Plastic carrier bags take decades to break down in landfill sites

The brightly-coloured 'bags for life' will be delivered to 500 homes in Finstock by volunteers from the local Community Action Group this month.

Volunteers hope the bags, sponsored by Oxfordshire County Council, will cut the amount of waste people in the area send to landfill sites.

Unlike plastic bags, which take many years to break down once they are thrown away, the canvas ones last for years and then degrade quickly.

The bags are decorated with a blue earth logo designed by James Treherne, a 14-year-old from Reading, Berkshire.

James won a £25 voucher to spend in an art shop for his winning design, chosen from hundreds of entries by school pupils.

Caroline Lowery, from the community action group, said: "We have to break the plastic carrier bag habit because they take decades to break down in landfill.

"This type of canvas bag does last - some people are still using similar ones that are 10 years old."