Petition is a step towards becoming a reusable society

The aim of the petition to ban plastic carrier bags is a step in promoting long term sustainability on island. We are not suggesting a replacement disposable, we are instead encouraging a move towards becoming a reusable society over a disposable one.

The switch to remembering your own reusable bags is simple, and one that can be easily adopted by all. Removing the offer of plastic bags in shops removes the opportunity of nonchalantly forgetting to bring your own. We would encourage those who do forget to take advantage of using cardboard boxes which have been used to ship produce into the island. This is already something islanders are able to take advantage of in a number of local shops including Forest Stores, where a small stash of boxes is kept alongside the doors.

We hope that this helps in some way to clarify the aims of our petition, which is not taken lightly or on a whim as is suggested in Mr Hockey’s letter.

We would also like to advise that we are aware that plastic bags do not currently go into landfill in Guernsey. The statement, which was made on TV, was a simple slip of the tongue made under the pressure of media interviews under a very tight schedule.

Plastic Free Guernsey is run by a committed group of volunteers who juggle their everyday lives – working full time/raising families – in order to help promote a more sustainable way of living in Guernsey. We have a fantastic opportunity to make real change as an island and would like to remind Mr Hockey that making slips, such as this, is part of being human.

PLASTIC FREE GUERNSEY

plasticfreegsy@gmail.com