Bin the Wipe – Government Introduces New Legislation
The UK government have recently announced that they will introduce world leading legislation to ban the supply and sale of all wet wipes containing plastic in England. The legislation will be introduced later this year to help clean up the UK’s beaches and waterways, and reduce plastic pollution.
Across the UK, 11 billion wet wipes are used every year. The main issue with this consumption is how they are discarded after use. Unlike toilet paper, wipes that contain plastic do not break down as quickly, and when they eventually do, they decompose into microplastics.
The packaging information for disposing of wet wipes can often be misleading. Some wet wipe manufacturers claim their wipes are ‘flushable’ – but that simply means they can pass through a toilet u bend, and as they do not easily break down in water like toilet paper, these wet wipes often cause blockages further along in the sewer system. Sewer and drain blockages causes flooding in peoples homes and gardens, costing water companies for pipe repairs and often ending up littering our beaches. When wet wipes eventually do break down they release microplastics which can be harmful to health and contaminate our waterways. Once in the water, the plastic can accumulate biological and chemical pollutants, increasing the risk of harm to people and wildlife who come into contact with them.
The issue of not flushing wet wipes is a long standing one, increased education and a behavioural change is what is needed from everyone if we are to make a positive impact on our environment. Blumilk’s long standing relationships with some of the UK’s water companies, including Northumbrian Water, Yorkshire Water, Affinity Water and CCW, have meant that we are very aware of this ongoing issue and we wanted to create our own engaging animation to highlight the need to ‘bin the wipe’ instead of flushing it away.
Our approach was to create an upbeat, fast paced, engaging animation that not only informs the viewer of all the things that you use a wet wipe for, but what should be done with that wipe once it has served its purpose. Attracting audiences young and old, the animation demonstrates our ability to respond to current issues and come up with problem solving solutions that are simple effective and thought provoking. Our catchphrase BTW ‘By the way’ shows an alternative meaning… Bin the wipe.
With our expertise in crafting engaging narratives and impactful visuals, we can help your organisation convey important messages to your audience effectively. Whether it’s animation, campaigns, digital design or other creative services, Blumilk is here to collaborate with you in creating compelling content that resonates with your viewers and drives positive change. Let’s start a conversation and together, we can make a difference.
If you want to engage your audience with an animation or video, we can help. Chat with us.
