Elwood bans the bag

Elwood Village in Melbourne’s south has become the first Victorian shopping centre to do away with plastic bags, with traders vowing to use only eco-friendly alternatives.

EcoRecycle Victoria and the City of Port Phillip have each put up $5,000 to pay for calico, polypropylene and paper bags to replace plastic bags.

Port Phillip Mayor Dick Gross said a council survey had shown there was strong support for the move away from plastic bags among local residents and traders.

‘A huge 65 per cent of residents already use alternatives to plastic bags, including calico bags, green bags and cardboard boxes,’ he said.

The money from EcoRecycle will buy blue polypropylene bags to be sold by traders for $1, with the funds raised going towards the purchase of more bags.

Australians use about seven billion plastic bags each year.”