The National Trust has abandoned plastic for the annual membership card it sends to 5 million members, he announced.
The new paper will be made of a tough and durable type of paper with a water resistant coating, with the paper certified by the Forest Stewardship Council. They will be produced in a mill powered by their biomass.
Trust said the new cards would avoid using 12.5 tons of plastic per year.
The new papers will be fully recyclable and compostable, in addition to arriving at a fraction of the cost of the old papers, which were made of plastic and plaster, a by-product of the mining industry.
The National Trust said the move was part of a series of measures it was introducing to protect the environment and tackle the climate emergency, after a survey showed it was supported by the majority of its members.
Mel Nursaw, of the trust’s team, said: “Replacing our membership cards is a big step towards reducing our impact on the environment, which we know is a major problem for many of our supporters.”
In total, the National Trust now has nearly 6 million members, including children and lifetime members who don’t receive an annual card. Trust is also exploring how to transfer its physical cards to digital ones.
Elsewhere, the charity is trying to remove plastic from most of its greeting cards and wrapping paper, looking for alternatives to plastic tree guards and trial drink dispensers to reduce bottled beverage sales .
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