| Grabbing a quick bottled water when you're on | | | | water to process petroleum into plastic. Finally, |
| the go seems pretty harmless, and it would be, if | | | | manufacturing and transporting one bottle of |
| you were the only person drinking bottled water | | | | water generates about 120 grams of greenhouse |
| and you didn't do it very often. Unfortunately, | | | | gases - enough to fill 12 balloons. |
| each person in the United States reached for | | | | Further environmental harm is caused by collecting |
| bottled water 167 times on average in 2006. That | | | | the water needed to fill the 50 billion bottles. |
| adds up to 50 billion bottles. Since only 23% of | | | | Communities where bottling companies withdraw |
| disposable plastic bottles are recycled, 38 billion | | | | millions of gallons of water each day are harassed |
| disposable plastic bottles end up in landfills each | | | | by tanker trucks rumbling through their small |
| year - 100 million bottles everyday. Laid end to | | | | towns 24-7 to keep the bottling plants supplied |
| end, there would be enough bottles to reach from | | | | with water. Local ecosystems are negatively |
| New Jersey to China and back each day! | | | | impacted when huge quantities of water are |
| This excessive quantity of plastic waste is bad for | | | | removed entirely from a watershed. These large |
| the environment because plastic biodegrades very | | | | water withdrawals from aquifers (underground |
| slowly. It takes over 700 years for a plastic | | | | water supplies) or surface water features can |
| bottle to decompose in a landfill. Plastic debris | | | | reduce stream flow, lower lake levels, decrease |
| strewn around our lands and waterways poses a | | | | local water well productivity, and upset |
| persistent threat to wildlife and ecosystems. In | | | | eco-systems such that aquatic plant growth |
| fact, plastic pollution has become a world-wide | | | | increases and fish stock decreases. In coastal |
| problem. There is a growing "garbage patch" of | | | | areas, salt water intrusion into aquifers and wells |
| plastic estimated to be more than twice the size | | | | can be accelerated by these large fresh water |
| of Texas floating in the North Pacific Ocean. This | | | | withdrawals. These communities are fighting the |
| patch consists of a stew of plastic debris that has | | | | multi-national corporations in local regulatory and |
| been carried by currents from the coasts around | | | | other legal arenas to stop these high levels of |
| the Pacific Basin into a gyre where the currents | | | | water withdrawal. |
| coalesce. At sea or on land, creatures mistake | | | | The economic argument against bottled water is |
| brightly colored and shiny plastic items for food, | | | | equally compelling. Americans spent $15 billion on |
| and when they eat this debris, it is often deadly. | | | | bottled water in 2006, paying 2 to 4 times the |
| This staggering quantity of disposable plastic | | | | price of gasoline for a product they can get |
| bottles is not just filling up our landfills and | | | | virtually free right out of their taps. Contrary to |
| cluttering up our lands and waterways, it is also | | | | the abundant marketing messages, tap water is |
| wasting our finite natural resources and increasing | | | | potentially more healthful than bottled water; tap |
| our carbon footprint. Picture a disposable plastic | | | | water is more highly regulated and monitored for |
| water bottle 1/4 full of petroleum. That is how | | | | quality than bottled water. About 40% of bottled |
| much oil it takes to make and distribute a single | | | | water is simply filtered tap water, so why pay |
| plastic bottle of water. The amount of oil we use | | | | 1000 times more for it? Filling a reusable bottle |
| to produce water bottles, 17 million barrels, could | | | | with tap water saves an individual at least $34 |
| fuel over 1,000,000 cars for an entire year. | | | | per year. A family of four saves at least $136 |
| Furthermore, we are shipping 1 billion water | | | | per year using reusable bottles. |
| bottles a week around the U.S. in ships, trains, and | | | | Can we afford to continue wasting our limited |
| trucks. One bottle of water also requires at least | | | | natural and economic resources on bottled water? |
| three times its volume of water to manufacture | | | | There is an easy solution - fill your reusable bottle |
| and fill. This is because it takes a large quantity of | | | | with tap water! |