Plastic Waste back under the spotlight as London Marathon approaches

In 2018, an estimated 760,000 plastic bottles were thrown away by competitors and spectators. 

 

As a result, last year from the 23 mile mark, runners were given seaweed pouches which can biodegrade in four-six weeks. Plastic bottles can take up to 450 years to decompose and release harmful chemicals into the environment. 

 

Daisy Hutchison, a campaigner from Plastic Free Hackney, has called on organisers to do more to make things easier for runners: “What they need to be doing is investing in systems that would allow runners to be more self-sufficient with the way they’re managing their water consumption.” 

 

She warned: “What often happens with sustainability issues companies will be fairly considerate on a day to day basis but when things get scaled up, those things can go out of the window.” 

 

Researchers at Imperial College London are working on a project looking at reducing plastic pollution. 

 

But principal investigator, Dr Jason Hallet, a chemical engineering professor, said the industry was keen to find greener options: “They’re not happy about it, this is not a thing that they want. But there’s no alternative.” 

 

Dr James Hogg, a research associate on the same project, said for seaweed and other biological resources to be a viable alternative, the impact on “biodiversity and natural spaces” had to be considered. 

 

To learn more about how to reduce your plastic waste and the work being done by Dr Hallet and Dr Hogg, get a copy of the first issue of Yoots from 25 March.