UAE | Environment
Green carriers give 'paws' for thought
Rocketing veterinary bills made a Feline Friends volunteer "paws" for thought. The result: 1,000 eco-friendly "cat bags".
- By Nasheet Jaffer Khan, Community Solutions Editor
- Published: 00:09 August 3, 2008
- Volunteers at Feline Friends first started distributing the bags towards the end of May 2008.
- Image Credit: Supplied Picture
Dubai: Rocketing veterinary bills made a Feline Friends volunteer "paws" for thought. The result: 1,000 eco-friendly "cat bags".
Lissy Morris felt it was the perfect opportunity to do "something good for the environment".
Feline Friends is an organisation run by volunteers, whose goal is to bring relief and care to the feral, stray, and abandoned feline population in Dubai. It does not have an animal shelter, nor receive any official funding, and therefore relies on donations and volunteer foster carers who provide temporary care for cats and kittens.
Biodegradable
Morris said: "We all know that plastic bags are disastrous. Couple that with a need to raise funds for our non-profit organisation and I decided it was worth a try to get sponsorship for eco-friendly shopping bags."
Cat food company Whiskas came to the rescue and sponsored the first 1,000 bags. Made of a cotton and jute fibre mix, the biodegradable bags priced at Dh20 each are fast gaining popularity among regular clients.
Morris said that since the bags are made from a special natural mix, they disintegrate much faster than plastic bags.
She added: "We do hope that these bags won't be discarded as frequently as most plastic bags."
Lesley Muncey, co-chair of Feline Friends, said: "If one person uses an eco-friendly bag it saves about six plastic bags a week. On that basis, 45 people could avoid using a million plastic bags. The biodegradable bags are our minor contribution," she said.
Volunteers at Feline Friends first started distributing the bags towards the end of May 2008. By mid-June, half the bags were sold out. Morris added that as there seems to be a demand for "cat bags", they would have more made. The bags are available for purchase at veterinary clinics in Dubai and also at upcoming Feline Friends events.
Nationalgeographic.com reported last week that a new population of wrinkly-faced, bamboo-eating lemurs, listed as critically endangered by the World Conservation Union, has been found in Madagascar.
Share this article
More from UAE Environment
More from UAE
Popular in UAE
-
Your pictures
Readers' pictures
A Selection of the best Gulf News reader pictures this week
Latest news
- UAE National Day: Preparations in full swing
- Universities celebrate UAE National Day
- Brothers' triple success
- Reviving age-old craftsmanship
- Youth reconnect with history
- Fatima: UAE's women are exercising full rights
- Emirates Palace gears up for festivities
- Emerging writers to get networking opportunities
- Ministry of Health sacks employees for forgery
- Please don't use two parking spaces
- 'Education is a long-term investment'
- Scottish businessman awarded honorary doctorate in engineering
- Giving money is not enough
- Large crowds join in Eid festivities
- Al Ain's oryx may hold key to breeding
Community Reports
-
Please don't use two parking spaces
Thoughtless drivers means other motorists are losing out in a city where places to leave cars are often hard to find
-
School buses must do safe drop-offs
Some bus drivers let students off at the wrong side of the road
-
Munching on a health hazard
Residents must be careful about consuming snacks and sandwiches prepared along the roadside as they attract dirt and bacteria
-
Faded signage fails to guide visitors
Reader seeks better upkeep of signboards in green areas
