We know how important clean towns and beaches are to the local communities, tourism and the environment. With simple changes, businesses can support and help create cleaner green spaces and seas.
Sometimes the issues are hard to see. What we throw away, flush down the toilet and pour down our sinks can block drains and sewers allowing litter and sewage to enter the sea after heavy rainfall, affecting the bathing water quality for swimmers and water users. The amount of waste that you recycle and reuse instead of disposing in your general waste can make a big difference to your businesses carbon footprint.
Take your business from good to great with these simple measures that make all the difference.
ACTION
Pop a sticker in your window so that everyone knows they are welcome to come into your business and ask for a free refill of tap water.
All you need is a tap!
IMPACT
By helping everyone reuse water bottles rather than buying single use plastic you are not only reducing litter and plastic pollution but also helping turn off the metaphorical ‘pointless plastic tap’
RESOURCES
ACTION
Reduce unnecessary single use plastic today! We have created a template document to support organisations to reduce single use plastic. Whether you are a Town or Parish council, a charity or a business please use this audit and action plan as a guide to help you make the changes needed to reduce single use plastic.
IMPACT
Single use plastic (SUP) is a big problem for the environment even before it pollutes our rivers and oceans as chemicals derived from fossil fuel production are used to make almost all plastics. Reducing just a couple of single use items can make a big difference to your carbon footprint.
RESOURCES
ACTION
Drains – Check all toilets, dishwashers, washing machines and sinks are correctly connected to the foul sewer and not to surface water drainage.
IMPACT
These are called misconnections
and could mean that dirty water
from your establishment is running directly into local streams and the sea. If you do not fix a misconnection you could face a fine of up to £20,000 from the Environment Agency.
RESOURCES
ACTION
Toilets – Ensure there are bins available in every bathroom. Display ‘what not to flush’ posters.
Use refillable shampoo and soap dispensers in rooms.
IMPACT
‘Unflushables’ such as wet wipes can clog up our sewage system and cause combined sewage overflows.
Using refillable dispensers not only help to keep costs down but also helps to reduce excessive disposable packaging.
RESOURCES
ACTION
Bins – Ensure waste and recycling facilities are seagull and pigeon proof. How about popping up one of our ‘Dont Feed The Locals’ posters in your windows?
IMPACT
Seagulls faeces contains high levels of bacteria and can therefore affect
bathing water quality at a beach.
Gulls like picking at bin bags
to gain access to food and end
up distributing litter across an
area.
RESOURCES
ACTION
Make sure fats, oils and greases aren’t going down the sinks! Use strainers in kitchen sink/sinks to
stop debris getting down them. If you have a commercial kitchen, fit fat traps to dispose of all kitchen
fats, oils and greases (FOG).
IMPACT
Fat traps help reduce blockages
in the sewerage system. Clogged
up sewers make it more likely
for Combined Sewage Overflows
to occur during periods of heavy
rainfall. No one wants a fatberg!
RESOURCES
In January 2022, Litter Free Dorset ran an online survey to find out what businesses across Dorset are currently doing to reduce their impact on the environment, plus areas where we might be able to help businesses further!
Questions were asked about commercial waste management, recycling, packaging, drainage, single-use plastic and more.
© 2021 Litter Free Dorset Land, Coast & Sea · All Rights Reserved · Terms · Privacy
