West Dorset MP Chris Loder is calling for targets to be set to bring an end to plastic pollution.

He proposed changes to the Environment Bill, which went before parliament this week, to cut the use of single-use plastics.

The MP wants the Government to set targets and commit to dates by which the volume of non-essential single-use plastic products sold will be reduced.

He said that the UK's 10 biggest supermarkets are still putting nearly 900,000 tonnes of plastic packaging on to the market. Despite the Government's plastic bag tax, supermarkets sold 1.6billion plastic 'bags for life' in 2019 - that's 57 reusable bags per UK household, along with 2.5billion plastic water bottles.

Mr Loder said: "The volume of plastic packaging in supermarkets is outrageously high and continues to rise. We have become a grab and go, throw-away society, heavily influenced by supermarkets selling products packaged in single-use plastics, often with no other choice.

"The problem is now so great here in the UK that up to two thirds of our plastic waste is shipped abroad to developing countries - 7,133 tonnes in September 2020 alone; and that has to stop."

In a bid to tackle plastic pollution, the Government introduced the plastic bag tax and banned single-use items such as straws, stirrers and cotton buds. However, Mr Loder says that up to 13million tonnes of plastic enters our seas every year, harming marine wildlife, habitats and biodiversity.

He added: "It's time to take decisive action on the scourge of plastic pollution and for supermarkets to take responsibility for the environmental disaster being caused by the single-use plastics on their shelves."

Bridport mayor, councillor Ian Bark, said over the past few months, he has become increasingly aware of the waste his household generates and what happens to it.

He said: "Bridport is fortunate in having on its doorstep a state-of-the-art recycling centre at Broomhills and an excellent kerbside waste collection service delivered by Dorset Council.

"Like you, I diligently separate my waste into the various bins and usually remember to put the right ones out on the right day. Once done, I can relax knowing that my waste is being dealt with."

He spoke to Ian Manley, contracts manager at Dorset Council, to find out more and he explained the recycling collected is bulked up within Dorset before being transported to North Wales to be sorted due to the scale and capability of the sorting facility, one of the largest in the UK. It was chosen because after the recycling is sorted, the operator seeks and uses reprocessors for the materials mostly in the UK.

A significant amount is incinerated as fuel to generate power and heat.

Separated recycling is sent to `Europe and beyond. The UK doesn't currently have sufficient reprocessing capacity to recycle all of the materials it creates.

Cllr Bark added: "As a community, we all need to be doing considerably more to try and reduce the amount of waste we put into our black bins.

"Much of the weekly waste we generate comes from the food we eat. The good news is that our food waste bin deals with cooked leftovers and we can compost vegetable peelings. The bad news is the packaging it all comes in. Card and paper can be recycled but all that plastic is where the problem lies.

"Buy fruit and vegetables that are not wrapped in plastic. By meat from a local butcher who cuts and dresses it before your eyes and wraps it in paper ready to pop into the bag you have brought with you. Buy bread and pastries from a baker who uses paper rather than plastic bags. Buy dry goods such as pulses, pasta and flour from stores that operate a bring your own container refill system.

"Internet shopping has generated a huge rise in the amount of packaging we generate, a significant proportion of which cannot be recycled and ends up in black sacks.

"Shop local and take the product home in its original packaging instead of all that additional packaging used to keep it safe in transit to you via courier. You will be surprised how many local shops are happy to order items they do not stock.

"Sandwiches, pies, cakes, crisps and similar food products bought to provide us with food when at work or on the move - all of the packaging used to supply these products ends up in a black sack somewhere, or worse, as litter along our pavements and verges.

"Spend 10 minutes making your own packed lunch. It will cost less and be better for you.

"None of the above is rocket science and once you put your mind to it, I am sure you will find other ways to reduce the volume of residual waste you put into your black bin."

To read the mayor's blog in full, visit Bridport-tc.gov.uk

You can submit your own news straight to Bridport Nub News by using the 'Nub It' button on our home page. This can also be done for events on our What's On page and businesses, groups and organisations on our Local Listings page , also by using the 'Nub It' button.

Please like and follow our online newspaper on your favourite social media channel. You can find us @BridportNubNews on Facebook and Twitter.