Working Towards Plastic Bag Free

Be fantastic, use less plastic!

Every year Australians use nearly seven billion plastic bags, yet less than three per cent of these are recycled.  4000 bags a minute are being thrown out, taking between 20 and 100 years to breakdown in our environment, and threatening the survival of marine wildlife as they mistake them for food.
 

Plastic bag free campaigns in Port Phillip

As a bay-side Council, Port Phillip residents have an all too clear picture of the damage disposable plastic bags can reap on our marine life.  As a result Port Philip is strongly committed to making the move away from using disposable plastic bags.

So far, two Port Phillip shopping strips have made the move away from disposable plastic bags. Elwood's Ormond road shopping village made the move in 2004 and has never looked back.  With over 5,000 reusable bags being given and sold to the local community and over 95% of traders no longer providing disposable plastic bags, the campaign has been a real success story. 

Following in Elwood's footsteps, Middle Park's Armstrong St launched their plastic bag free campaign in 2006.  Championed by two local residents, Millicent Burggraff and Kate Charters, the campaign aims to rid the Armstrong street shopping village of disposable shopping bags by the end of the year.

Both campaigns have been examples of the great co-operation between Port Phillip Council, the Victorian State Government, local Traders and the community, with all groups coming together to better our local environment.

Plastic bags won't be banned in Elwood Village altogether, just discouraged. The traders will do everything possible to phase out plastic bags, but in the meantime plastic bags will be available at those shops unable to make the switch to cloth and paper bags easily.
 

Handy Waste Wise tips when shopping

We are encouraging ALL Port Phillip residents to bring along their own calico and polypropylene bags and avoid using the dreaded plastic bag!

Start today and say NO to plastic bags

Below are some tips for reducing plastic bag use.

• Bring your own reusable shopping bag
• Refuse plastic bags if you don't need them
• Ask for a cardboard box as an alternative
• Use a shopping jeep or backpack for heavy loads
• Remember the four R's when shopping in the City of Port Phillip: * Refuse * Reduce * Re-use * Recycle.
  
  

Use eServices to ask us a question, request information or give us feedback online. If you prefer call ASSIST on (03) 9209 6777 or TTy (03) 9209 6713 and ask for Waste Management.