Trash Talk aims for plastic-free town

A movement to make Mullingar plastic-free is under way, and Trash Talk, a discussion covering how every business can take action against waste, is happening on Thursday August 30 in The Fence.

Declan Murphy, manager at The Fence, is aiming to make one small change that he hopes will grow into Mullingar becoming the first plastic-free town in the midlands.

“Over the last few months in The Fence we’ve being taking steps to reduce our waste, especially single-use plastics,” said Dec. “We set about getting rid of the plastic straw, which we have done successfully.

“But now we want to do more. We want to get the Mullingar business community involved. We want to start a conversation on environmental sustainability in Mullingar – with all businesses.

“So we are taking another step – we’re having a ‘Trash Talk’ on August 30.”

The problem of plastic pollution is growing exponentially every year; we are producing more than 300 million tons of plastic, half of this is designed for single use, and each year around eight million tons of it ends up in our oceans.

“We want all businesses to join in this discussion, so we can all move forward to become informed and empowered to act differently when it comes to waste.

“We would love to hear other ideas and solutions, and get started on a community endeavour to cut out waste and be responsible for our own consumption.

“For instance, the amount of straws that get thrown out at the end of a night – used only for three sips of a drink, and then thrown in the bin. They’re not compostable, they can’t be used for anything else, so they are a massive pollutant,” he continues.

“Kinsale and other towns have gone plastic-free and we decided to take a leaf out of their book and start doing it here.

“It’s only a small step but one that can make a massive difference,” he continues.

Looking into the different options available as alternatives to plastic straws, the team at The Fence discovered paper biodegradable straws, long-life eco straws, bamboo flavoured ones – the possibilities are endless.

“There is a cost to it but it will pay off in the long run. We’ve been trialling different straws and we’ve gone for the long-life straw which customers can buy for €4. It comes in its own holder, with its own cleaning brush. It’s like having a long-life coffee mug – it’s yours. There’s not much margin in them, but for every one that’s sold we donate €1 to Plastic Oceans.”

Plastic Oceans is a foundation that’s working to change the way we deal with plastic waste by challenging society’s perception that plastic, as indestructible substance, can be treated as ‘disposable’.

“It’s about looking at the bigger picture here. It takes a bit of planning, it’s not a money making scheme by any means, but it’s time to move in this direction.

“I’d like Mullingar to come on board with the whole thing and for the bars to lead by example. It would be great if the town could become plastic-straw free, and then move to other things such as using biodegradable sacks. If Kinsale can do it, Mullingar can do it.

“It’s about Mullingar being as green as it can possibly be for the future and that can only be a good thing. As an incentive, there’s positive PR there that can be capitalised on, but it’s not just about that, it’s about the bigger picture.”

All business owners are asked to attend The Fence on August 30 at 8.30pm for a positive, solution-focused discussion on this environmental issue.