Refill is a British environmental campaign that connects people to places they can eat, drink and shop with less plastic. Using a location based app, Refill provides a network of points offering the public free
tap water
Tap water (also known as running water, piped water or municipal water) is water supplied through a Tap (valve), tap, a water dispenser valve. In many countries, tap water usually has the quality of drinking water. Tap water is commonly used f ...
in the UK.
The network comprises high street retailers, cafes, restaurants, other businesses, museums, and local authorities.
The campaign aims to prevent
waste
Waste are unwanted or unusable materials. Waste is any substance discarded after primary use, or is worthless, defective and of no use. A by-product, by contrast is a joint product of relatively minor Value (economics), economic value. A wast ...
created by
single-use plastic water bottles, as well as increasing the availability of quality
drinking water
Drinking water or potable water is water that is safe for ingestion, either when drunk directly in liquid form or consumed indirectly through food preparation. It is often (but not always) supplied through taps, in which case it is also calle ...
.
Details
The idea for Refill came from Natalie Fee, who set up the
community interest company
A community interest company (CIC, pronounced "see-eye-see", or colloquially, "kick") is a form of social enterprise in the United Kingdom intended "for people wishing to establish businesses which trade with a social purpose..., or to carry on ...
City to Sea in order to launch Refill in Bristol in 2015.
City to Sea continues to organise it.
People can either use a dedicated smartphone app to find Refill points, or look for signs outside participating organisations.
As of March 2018 there were 5700 Refill points and it continues to be developed.
All establishments of Neal's Yard Remedies,
Costa Coffee,
Premier Inn,
Starbucks
and Pret a Manger
are participating.
Towns and cities in which Refill schemes operate
*
Bath
Bath may refer to:
* Bathing, immersion in a fluid
** Bathtub, a large open container for water, in which a person may wash their body
** Public bathing, a public place where people bathe
* Thermae, ancient Roman public bathing facilities
Plac ...
*
Birmingham
Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...
*
Brighton and Hove
Brighton and Hove ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority area, ceremonially in East Sussex, England. There are multiple villages alongside the seaside resorts of Brighton and Hove in the district. It is administe ...
*
Bristol
Bristol () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city, unitary authority area and ceremonial county in South West England, the most populous city in the region. Built around the River Avon, Bristol, River Avon, it is bordered by t ...
*
Cambridge
Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...
*
Leamington Spa
Royal Leamington Spa, commonly known as Leamington Spa or simply LeamingtonEven more colloquially, also referred to as Lem or Leam (). (), is a spa town and civil parish in Warwickshire, England. Originally a small village called Leamington Pri ...
*
Llantwit Major
*
London
London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...
See also
*
Reuse of bottles
References
External links
*
BBC explanation of the scheme (video)"App shows water refill stations to tackle
plastic waste
Plastic pollution is the accumulation of plastic objects and particles (e.g. plastic bottles, bags and microbeads) in the Earth's environment that adversely affects humans, wildlife and their habitat. Plastics that act as pollutants are cate ...
"
{{Recycling
Bottled water
Conservation in the United Kingdom
Packaging
Plastic recycling
Reuse
Waste management concepts