City plans to revive drinking fountains

A NUMBER of old water fountains across Bristol could be brought back into use as part of the council’s attempt to cut waste created by single-use plastic.

The authority has announced plans to introduce 12 new public drinking fountains across the city.

The scheme will include the restoration of some historic fountains which have fallen into disuse. Locations have not yet been confirmed.

It is also unclear when the fountains will be ready for public use.

Bristol City Council’s cabinet member for waste, Councillor Kye Dudd, announced details of the project during a full council meeting.

It was in response to a motion calling for Bristol to lead the way and become a disposable plastic-free city. The petition – brought forward by Green councillor Martin Fodor and Alex Morss of Bristol-based community group Onebyone Conservation – called on the mayor to take all practical steps to eliminate wasteful plastic across Bristol.

Cllr Dudd also announced plans for City Hall to become a public water refill station.

Since 2015, hundreds of cafes and businesses in Bristol have signed up to the Refill campaign run by City to Sea, which provides people with places to refill their water bottles for free.

From its inception, the project has seen great success, having grown from a crowdfunding campaign to a “legacy project” after Bristol was named European Green Capital in 2015.

It is now being funded by Bristol Water and is supported by an app that enables members of the public to locate refill points.