A petition has been launched by a Sheffield environmental community organisation to increase people’s access to drinking water fountains and tackle single-use plastic waste. 

Sheffield Action on Plastic (SAOP), have appealed for Sheffield City Council to install, maintain and signpost drinking water fountains to encourage people to quench their thirst in a healthy and sustainable way. 

The petition highlights how the 7.7 billion bottles of water purchased per year in the UK has contributed to substantial amounts of single-use plastic waste, and the health impact this pollution can have. 

Greg Hewitt, who established SAOP in 2023 said: “We set up the petition because we found that within the plastic bottles you can buy from shops contain thousands of microplastics. 

“People are actually drinking microplastics and that’s something we’re really concerned about. There is a serious health impact there.” 

The petition states that providing drinking water in parks and other places where children and young people congregate would present a healthy alternative to sugary drinks and address the ‘alarming’ rise of obesity rates in the youth. 

SAOP are a volunteer-led environmental group dedicated to reducing single-use plastics, working alongside the community to encourage more sustainable, eco-friendly lifestyles. 

Mr Hewitt added: “I’ve been an environmentalist for 15 years so am really keen to do something. 

“I started the petition because when I moved to Sheffield, I’d not seen any drinking fountains, as I had in other places I’ve lived. 

“I learnt about the issues surrounding plastic waste in the oceans and wanted to do something about it.” 

Alongside their petition, SAOP has run several projects to get the community increasingly involved in environmentalism. These include a reusable coffee cup scheme at cafes and events, an organised reusable cup-hire scheme and a plastic free-market which allowed ‘people to support a sustainable event without the need for plastic bags’. 

The group is keen to raise awareness for their petition, as well as upcoming events including plans for a collaboration with Sheffield museums to celebrate ‘Plastic-Free July,’ film screenings for a new film detailing the effects of microplastics and another plastic-free market on the third of November. 

If interested, you can contact the group via their website https://sheffieldactiononplastic.co.uk/