A visual survey conducted by Heywood resident Julie Hart at Woolworths supermarket in Portland has revealed a significant drop in single-use plastic bags following the ban, which came into effect on June 20. 

The survey was conducted over two days, with Ms Hart observing shoppers leaving the front and rear doors of the Percy Street supermarket between 2.30 and 3.30 on the afternoons of Tuesday, June 19 and Wednesday, June 20.

Ms Hart observed a total of 162 single-use plastic bags being used within the hour on Tuesday – the day before the ban came into effect, as well as 22 polypropylene plastic and organic bags and eight of the heavy duty plastic bags sold for 15 cents each.

But shoppers appeared to embrace the ban the following day, with just eight single-use plastic bags re-used in the same time period and 87 polypropylene bags, 68 new heavy duty plastic bags, eight polyester or organic hessian bags and one basket.

Ms Hart has been plastic-bag free for three decades. 

“I was pleased to see Woolworths bring in the ban two weeks earlier than the other big supermarkets and that people were starting to bring their own reusable organic bags,” she said. 

Ms Hart will run another visual survey in August. 

She said she hoped to see the decline of all plastic bags, including new polypropylene and heavy duty plastic.

“I know people might get caught on the spot and realise they’ve left their bags at home, but there are so many bag choices that won’t harm the environment,” she said.

“There’s calico, canvas, cotton, hemp, hessian, jute, and string bags. Think, when the bag dies, can it be used as garden mulch?”  

Single-use plastic bags will continue to be removed from supermarkets across the region, with IGA stores following suit from June 30 and Coles supermarkets from July 1.

In Warrnambool, a group of sewers have ditched plastic bags and created 203 reusable bags over nine days at an empty shop on Liebig Street.

The sewing station came off the back of the third round of Warrnambool’s community event Beers and Ideas and was created by Brenda O’Connor. 

The event saw more than 32 kilograms of fabric diverted from landfill.