One of the worst offenders for plastic pollution in our environment is the plastic bag. So as part of the campaign to get Kaitāia free from single use plastic by 2020 the idea of a Kaitāia Kete was born. We were lucky enough to get selected for Good in the Hood funding which will go towards printing logo patches to be sewn on to bags, but time really is of the essence so a few months ago t-shirt bags started being created by volunteers at the EcoCentre and PD workers at Far North REAP. Additionally a group at Corrections and through the EcoCentre have been sewing shopping bags made from donated materials.
Last month they were joined by a fortnightly workshop at Far North REAP where anyone is welcome to drop in and help make bags, both the tied knot style and using the sewing machines that we have access to there. The more people we can teach how to make them the better! The Salvation Army provides the t-shirts we use, they get the bulk of the bags created at present, but we also keep the Kaitāia Library and EcoCentre stocked up, with more places getting on board. The t-shirt bags can of course be washed and reused, if you find you’re stockpiling them at home pass them on to whānau or drop them back off where you got them from and they can continue to keep plastic bags out of Kaitāia.
So come along and join in the kōrero and the mahi, it’s a great opportunity to share ideas and skills, and fun too! We meet in the Kukupa Room (the building right next to Puckey Ave), use the door round the back at the car park end.