MORE than 19,000 single-use plastic bottles have been saved from ending up in the sea after BCP Council introduced free water refilling stations. 

Along with City to Sea, the council launched a project called ‘Turning the Tide’ which saw the installation of 150 water refilling points offering free water along the 15 miles of seafront. 

More than 130 beachfront taps, 18 seafront kiosks and 15 ‘Hydration Stations’ were installed as part of Plastic-Free-July. 

Jane Martin, City to Sea’s head of development, said: “Through Plastic-Free-July we’ve been monitoring the new water Refill points across the seafront in Bournemouth, Poole and Christchurch and we’ve seen a flood of people refilling their bottles.  

Read more: 150 free water refill sites across BCP’s beaches to reduce plastic waste

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“We now have data from 5 of the 15 newly installed water fountains which shows we have stopped 19,000 single-use plastic bottles from entering our waste stream. This is a huge achievement.” 

Cllr Mark Anderson, portfolio holder for environment and place, added: “This last month has really shown what can be achieved when the council, civil society and business all work together.  

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“With over a million people visiting our seafront in July we are normally inundated with mountains of rubbish. 

But this Plastic-Free-July we’ve managed to make a real dent in this problem, thanks to the 150 hydration stations we’ve put in along the seafront through our partnership with City to Sea.”