Media Release
September 8, 2009

Missing – 500 people in Alexandra

Everyone in the whole South Island town of Alexandra has an eco-friendly shopping bag … they just don’t all know it yet.

Alexandra First National has purchased enough eco-friendly supermarket shopping bags for every Alexandra resident to have one. So far they have given out 4500 of the free bags, in conjunction with the Keep Alexandra/Clyde Beautiful group but still have 500 to give.

Alice Stewart of First National Alexandra said she hoped to find the elusive 500 recipients this week. The initiative to reduce the disposal of plastic bags co-ordinated with the national Keep New Zealand Beautiful Week (Sept 4 – 11).

“We wanted to do something to help the local environment and decided why not shout everyone in our whole town a recyclable shopping bag? It’s one way to get the message across.

Reaction to the bags had been wonderful, she said.

“It’s like painting the town blue in a green way! People can hardly believe they are free and even local supermarkets have let us give them away out the front, despite the fact they sell them inside.

“We are almost there with our goal of getting a green bag to every household. But we are still missing around 500 people to come and pick up their bag. They may not even realize the bags are free.”

Ms Stewart said reports of Wellingtonians and Aucklanders refusing to use eco bags or pay for plastic shopping bags were ridiculous.

“Alexandrites value their town enough to change their ways.”

ENDS

© Scoop Media