To the Editor: A Plastic Ocean, and it haunted me.

I am writing as a new member of a Newtown environmental group. I see the changing world we live in and a year ago I wasn't paying much attention to environmental issues. Whilst visiting Great Britain, I noticed that thin plastic bags are no longer used in grocery stores and wherever I went, I was asked if I needed one, even at the pharmacy. It made me think about plastic, how it is wrecking our oceans and our food and how much just one person uses throw-away plastic daily. I started to think about the long term future of this planet. I watched the documentary

We in the USA will eventually have to stop the enormous use of plastic and follow the lead of Europe and Africa who have plastic bag bans. California was the first state to ban plastic bags here in 2014 and charge for paper bags. An increasing number of US states and cities have taken matters into their own hands. In Newtown, let's be progressive and follow Westport to ban plastic bags. Let's reduce, reuse, recycle.

Carole Hart

24 Sugar Street, Newtown         February 8, 2018