Refill Pontypridd is on a mission to make refilling your water bottle as easy, convenient and cheap as possible, by introducing Refill Stations on every street.

An exciting Refill Scheme has launched in Pontypridd which encourages participating cafes, bars, restaurants, banks, museums and other businesses to sign up to the free Refill app and put a sticker in their window alerting passers-by to the fact they’re welcome to fill up their bottle for free.

The launch will be on Friday 22nd February 2019 at 10.15am at Cafe Royale. 4 High Street, Pontypridd with 10 businesses already signed up and more in the pipeline. All are welcome to attend and more details are HERE

The average adult buys more than 3 plastic water bottles every week* - a startling 175 bottles every year per person. In total, some 7.7 billion plastic bottles are bought across the UK each year, resulting in substantial amounts of single-use plastic waste ending up in our oceans.

City to Sea, a not-for-profit organisation headed by entrepreneur Natalie Fee, launched the award-winning Refill Scheme in 2015. Now being rolled out nationwide with full support of Welsh Government and water companies Dŵr Cymru and Hafren Dyfrdwy, Refill will substantially increase the availability of high quality drinking water. It has never been easier to swap a single use plastic bottle for a free taste of the rolling Welsh mountains.

Local Champion Victoria Pulman from Your Pontypridd Business Improvement District, who is launching Refill Pontpyridd, explains why both businesses and their customers should get involved:

“Here in Pontypridd we’re rightly proud of the area’s stunning landscapes and countryside. Plastics, including single-use plastic bottles, are now the most frequently found type of litter on UK beaches and you don’t have to look far to find them littering our towns and green spaces too.”

Victoria added, “Refill Pontypridd gives us all the opportunity to help make this type of litter a thing of the past at the same time as saving money. It’s good business sense as well, as customers view businesses that provide free water refills more favourably and are more likely to return to them to make future purchases.”

Refill Pontypridd builds on the success of Refill around the UK, which now boasts a network of over 16,000 Refill Stations. Hannah Osman, Refill Regional Coordinator, says " We know lots of businesses already offer this simple service, but find customers often feel embarrassed or cheeky for asking. By letting people know they can look for Refill stickers or posters and be confident they can refill for free where they find one, Refill Pontypridd is encouraging more people to take one small step away from relying on single use plastic bottles. It’s a really simple concept with a really big potential result.”

Lesley Griffiths, Environment Minister, explains why the Welsh Government is supporting Refill Pontypridd: "More water Refill Stations in our villages, towns and cities will help cut down on the amount of single-use plastics we use. This is another step towards my ambition of Wales becoming the World's first 'Refill Nation'.”

Find out more about Refill Pontypridd and how you can take part at www.yourpontypridd.co.uk and on their Facebook, Twitter and Instagram and visit the Refill website at www.refill.org.uk to download the free Refill app and find out more about the Refill movement.

Notes to editors

Your Pontypridd Business Improvement District (BID) is May 2016, following a successful ballot process in February 2016. The BID is a business funded and business led investment, lobby and campaign group, focusing on improving trade and footfall and awareness of local business in Pontypridd.

More info can be found on our website at https://www.yourpontypridd.co.uk/

* Our Local Water Company is Dwr Cymru

* Refill is one of several campaigns from City to Sea, the not-for-profit organisation running campaigns to prevent marine plastic pollution.

* Refill launched in Bristol in 2015, and there are now over 13,000 Refill Stations around the UK registered on the free Refill app which shows you where you can refill your water bottle for free.

Web: www.refill.org.uk www.citytosea.org.uk Twitter: @refillwales