Thousands in Hampshire join forces for the Big Plastic Count as anti-plastic campaign ramps up

The Big Plastic Count, a collaboration between Everyday Plastic and Greenpeace UK, sees schools, businesses, families and more tracking the single-use plastics they are throwing away.

Organisers say the event will provide a snapshot of our plastic waste problem, filling a crucial evidence gap and showing the government and supermarkets that they must act to tackle the problem.

Chris Thorne, plastics campaigner at Greenpeace UK, said: ‘The biggest ever investigation into the UK’s plastic waste is officially underway.

‘We are delighted that so many people across the south east signed up, making clear once again that the public is concerned about their plastic waste, and want to see genuine action from the government to turn the tide on our plastics crisis.

‘That means an immediate end to us dumping our waste on other countries like Turkey, and legally binding targets that actually tackle the plastic problem at source.’

Daniel Webb of Everyday Plastic added: ‘This really is a crucial moment in the struggle against the plastic problem.

‘We hope the results of The Big Plastic Count will persuade the government, supermarkets and big brands to take bold steps to tackle the plastic crisis once and for all, which is extremely exciting, perhaps even revolutionary.’

Greenpeace UK and Everyday Plastic will release the results of the survey as soon as they have been processed.

Campaigners hope these results will push the UK government to reduce single-use plastic by 50 per cent by 2025 and ban all plastic waste exports.