MORE than 80 people and local businesses came together on the 19th and 20th February as part of Frome Town Council’s plan to reduce plastic use in the town.
The event enabled local residents to share ideas and start planning activities to reduce plastic waste.
Ideas included organising a ‘take back’ event to return plastic packaging to supermarkets; a zero waste shop; a film screening and much more. An email list and a Facebook page were set up where people can share and plan activities.
Frome Town Council unanimously agreed to become a ‘single-use’ plastic-free council last December. This will be done by phasing out the use of unrecyclable single-use plastic products in all council activities by April. The council will also encourage facility- users and local organisations to do the same by promoting alternatives.
The council is working with local pubs, cafes and restaurants to enable bulk buying of alternative items such as paper straws. There are a number of cafes in Frome already on board with the scheme including Moo & Two, Garden Cafe and The River House.
Councillor and Frome Mayor Sheila Gore, who attended the event said,” It was fantastic to see so many people engaged in this important issue. There were so many ideas, the Town Hall was buzzing.’
The town council’s resilience manager, Anna Francis, who organised the event said, ‘We are working with Surfers Against Sewage to meet their criteria and become a plastic-free town. Seeing how much enthusiasm and energy there is in the local community is amazing, and we would love to promote and enable any local groups to take these forward.’
Surfers Against Sewage is a marine conservation charity working with communities to protect oceans, waves, beaches and marine life.
The organisation said, “Plastic pollution has sadly become synonymous with all of our favourite coastal activities – from surfing to swimming, beach holidays to wildlife watching – it is simply an expected part of our experience. But one that we should not, and do not, accept.”
If you would like to join the campaign go to www.frome towncouncil.gov.uk/plastic- free for more information.
