Mayor unveils list of locations in bid to cut down on plastic waste

Two locations in Acton have been picked as sites for new public water stations.

Acton Park and North Acton station are amongst the list of 20 which have been unveiled by the London Mayor, Sadiq Khan.

It's part of an intiative to cut plastic waste by reducing single-use plastic bottles and instead encouraging people to refill rather than buy bottled water. Four of the water fountains have already been installed – at Heart of Valentines Park, Redbridge, Kingly Court, off Carnaby Street, Westminster,and two at Liverpool Street Station.

Sadiq Khan, said: “Water fountains are a simple but effective way to encourage Londoners and visitors to ditch plastic bottles and instead refill reusable ones. With the hot weather we’ve seen this summer, the demand is greater than ever for quick and easy ways of accessing free drinking water and I’m pleased to confirm the locations for the first 20 of our new public water fountains. Some of these are already attracting thousands of visitors a day and City Hall are working on plans to secure many more across London.”

Assembly Member, Onkar Sahota AM, said, “This is a great initiative that will benefit the whole community and help those without a clean or reliable supply of water, as well as people on the go. During the rest of the summer, it is essential that we all keep hydrated and this is an important step by the Mayor.

“Providing local people with the means to refill for free will also lead to less plastic waste, which we know has an adverse impact on the environment.

“Alarmingly, plastic water bottles make up 10 per cent of all litter found in the River Thames. Even more shocking is that up to 75 per cent of flounder (a type of fish) in the Thames actually have plastic inside them. This announcement today is a positive step forward in terms of the Mayor taking action on single-use plastics”.

Confirmed locations are:

• Kingly Court, off Carnaby Street, Westminster
• Liverpool Street Station, near the Underground entrance
• Liverpool Street Station, near Bishopsgate exit
• Heart of Valentines Park, Redbridge
• Bexleyheath Town Centre, Bexley
• North Acton Station Square in Ealing
• Windrush Square, Brixton
• Ladywell fields, Lewisham
• Beckenham Place Park, Lewisham
• Horniman Museum and Gardens, Lewisham
• Paddington Recreation Ground, Westminster
• Acton park, near the new skate park, Ealing,
• Guy's Hospital, Southwark
• St Thomas' Hospital, Lambeth
• Swiss Cottage Open Space, Camden
• Camberwell Green, Southwark
• Nisbett Walk, Sidcup Town Centre in Bexley
• The Natural History Museum, RB Kensington and Chelsea
• South St Alban's Street, St James (off Haymarket)
• The London School of Economics and Political Science

August 29, 2018