We are coming to the end of Plastic Free July. Hopefully, you’ve been inspired to make some small changes or swaps during the month.
At Granville’s Wood we aim to be plastic free all year round!
We ask that no plastic items are brought into the woodland, and when we see any we remove them. This is to protect the plants and wildlife.
One area that can be particularly tricky, is floral tributes. We have been working to encourage local florists to remove all plastic and wire from arrangements where possible. It’s also important that no fake berries, glitter or other harmful floral additions are used.
In the future we hope to offer locally grown flowers, to reduce imported and non-native floral tributes even further. If you’re also interested in sourcing native flowers, we have found this site very helpful; Flowers From the Farm.
Another common plastic problem is litter (not from our own families!). Again, our staff complete regular litter picks to remove any plastic or other waste to protect the area. As there are no bins at Walton Woods, it’s essential that people take their rubbish home with them.
The specific issue of dog poo bags, is covered in this previous post.
At Home
Plastic Free July is aimed at helping us all to focus on how plastic comes into our homes, and ways we could reduce that. Here are some swaps that you may already have tried, or could begin to include:
- Replacing cling film with reusable covers, sandwich bags, storage etc.
- Taking net bags to buy loose fruit and vegetables, which may also be cheaper.
- Considering swapping items in plastic if there is an alternative e.g. laundry power in cardboard, soft drinks in cans.
- Buying second hand when possible, reducing the packaging of new items and saving money and waste.
- Taking reusable bottles when out for a walk, and using the Re-Fill App to fill them up for free.