Call to Sussex residents to switch to reusable water bottles for day of action

Sussex residents are being urged to ditch single use plastic water bottles and switch to a reusable water bottle as part of a national day of action today (Thursday September 27) to cut plastic pollution.
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Sponsored by Southern Water and industry body Water UK, the Refill app connects thirsty people with thousands of businesses who will refill a reusable bottle for free.

The first ever National Refill Day comes as it’s revealed that an overwhelming majority of the British public are concerned about plastic pollution.

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The survey, by One Poll commissioned by City to Sea, the group behind the app and the Refill campaign, shows that 85% of the public are worried about the impact of plastic pollution in the environment.

Call to use reusable water bottlesCall to use reusable water bottles
Call to use reusable water bottles

In the South East 71 per cent of the public already regularly or sometimes carry a reusable bottle - and the good news for 27 per cent who often forget to take their bottle with them is the updated app will remind users to grab a bottle as they leave the house.

In the UK 7.7 billion plastic water bottles are used each year, with the average person in the UK now using 150 plastic water bottles every year - that’s more than three a week.

If just one in ten Brits refilled just once a week, there would be a saving of around 340 million plastic bottles a year.

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Refill, City to Sea’s award-winning campaign to get people ditching single-use water bottles in favour of reusable bottle, is the UK’s leading ‘app for tap’ - connecting people looking for water with businesses, water fountains and stations where they can refill for free on the go.

Participating cafes, bars, restaurants, banks, galleries, museums and other businesses simply sign up to the app and put a sticker in their window - alerting passers-by that they’re welcome to come on in and fill up their bottle, even without a purchase.

“The Blue Planet documentary highlighted the devastating effect carelessly discarded plastic can have on wildlife and sparked a revolution in the way we all think about single use plastics across the country.

“For those who want to help make a difference to our environment and wildlife, cutting out plastic bottles is a fantastic place to start and that’s why I’m such a supporter of the Refill app,” said Ian McAulay, chief executive of Southern Water.