A national initiative that aims to reduce single-use water bottles by encouraging businesses to advertise that they are happy for people to fill-up their reusable bottle at their premises has come to Suffolk.

East Anglian Daily Times: Jason Alexander who has launched Refill SuffolkJason Alexander who has launched Refill Suffolk (Image: Archant)

Refill Suffolk is on a mission to make refilling water bottles as convenient as possible, by introducing refill stations across the county.

The scheme involves participating cafes, bars, restaurants, banks, galleries, museums and other businesses signing up to the Refill app and putting a sticker in their window alerting passers-by to the fact they’re welcome to fill up their reusable water bottle for free.

Not-for-profit organisation City to Sea launched the award-winning Refill Scheme in 2015 and now Ipswich -based Jason Alexander from RubbishWalks.co.uk has started Refill Suffolk.

He said: “Here in Suffolk we’re rightly proud of the area’s stunning landscapes, countryside and shingle beaches, but plastics, including single-use plastic bottles, are now the most frequently found type of litter on UK beaches and you don’t have to look far to find them littering our towns and green spaces too.

“I organise regular litter picks along Suffolk’s coasts, rivers and streets and the level of single use plastics, and in particular plastic bottles we find, is frightening.

“We cannot afford to blindly carry on choosing convenience over conservation. Just talking or reading about the issue isn’t enough. We need to take positive action in our daily lives to turn the tide on plastics.”

Mr Alexander, who officially launched Refill Suffolk last weekend at the Tea Hut cafe in Woodbridge, said around 100 businesses in Suffolk have already signed up to the initiative including Adnams, which intends to display the sticker at its shops and managed pubs.

He has set himself a target of signing up 300 Suffolk businesses by the end of the year and is planning to visit a number of towns in the county to promote the project.

East Anglian Daily Times: Jason Alexander and Sharon Wolff, co- owner of The Tea Hut in WoodbridgeJason Alexander and Sharon Wolff, co- owner of The Tea Hut in Woodbridge (Image: Archant)

Mr Alexander added, “Refill Suffolk gives us all the opportunity to help make this type of litter a thing of the past at the same time as saving money. It’s good business sense as well, as customers view businesses that provide free water refills more favourably and are more likely to return to them to make future purchases.”

To find out more about Refill Suffolk and how you can take part visit https://rubbishwalks.co.uk/refillsuffolk.

Visit the Refill website at www.refill.org.uk to download the free Refill app and find out more about the Refill movement.