British public urged to go plastic-free this June

The Marine Conservation Society (MCS), the UK’s leading marine charity, is challenging people to give up their convenience lifestyle and ditch pre-packed sandwiches, ready meals and plastic bottled drinks on the go for the whole of June.

Almost 600 members of the public have already signed up to take part in the MCS Plastic Challenge and the charity says it’s amazed at the lengths people will be going to, to find products that don’t contain plastic of any kind. The charity says it highlights how reliant we have become on plastic which is reflected in the amount already known to be turning parts of our oceans into a ‘plastic soup’.

Since the charity began monitoring beach litter levels around the UK over 20 years ago, the amount of plastic bits and pieces has increased by 180%, causing an increasing threat to marine life. Plastic bags, bottles and tiny plastic pieces are regularly found in the stomachs of turtles and other sea creatures, and in some cases have caused their death from starvation or choking.

“We want to change people's attitudes towards single use plastics, and to encourage people to value plastic as a resource – not just buying stuff without any thought of the environmental impact,” said Dr Sue Kinsey, MCS Senior Pollution Policy Officer. “People taking on the Plastic Challenge are often shocked to find out just how much single use plastic is used every day. Have a go at the Plastic Challenge, even if you can only manage a single day, and you'll never look at your shopping in the same way again!”

You can take part in the Plastic Challenge here.