In response to the Mayor’s announcement that a free water-refill station will be provided at Bexleyheath Town Centre, Londonwide Assembly Member, Fiona Twycross AM, said:
“This is a great initiative that will benefit the whole community and help those without a clean or reliable supply of water, as well as people on the go. Whatever the weather, it is essential that we all keep hydrated and this is an important step by the Mayor.
“Providing local people with the means to refill for free will also lead to less plastic waste, which we know has an adverse impact on the environment.
“Alarmingly, plastic water bottles make up 10 per cent of all litter found in the River Thames. Even more shocking is that up to 75 per cent of flounder (a type of fish) in the Thames actually have plastic inside them. This announcement today is a positive step forward in terms of the Mayor taking action on single-use plastics”.
ENDS
Notes to editors
-Today, the Mayor of London has announced the locations of London’s first 20 new public water fountains;
- A Thames 21 report has shown that plastic water bottles make up 10 per cent of all litter found in the River Thames
-A study conducted by Royal Holloway, University of London, revealed that 75 per cent of flounder, a type of fish in the Thames, had plastic fibres inside their gut.