What can Putney residents do about consumption of single-use plastics?

The River Thames is iconic, essential to Putney’s history, and home to our rowing community - but we also share it with as many as 125 different species of fish, even seahorses!

The sad truth is that humans treat the Thames like a huge rubbish bin. 70% of the fish in the Thames have litter in their guts, and meanwhile the river banks are littered with washed up plastic bottles, crisp wrappers, wipes, and cigarette butts… hardly a place to call home.

Where does all of the rubbish come from? Aside from the obvious careless littering, some residents may unknowingly be ‘tidy litterers’, who place litter on ledges, next to overflowing bins, and down drains, where the rubbish ultimately washed.

A recent poll has reveled that four-in-five Britons admit that they are concerned about the amount of single-use plastics generated in the UK. Asked in a Populus survey of 2,090 UK adults to mark start of Zero Waste Week (3rd - 7th September) 80 percent said they were either concerned or very concerned. Just 2 percent say they are not at all concerned, 3 percent not very concerned and 15 percent neither concerned not unconcerned.

This September the campaign For Fish’s Sake (#FFSLDN) from environmental charity Hubbub is docking in Putney. Last year, their campaign in the London Bridge area reduced litter by 32%, and now it’s back and better than ever.

Just in time for Zero Waste Week, a stroll down the riverbank will have you spotting some of the installations Hubbub have put in place. The community gallery showing the importance of the river, place your vote in a voting bin, and keep an eye out for more things popping up throughout the week.

The Populus surveyshowed that pensioners are more likely to be concerned about single-use plastic levels than those in any other age category. Some 87 percent of people aged 65 and over are very - or fairly - concerned about the amount of plastics generated.

The survey revealed that women and men are equally anxious about plastic waste, with 8 in 10 (80%) females and 79% of males expressing concerns and that people living in South East England (83%) are the most likely to express concerns about the amount of plastics that are thrown away

The poll was commissioned by environmental campaign group Zero Waste Week which marks its eleventh year this year. Founded in 2008, Zero Waste Week is an annual awareness campaign aiming to reduce the amount of waste that goes to landfill.

Zero Waste Week Founder Rachelle Strauss said: “It’s clear that the Great British Public is growing more and more concerned by the amount of plastic waste that ends up in landfill or at the bottom of the ocean.

“This year millions of people around the world are coming together to rethink our over consumption of single-use plastics, look for alternatives and increase pressure on manufacturers and suppliers for more sustainable solutions. It’s vital that businesses, Governments and citizens come together in a bid to call time on the ticking time-bomb that our over consumption of single-use plastics is having.”

Natalie Fee, founder of plastic pollution campaign group City to Sea, said: “There’s never been a better time for shop-owners and supermarkets alike to respond to consumer demand for plastic-free products. The growing trend for zero waste shops and loose produce is testament to the rise in awareness of the problem of plastic pollution and people’s preference for shopping with less plastic. Zero Waste Week’s report proves that we want to do our bit to rid the oceans of plastic pollution - and we need our retailers and government to support us.”

Sian Sutherland, Co-Founder of A Plastic Planet, a grassroots organisation campaigning for #PlasticFreeAisle in supermarkets, added "The public reaction to the plastics crisis we have all created is unprecedented. This huge environmental issue is being driven from the ground up and we need to realise the significant power we each hold to make change happen. Governments and industry will only stop plastic misuse if we keep this pressure up. We must vote with our wallets, championing those businesses and brands that are using alternative materials. Plastic is the tobacco of our generation with the same smokescreens and denials hiding the true impact to the health of our oceans, our soil and future generations."

On the 8th September you will find the Positively Putney Summer Party at Putney Wharf, where you can Watch the Great River Race, enjoy circus workshops, crazy golf, delicious food - and visit Hubbub’s fishmonger stall where they will reveal all of the unsightly and interesting things their fishermen found in the Thames. Do it – For Fish’s Sake!

August 30, 2018