Over 150 plastic bottles litter each mile of UK beaches. A plastic bottle can last for 450 years in the marine environment, slowly fragmenting into smaller and smaller pieces which eventually end up microscopic but never truly go away.  A plastic bag is used on average for 15 minutes, yet could take 100 - 300 years to fragment.

Not all plastic is bad, it can be incredibly useful.  The big problem is single-use plastics and the quantities in which they are used.  We can all take a lead to reduce throwaway plastic see www.sas.org.uk/news/how-to-reduce-single-use-plastic-lessplasticplease for hints and tips.