Torbay Council is urging everyone to think about the environment and help Torbay reduce plastic use.

It’s involved in and is supporting a number of initiatives to try and discourage the use of unnecessary single use plastic products to reduce the amount of plastic that ends up in our oceans.

The Council has also signed up to the Refill Devon scheme, which has been launched by Devon Recycle with the support of City to Sea and Beach Care. This is a practical tap water campaign that aims to make refilling your bottle as easy, convenient and cheap as possible by introducing refill points on every street.

Participating cafes, bars, restaurants, banks, galleries, museums and other businesses display a round, blue sticker in their window, inviting thirsty passers-by to come on in and fill up their bottle – for free. So far more than 30 businesses in Torbay have signed up to the campaign. One of them is Abbey refreshments in Torquay which is using cups for hot and cold drinks made from plants, not plastic.

The hot and cold drinks cups are made from PLA which stands for polylactic acid. This is made from starchy plants like corn – the kernels are processed into a biopolymer that looks, acts and performs like petroleum based plastics.

Torbay’s Elected Mayor, Gordon Oliver, said: “As a council we take our environmental responsibilities very seriously and we are taking part in a number of initiative to help reduce the amount of plastic products being used in Torbay. This includes phasing out the unnecessary use of single use plastics such as cups, cutlery and drinking straws in all council buildings and at all council events by July 2020.

“I applaud local businesses and local communities who are taking steps to support a plastic free torbay. Using plant based cups is both practical and sustainable and we hope that other takeaways in Torbay will follow Abbey refreshment’s lead on this. I’d also encourage more local businesses to sign up for the Refill Devon scheme.”

If you are a Torbay business that would like to get involved, please contact Torbay Council’s Recycling Officer, Carol Arthur on 207734. You can also find out more information on refill Devon at www.recycledevon.org/RefillDevon.