Bristol water refill scheme to be rolled out nationally

A Bristol scheme to reduce plastic bottle waste will now be rolled out right across the country.

The Refill Bristol scheme, which launched in September 2015, now has more than 200 refill points across the city.

Refill Bristol has estimated that if every Bristolian refilled a bottle once a week instead of buying a single-use plastic bottle, the city would reduce its plastic bottle consumption by 22.3 million a year.

The Refill Bristol campaign has partnered with local water company Bristol Water.

As well as the refill stations the partnership has seen the creation of the Bristol Water Bar which goes to festivals in and around the city to allow people to refill.

At last year’s Balloon Fiesta its estimated the bar saved around 10,000 plastic bottles from going to landfill.

Using an app, people will be able to find the nearest refill point as the scheme is rolled out nationally.

A network of high street retailers, coffee shops, businesses and local authorities will offer refill stations in every major city and town in England by 2021, Water UK said.

Whitbread is the first company to sign up to the national scheme and has pledged to provide free drinking water for customers and passers-by in each of its 3,000 Costa Coffee and Premier Inn locations from March.

The national programme, which comes amid heightened public concern over plastic pollution in the world's oceans, draws on the success of the Refill campaign.