Don’t forget bottle tops in the war on plastic
I PICK up rubbish from beaches near me every day: fishing nets, clothing and shoes, plastic bags and bottles, food wrappings and party balloons.
But the most common litter is thousands of plastic bottle tops. That’s why I believe that if a bottle deposit scheme were implemented, the money should only be refunded if the bottles are returned with the tops.
Cruising on our canal boat in the Midlands, I have observed that, as the water level falls in the locks, the walls become festooned by multi-coloured plastic shards. These become fragmented over time and this plastic soup eventually migrates to the oceans.
Sadly, the waterways are used by many as a disposal unit, but nothing can be done unless the perpetrators are caught in the act.
Under every bridge float empty fast food containers as the junk-food scoffers see the canal as a bin. I fear the only answer to this mass pollution is the impossible: 24-hour camera surveillance and heavy fines.
Grass verges should be litter-picked before cutting to stop plastic debris being fragmented into ever-decreasing shards, vast quantities of which migrate to land drains and eventually the sea.
Thousands of people on benefits and in prisons could be employed as litter pickers. It would help with the obesity crisis if a few more people had less time to sit about eating and got more exercise, thereby killing two birds with one stone.
In fact, everyone should make the effort to pick up any rubbish they see, which would make the world a safer place for wildlife.
MARYLYN ELPHICK, Normans Bay, E. Sussex.
Old ways are best
HOW did our forefathers cope without plastic? Perfectly well, of course! Hessian and paper bags, fruit and veg left in their natural wrappers and drinks from china or pottery cups — simple!
KAREN McFARLANE, Dumfries.
A lesson for all ages
THE Mail wants to save the planet and the Tories want to tax anything holding food and drink. The problem with rubbish is people’s attitude to it: plastic gets in the ocean because people drop it in the streets. You can spot the route schoolchildren take from shop to bus stop by following the cans, bags and crisp packets they chuck on the floor.
My local council recently cut back hedges on the main roads and exposed the large amount of rubbish thrown from cars. Parents are as bad as their children with their attitude of ‘don’t worry, someone else will pick it up’.
Until the public stops treating parks, beaches and verges as rubbish tips, no amount of 5ps will solve the problem.
A. MCGRATH, Wallingford, Oxon.
Well done Iceland!
WELL done Iceland, taking a lead on plastic packaging.
The public are largely doing all they can, recycling like crazy.
But as the Mail has shown, many items simply cannot be recycled. So why are they still on sale?
The onus has to be on manufacturers and retailers not to put items that are not biodegradable or recyclable on shelves.
DAVID PRESTON, Ayr.
Radical overhaul
WE CAN all do our bit. However, unless the packaging makers and retailers are forced to take responsibility, nothing will change. The 5p tax on plastic shopping bags may have resulted in fewer bags being used, but they are still being produced.
A 25p latte levy is unlikely to reduce the number of disposable cups used because not everyone is prepared to carry a cup around with them and most coffee shops refuse to fill my own cup, citing health and safety.
We need a radical overhaul. Nonrecyclable or non-biodegradable packaging should be banned. Supermarkets should be required
to provide recycling points at the checkouts, as in Germany.
Coffee and fast-food chains must offer a refundable deposit on each cup or a swap scheme — turn up with yesterday’s cup and they give you a discount on today’s drink.
CAROLYN MITCHELL, Harrogate.
Taking the wrap
WE ARE being engulfed in a sea of plastic packaging. I often find vegetables and fruit packed in three layers of the stuff.
So, I remove it all, retaining the barcode which can usually be peeled off, then take the unwanted pack to the customer services counter. Sometimes they ignore me, so I pop the packaging on the desk for them to dispose of. Excess
packaging is the supermarket’s problem, not mine. If we all took a stand on this, the manufacturers would have to take action.
LINDA CURLEY, Gillingham, Dorset.
The laws are in place
TWO important pieces of legislation to help in the fight against waste have been in place since the Nineties. The Packaging (Essential Requirements) Regulations prevents the obvious overuse of packaging materials.
The pertinent clause states: ‘Packaging volume and weight must be the minimum amount to maintain the necessary levels of safety, hygiene and acceptance for the packed product and consumer.’
A plastic-wrapped coconut and a large box containing only eight biscuits surely contravene these regulations.
The Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging Waste) Regulations applies a levy on all sections of the packaging industry from raw material manufacturers to retailers.
This was based on the weight of packaging and type of material it was made from. The aim was to create funds to aid and improve recycling of materials — how is this money being used? CHRIS WAKEFIELD,
Chippenham, Wilts.
Set a sweet example
PERHAPS not before time, the nation seems to have woken up to the dangers presented by the use of plastics.
It is now appreciated that in this respect much needs to be done as soon as possible. Many pieces of long-lasting plastic which I have noticed on the seashore derive from the confectionery industry.
Personally, I see no reason why any confectionery should ever be wrapped in plastic.
I see no reason why the Government should not simply ban the use of plastics in confectionery. RICHARD N M ANDERSON, Edinburgh.