A confronting new campaign has been launched by the NSW Environment Protection Authority (EPA) to remind people why the State is banning certain single-use plastics from November.
Welcoming the Stop it and Swap It campaign, the Minister for Environment, James Griffin said it featured shocking images of plastic pollution in the ocean and a turtle choking on a plastic bag.
Mr Griffin said the campaign was a stark reminder about why the single-use plastic bans were critical for the environment – “as consumers we must all change our behaviour”.
“About 95 per cent of the litter on beaches and waterways comes from suburban streets, and the vast majority of that litter is single-use plastic,” Mr Griffin said.
“The amount of plastic in our oceans is predicted to outweigh the amount of fish by 2050,” he said.
“That is a horrifying prediction and a call to action to ensure our wildlife, like the turtle featured in the campaign, can have a brighter future.”
Mr Griffin said the State’s plastic bans were just the beginning of its shift away from single-use plastic, and they were expected to prevent 2.7 billion items of plastic litter from entering the environment over the next 20 years.
He said lightweight single-use plastic bags had been banned since 1 June, and further bans would come into effect from 1 November, including plastic straws, stirrers, cutlery, plates, bowls and cotton buds; food ware and cups made from expanded polystyrene; and rinse-off personal care products containing plastic microbeads.
“The easy-to-understand messaging of the Stop it and Swap It campaign aims to raise awareness about the single-use plastic bans and will be translated into multiple languages to reach diverse communities across the State,” the Minister said.
He said the campaign was rolling out across radio, print, social media, out-of-home and digital, and was expected to reach millions of people.
Further information on the single-use plastics ban can be accessed at this PS News link.
