IN commemoration of International No Plastic Bag Day on 3 July, a group of concerned Westville residents embarked on their second campaign in support of the ‘Rethink the Bag’ initiative. The sole aim of this project is to get people thinking, and motivate them to use reusable shopping bags instead of plastic ones, which have proven to have harmful effects on the environment. This is according to Sarah Alsen, who initiated the campaign last October.
The concerned resident, who possesses a deep passion for environmental affairs, said, “Previously, with great support from Westville Girls’ High School pupils, teachers and other volunteers from Westville and the greater Durban area, we campaigned a couple of hours a day for two-and-a-half weeks at the Westville Mall’s in Checkers and Woolworths, as well as the SuperSPAR in Church Street.
Westville Junction’s Pick ‘n Pay has also participated in this initiative. So again, gallantly WGHS and others are have been campaigning at the Westville Mall in the build-up to 3 July in an effort to remind people to use reusable shopping bags – for environmental reasons.
“We need to make people sit up and think – this is one simple way in which people can act. Yet the majority inexplicably still seems oblivious. We need to keep the pressure on people to buy and use reusable shopping bags, not plastic.”
Residents are encouraged to show their support at the stores mentioned above and help save the environment. Informative leaflets with interesting statistics are also being handed out at the mall to make residents aware of the serious consequences of using plastic bags.
Facts: Animals (marine and terrestrial) mistake plastic bags for food. Once ingested, the animals die from intestinal blockages and starvation. Plastic bags end up as litter in trees, stormwater drains (blocking sewage systems), on beaches and in the sea. They don’t biodegrade, but end up as smaller toxic bits. Eighty per cent of all marine litter is plastic.
