A Pottsville pharmacy is doing its bit to help the environment this week.
Murdock Pharmacy Group is giving away free re-usable cloth bags with every customer purchase over $15 this week.
“We are making an effort to do something positive for the environment,” Group head Tania Murdock said.
“We have thousands of re-usable cloth bags to give away, for customers to recycle, instead of using plastic bags. Last time we did this was in 2008 and it was very successful.
“Consumers embraced our initiative and it encouraged other businesses to do the same. As a seaside town, we think it is particularly important to cut down on plastic bags to protect marine life such as turtles, which are often affected, because they can mistake floating bags for the jellyfish they eat.
“I raised the idea initially with the Pottsville Beach Business Association in 2008, trying to gain support and involvement from all the other Pottsville businesses.
“We are disappointed to see major retailers such as Coles and Woolworths charging for their re-usable bags, when small businesses such as ours are prepared to cover the cost for the sake of the environment.
“I don’t see why large retailers couldn’t afford to provide re-usable bags for their customers if we can. It seems that major supermarkets are the main source of plastic bags and they have a community responsibility to do something about the problem, without simply looking at it as another money making venture.”
The re-usable cloth bags are available all this week in-store at Murdock Pharmacy Group – Pottsville Beach.
