5p charge to be introduced in October
An estimated 10.6 Billion single-use bags will be given out before the government implements new single-use bag legislation in 2015.
The average person in England uses 133 bags per year. In an effort to offset the environmental impacts from this unnecessary delay in implementing the bag charge the Break The Bag Habit coalition are launching new website to encourage supporters to pledge to stop using single-use bags.
The new Break The Bag Habit pledge website is supported by the internationally acclaimed photographer Martin Brent with a bespoke series of stunning, yet shocking images entitled “Killer Bags”. These images feature actual single-use plastic bags Martin was confronted with whilst diving. The Break The Bag Habit coalition is also urging supermarkets to adopt the charge as soon as possible. Make your pledge today at www.breakthebaghabit.org.uk
Supporters making the pledge to stop accepting single-use bags will learn how many bags they have personally offset and their pledge will be added to a grand totApril 25, 2014 the environment or waste streams nationally before the bag charge comes into effect on the 1st October, 2015.
Supporters making the Break The Bag Habit pledge are also invited to share these striking images, and other impactful countryside and coastal scenes spoilt with single-use bags across their networks to generate more pledges. There’s also the option to share these images on the Facebook walls and twitter accounts of the UK’s supermarkets and shops, calling on these businesses to adopt the bag charge early, reducing the amount of bags entering the environment.
Andy Cummins, spokesperson for the Break the Bag Habit campaign, says: “There will be a disgusting amount of single-use bags given out before the bag charge is introduced in England, 10.6 billion of them! Break The Bag Habit campaigners are calling on the public to act now and take the pledge to stop using single-use bags without delay.
"We call on retailers to listen to their customers and voluntarily introduce the charge in October across their stores. With 7 billion bags being used every annually, there’s certainly no reason to delay it for 18 months.”
April 23, 2014