City to Sea, a charity dedicated to combating plastic pollution, will cease operations this month after ten years of campaigning against plastic pollution.
Despite initiatives that have led to policy changes and a public shift towards the implementation of sustainable alternatives to single-use plastic, the organisation faces financial challenges due to the competitive nature of grant funding and economic difficulties faced by corporate partners, stated the charity.
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City to Sea’s Refill app is said to have been used in preventing an estimated 100 million single-use plastic bottles from entering the waste stream each year.
The charity said its advocacy also resulted in policy changes in the UK such as the ban on plastic cotton buds and single-use plastic cutlery, plates, and polystyrene-based takeaway packaging.
These successes were propelled by public support, with campaigns such as “#SwitchTheStick” and “#CutTheCutlery” gaining the backing of over 150,000 people.
Additionally, the charity said it has demonstrated the feasibility of scalable reuse solutions, achieving 97% return rates for reusable items and reducing reliance on single-use cups.
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By GlobalDataThe announcement of City to Sea’s closure comes amidst the breakdown of international plastic treaty negotiations.
UK households are estimated to discard 1.7 billion pieces of plastic packaging in a week.
Recent surveys by City to Sea reveal that 72% of consumers wish to have more reusable and refillable options where they shop, yet business commitments have fallen short of addressing this need.
City to Sea CEO Jane Martin said: “We’re incredibly proud of what we’ve achieved over the past decade. When we started, refill and reuse were nowhere to be seen in strategic roadmaps and business plans. Since then, we’ve witnessed real shifts with citywide reuse initiatives across the UK and upcoming EPR [extended producer responsibility] and DRS [deposit return scheme] legislations.
“But despite growing public demand for reuse, the reality is that underfunding, lack of enabling regulation, and a system still optimised for single-use have made our mission as a nonprofit increasingly unsustainable.
“The new reuse economy desperately needs bolder commitments from governments, brands and retailers. They need to be on the right side of history: it’s time to turn talk into action, with deeper investment, legally binding regulation and cross-sector collaboration.”
