A BROMSGROVE councillor has called for a plastic ban on council-owned property in a bid to create a ‘better and cleaner environment’ for generations to come.
Labour leader Coun Peter McDonald has asked both Bromsgrove District Council and Worcestershire County Council to join others in the battle against single-use plastics.
This means a ban on plastic cups, bottles, cutlery and straws at all its buildings, cafes and public events by the end of the year.
Coun McDonald said: “It will cost the council little or nothing financially and lead the way in creating a better and cleaner environment that will not only benefit from by but those of our grandchildren and their children.
“Plastics are one of the greatest contributors of pollution and if we can take the lead as a local authority many others may follow.
“It takes almost 1,000 years to completely biodegrade and this means that every plastic that has ever been made still exists in one form or another.
“We must stop this senseless production and use of disposable plastics for the sake of convenience and take a step back to the days of using, washing and reusing traditional tools, bags, boxes, bottles, plates and containers.”
The calls come after HRH The Queen banned the use of plastic straws and bottles from the royal estates, in a move thought to be inspired by Sir David Attenborough.
In response, Coun Tony Miller, Cabinet Member with Responsibility for the Environment at Worcestershire County Council, said: “As the public are becoming more aware about the damage that plastics do to the environment, we need to encourage residents to actually think about reducing their plastic usage, particularly those ‘single use’ ones.
“We are actively speaking to partners who run our canteens for example to see if there are any feasible solutions around plastic reduction and ways to encourage customers to recycle more of their waste.”
John Godwin, head of leisure services which includes facilities management, said plans were already in place to cut disposable plastics from district council buildings wherever practicable, and viable alternatives were being sought.
Guy Revans, head of environmental services that waste policy, said: “We can do our bit, but of course we’re just a part of the picture and supporting firms and organisations which want to cut waste is where we can make a bigger difference.
“This recent surge in support for the reduce, reuse, recycle strategy we’ve long been advocating is very welcome and I hope it will lead to more conversations like the ones we’re in at the moment.
He added businesses at the district were already currently looking at plastic-reducing schemes, such as eliminating plastic drinking straws and joining a national project to show people on their phones where they could get free water refills to reduce the use of disposable bottles.
