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LOVE ESSEX campaign asks public to make a difference and take the plastic pledge

LOVE ESSEX campaign asks public to make a difference and take the plastic pledge

Local authorities have come together to do their bit for our planet and are encouraging residents to join them and ‘Love Essex Not Plastic’.

The Essex-wide 2020 campaign aims to tackle the amount of waste across the county by highlighting the issue of single-use plastic and urging households to switch to reusable options and recycle more.  

The campaign will launch on the 6 January with adverts on Heart Radio and social media, inspiring Essex residents to make a New Year’s resolution and say no to single-use plastic by taking the Love Essex Plastic Pledge. Throughout the year there will be easy swap ideas, such as ditching single-use plastic cups, bottles, straws and bags - switching to reusable ones instead.  By focusing on one item every month and making one small change at a time, together we can make a difference.

Each year, around 400 million tonnes of plastic is produced and 40% of that is single-use plastic such as drinks bottles, carrier bags and coffee cups. However, in the UK, only 57% of plastic bottles are collected to be recycled. 

Castle Point Borough Council ‘s Cabinet member for Streets,Waste,Flood and Water Management  Cllr Simon Hart   said, “Thanks to programmes such as Blue Planet II and Drowning in Plastic, we’ve all seen the devastating impact of becoming a plastic planet. 2020 is a year of change and now it’s even more vital we all do whatever is necessary to deplete our reliance on single-use plastic. If everyone in Essex used one less plastic bottle, we’d save 1.5million bottles alone.” 

If you want to be a part of the Love Essex plastic solution, take the Essex Plastic Pledge at www.loveessex.org

Notes to editors:

The ‘Love Essex Not Plastic’ campaign is being run by the Essex Waste Partnership, which consists of Local Authorities across the county and Essex County Council.

  • Partners for the plastic campaign include:
    • Basildon Borough Council
    • Braintree District Council
    • Brentwood Borough Council
    • Castle Point Council
    • Chelmsford City Council
    • Epping Forest District Council
    • Essex County Council
    • Harlow Council
    • Maldon District Council
    • Rochford Borough Council
    • Uttlesford District Council

To watch the video,  follow  @loveessexuk on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram channels