seems like the key way to optimise.

Using second-hand ceramic or glass is maybe a good thing to think about. No signalling of demand to a manufacturer, maximising return on the initial co2 cost... Perhaps not viable in every situation.