Randwick Council bans single-use plastic after Senate decision

A SYDNEY Council is leading the charge in the battle against plastic, introducing a ban on single-use items from all its operations and events.

The UNSW Under Water Club conducts clean-up dives along the Sydney coast. Picture: supplied.

• Plastic bags and bottles gone in waste recycling move
• Calls for marine park to protect Sydney
• Sculptures hidden in plain sight

A SYDNEY Council is leading the charge in the battle against plastic, introducing a ban on single-use items from all its operations and events.

Plastic bags, drink bottles and drinking straws are just some of the items to be taken out of use from July 1 in the Randwick Local Government Area.

The move, which was unanimously signed off by the council last night, comes after a Senate inquiry into Australia’s recycling crisis this week recommended a national ban on single-use plastics within five years.

The UNSW Under Water Club retrieved a large mound of rubbish from Little Bay in their first-ever Dive Against Debris last year.

The Senate’s recommendation comes after NSW repeatedly rejected calls to ban plastic bags, even though supermarkets have already started to remove them from stores.

Randwick Mayor Lindsay Shurey said the ban was in line with the worldwide movement to decrease plastic use.

“Randwick Council is leading by example and making a statement that we all need to reduce our reliance on single use plastics,” Cr Shurey said.

“A total of 3.5 million tonnes of plastics were consumed in Australia last financial year and only 12 per cent was recycled meaning most ends up in landfill or worse in our oceans and natural environment.”

WATCH: PLASTIC BAG

“We’ve all seen the distressing images of animals with their digestion system clogged with plastics and the drifting continents of plastic rubbish accumulating in our oceans. Our decision is a small step in the right direction,” Mayor Shurey said.

In addition to banning single-use plastics as part of council operations, organisers of council-supported events, festivals and major activities would also be required from 1 January 2019 to not use single-use plastics.

Randwick Council will also develop a waste education program to assist and encourage local businesses and community groups to reduce single use plastics.

4 trillion plastic bags are used worldwide each year.
Half a million plastic straws are used worldwide every day.
500 billion disposable cups are used every year.
Plastic bags take up to 1,000 years to break down

IN RELATED NEWS