Volunteers gave away 320 long-life bags and fliers to shoppers in Kingston Market Place on Plastic-Bag-Free Day, Saturday 11thSeptember 2010. That means 320 shoppers who now have less reason to take the 300 throwaway plastic bags that the average shopper collects every year, and who are better informed about the damage plastic bags do in the environment. Kingston Market traders were happy to help by giving away bags to their customers, and volunteers also handed out stickers, badges and fridge magnets, took plastic bags for recycling in exchange, and persuaded almost 100 passers-by to sign the Greener Upon Thames petition asking the Government to impose a levy or ban on plastic bags.
Thank you, John Legate and Inaam (helpers on Plastic-Bag-Free Day), Save the World Club, Stitch in Time bag-makers, Greener Upon Thames, All Saints Church and Kingston Market traders.
Pictures in the Album at http://www.e-voice.org.uk/greenerkingston/photos/album?album_id=4658962&page=1.
Notes for editors
* "Supermarkets lose heart in green war on plastic carrier bags, Independent on Sunday, 22/8/10: Campaigners call for legislation as retailers fail to meet targets to cut one of the most visible signs of waste. Britain's biggest supermarket chains will come under fire this week for handing out tens of millions more carrier bags than last year, derailing attempts to reduce the environmental impact from billions of disposable bags. New figures will show that the industry missed its target of halving the number of plastic bags used in 2006 for the second consecutive year." http://www.independent.co.uk/environment/green-living/supermarkets-lose-heart-in-green-war-on-plastic-carrier-bags-2058840.html
More information about the environmental problems caused by plastic bags, many of them local, such as litter and bags in the Thames, can be found on this website.