May I suggest you watch this Australian report:

http://sixtyminutes.ninemsn.com.au/article.aspx?id=598914

It’s like a 12 minute version of Message in the Waves, and well worth watching. 

Also please pass it onto anyone who thinks that the issue of plastic bags and plastic waste generally doesn’t affect them!

Here is another reason for giving up plastic bags.

With the price of oil rising anything made with oil as a base will also rise. In particular plastic packaging.

“British Polythene Industries Plc, Europe’s largest producer of plastic packaging, said on July 3rd, that the company’s price increases won’t be enough to cover the higher cost of materials and that profit margins will decline.”

As some of you may have read in the Bucks Examiner we have some exciting news regarding cornstarch bags for retailers. The council have agreed to buy and sell and generally administer the cornstarch bags for the town. This means that once they have received their initial order any retailer in the town can choose to use cornstarch instead of plastic by buying them from the Town Council. As these bags cost more than their plastic counterpart, don’t be surprised if you also find that some retailers charge you for them as well. This is great news as it frees up our resources for other aspects of the campaign, so a big thank-you to the Council for agreeing to take it on and another huge round of applause to Bill and his trusty team at the Town Hall who will do all the work!

From our point of view cornstarch bags should only be seen as stopgap to help wean us all off the idea of getting bags automatically from shops. In an ideal world everyone would always carry their own reusable non-plastic bag or pull their own shopping trolley and shops would not have to provide anything, but in the meantime, whilst we strive towards this plastic-bagless-nirvana, cornstarch bags should be appearing in Chesham later in the summer.

The campaign is being very well received and we are talking with several shops in town who want to be part of the Phase I launch of Plastic Bag Free Chesham. We are hoping this will be end August or early September and will let you know as soon as the date is finalised.

The reason for the ‘Thank you!’ is that every shop we go into seems to be telling us the same thing: That more and more people are carrying their own shopping bags and saying ‘No’ to plastic bags.

So a big ‘THANK YOU’ from us to you for the part you are playing in saving our environment :>)

I say ‘No!’

A report in the BBC today carries this heading and focuses on the fact that plastic bags make up only a small part of the mis-use of our oil reserves.

Whilst this is true, I disagree this sentiment.

Like a flag being run up a very high pole, the movement is making a lot of people think about plastic in general: it’s use and mis-use; non-essential packaging; waste disposal. These are all vital issues in our new approach to living a sustainable lifestyle. One where we work with the planet and use our resources wisely, rather than one where we exploit all that is on offer and waste it.

If banning the single use plastic carrier bag makes people aware of these issues - which it most certainly has - then banning the bag is not a ‘diversion’. It is, in fact, a ‘herald’!

Waitrose now has a ‘green checkout’ which is specifically for people who bring their own bags. So if you are shopping in Waitrose and you use your own bags (which we assume you do, if you are reading this blog!) please use the green checkout, cos if it’s popular it may become a more permanant fixture……

If anyone was sad to miss our showing of Rebecca Hosking’s film “Message in the Waves” there is another opportunity to see it.

The Wycombe Friends of the Earth group, who have taken on the plastic bag issues in High Wycombe, have sent an invitation:

Wednesday 30th April  at 7.30pm at The Environment Centre, High Wycombe, HP11 1QX

Donna and I had a lot of fun in Sainsburys yesterday helping them to promote their ‘Bring an Old Bag Shopping’ campaign.

What really struck me was how many people were using bags for life and cotton or jute bags already, which was really encouraging. It felt like the tide is slowly turning against the single use carrier bag and that’s got to be a good thing.

So a big thanks to all who already use their own bags at the supermarket and here’s to many more joining you!

Great news from Sainsbury’s.

They are really taking the PBF issue to heart now. We had a call from our Chesham supermarket to say that, this Saturday, they will be encouraging people to reuse bags instead of taking new plastic carriers.

Give them all the encouragement you can, folks :>)

Just to say ‘thank you’ to all the shop owners, managers and representatives who came along to Thursday’s meeting for retailers to hear more about Plastic Bag Free Chesham and discuss ways in which we can proceed…it was great to share ideas and move things a little closer to a PBF Chesham!

For those who were unable to attend, we will be in touch soon to let you know what was discussed…and if you have just stumbled across this site and knew nothing of these plans then drop us a line…more the merrier

And thanks once again to Waitrose for providing delicious food to keep hunger at bay…Vicki for serving a great cuppa and the Town Council for generously giving us the space to meet free of charge.

See you all soon…