Like anywhere else in New Zealand, the small town of
Collingwood has a litter problem. One day after the annual
beach clean-up, some of the helpers realised just how much
of the rubbish they’d collected was plastic bags. They
were determined to do something about it. After
many community meetings, it was decided that the
answer was cloth bags. A sponsor was found,
and every household in Collingwood was
given their own cloth bag for free.
On 4 October 2005, Collingwood
became New Zealand’s first
plastic-bag-free town. Shops
now provide boxes,
newspaper, or paper bags
instead of plastic bags,
and of course shoppers
can use their own
cloth bags.