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Pilot scheme tackled single-use plastic and period poverty

Belfast City Council is celebrating after winning a Behaviour Change Award for tackling single-use plastic.

The council was awarded the accolade by environmental charity Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful for its trailblazing free reusable period products project, which has been recognised as an impactful and pioneering initiative.

Chris Gourley, Waste and Pollutions Solutions Strategic Lead at Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful comments:

“The judges for this award were thoroughly impressed by the efficiency and thoughtfulness of this project, which not only tackles plastic waste but also addresses the pressing issue of period poverty. The project not only demonstrates concern for the environment but also showcases the council’s commitment to promoting inclusivity and sustainability within the community. By offering free reusable period products, the council have provided a practical solution to reduce single-use plastic waste, helped to break down stigmas, and ensured that all individuals have access to essential products without compromising the environment.”

Plastic pollution is a global concern that poses severe threats to ecosystems, marine wildlife, and human health. By implementing innovative solutions like providing free reusable period products, councils can actively contribute to the reduction of plastic waste and create a cleaner, healthier environment for generations to come.

Belfast City Councillor and Chair of People and Communities Committee, Micky Murray comments “Introducing small positive changes to all aspects of our everyday lives with a focus on tackling environmental issues can have such a positive impact. The amount of plastic within single use period products is staggering. This pilot project is such unique way of addressing an issue that I’m confident not many people knew about. Encouraging the use of reusable, non-plastic period products is helping provide a long-term solution to dealing with plastic contaminating our general waste.

“It’s fantastic to see Belfast City Council recognised for implementing this scheme and leading from the front to normalise the use of reusable period products. I want to congratulate all of our staff for their efforts in making the scheme such a wonderful success.”

Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful opened applications for this award to all Northern Ireland councils, to acknowledge and bolster their commitment to changing behaviours and habits related to single-use plastic consumption.

Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful works closely with local councils to encourage new ways to avoid the proliferation of pointless plastics in our communities and to pursue alternatives that are kinder to our planet. Outlined in our strategic plan is the aim to eliminate single-use plastics in-house in all Councils in Northern Ireland by 2023. All 11 councils have signed up to the Plastic Promise - this is a pledge that councils make to reduce and phase out their use of single use plastics from day-to-day operations. Councils can use the Plastic Promise to focus on eliminating specific plastic items, and they are invited to renew their pledge as they make progress.

Chris Gourley continues, “This project serves as a model for other councils in Northern Ireland facing similar challenges, inspiring them to adopt sustainable practices and behavioural changes. Well done Belfast City Council”.

Council commended for strong commitment to the waste hierarchy, emphasising waste minimisation, reuse, and recycling

Mid and East Antrim Borough Council has been presented with a Zero Waste Award for its work on environmental initiatives that have gone that extra mile for waste management and sustainability in their local area.

The local government award, created by environmental charity Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful, aims to recognise and celebrate the efforts of councils in Northern Ireland in reducing the amount of wasted resources.

Chris Gourley, Waste and Pollutions Solution Lead at Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful comments:

“We were particularly impressed by Mid and East Antrim Borough Council’s collaborative communication efforts with the Waste Resources Action Programme (WRAP), their provision of reuse workshops, and engagement with social enterprises to rethink waste as a valuable resource. Moreover, support for local communities through initiatives such as community fridges, the Christmas Toy Container, School Uniform Scheme, and Cloth Nappy Scheme showcases their dedication to translating education and communication into tangible, on-the-ground actions that make a real difference.

Chris continues, “Winning the Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful Zero Waste Award is a testament to the council’s hard work, innovative thinking, and commitment to sustainable practices. I would like to congratulate Mid and East Antrim Borough Council for all their efforts, which are committed to the ethos of reduce, reuse and recycle. We hope this award will go some way to building further sustainable practices that reduce environmental impact. Thank you to all the councils that submitted schemes. It’s very evident that there is lots of good work going on.”

Mayor of Mid and East Antrim, Alderman Gerardine Mulvenna, who received the award on behalf of Mid and East Antrim Borough Council said:

“We are delighted to have achieved such an important ‘Zero Waste’ award 2023 with Tackling Plastic Northern Ireland. Now more than ever, we understand the importance of waste minimisation, re-valuing unavoidable ‘waste’ as a usable resource and to support a circular economy. We will continue to promote this to our residents and stakeholders, to engender behavioural change and to move away from a ‘throw away’ society.”

Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful created the Zero Waste Award in 2022/2023 to reward positive local council contributions to sustainability and to recognise efforts in reducing the amount of wasted resources.

Councils in Northern Ireland have all signed up to the Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful Plastic Promise which recognises that councils are in a position to lead, influence and make change. Each of the 11 Councils have pledged to reduce plastic waste by eliminating avoidable single-use plastics (SUPs) across services, offices, green spaces and events by employing the refuse, reduce, and recycle ethos; switching to alternatives wherever possible.

By achieving a Zero Waste Award, councils are able to celebrate and promote not only their successes, but they also have the opportunity to collaborate and extend their work with more suppliers and likeminded organisations.

Young Reporters for the Environment (YRE) is an international programme run by the Foundation for Environmental Education in 34 countries. The programme aims to empower young people to take a stand on environmental issues they feel strongly about and give them a platform to articulate these issues through the media of writing, photography or video in an annual reporting competition. YRE in Northern Ireland is administered by Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful through the Eco-Schools programme and is open to students aged 11-21 years.

Ulidia Integrated College, Carrickfergus, a Green Flag Ambassador Eco-School, has been working with Lycee Pole School in Madagascar on a number of environmental projects this year. They teamed up to enter an article in the International Collaboration category of the YRE competition 2017.

The combined project has been very interesting for the two schools, seeing the different issues pupils face in both countries but also their shared concerns and passion to care for the environment. Their article focused on the production and consumption of coffee. The pupils in Madagascar, a coffee growing region, considered the challenges of growing and selling coffee faced by Madagascar farmers. Ulidia pupils considered the benefits of purchasing Fair Trade coffee here at home and how it helps farmers around the world get a fair deal for their crops.

The article was submitted to the International YRE Jury in Copenhagen in June and both schools were delighted to win first place in the International Collaboration category. Their article will now be published in the Huffington Post and is available to read from the YRE website www.yre.global

Ulidia pupils in Year 10 also decided to raise money for the community in Madagascar and together through various activities raised £1500, enough to dig a well for a local primary school close to Lycee Pole.

Ruth Van Ry, Eco-Schools Coordinator Keep Northern Ireland Beautiful said: “We are so pleased that this international collaboration has resulted in a first place prize for these two schools. The environmental issues we face are global and will require a global solution. These young people are setting an example for all of us to follow. Well done to Ulidia for running such a successful Eco-Schools and YRE programmes, we hope they will inspire others to take part too.”

The Eco-Schools programme is delivered to schools throughout Northern Ireland in partnership with a range delivery partners including DAERA and most Councils. For more information or take part in YRE please contact eco-schools@keepnorthernirelandbeautiful.org or visit www.eco-schoolsni.org