In my mind, the ultimate symbol of our throw away culture is bottled water. The fact that companies can take something that is already delivered to our homes for practically free, bottle it, put a fancy label on it, ship it across the country (or around the world), and charge good money for it, is a real hat-trick. There’s nothing magical though, about the amount of energy consumed and the amount of waste created to sustain this practice. Consider the following:
- There is no assurance that bottled water is any cleaner or safer than water from the tap. In fact, an estimated 25 percent or more of bottled water is tap water in a bottle — sometimes further treated, sometimes not.
- Approximately 22 percent of the bottled water brands tested by the Natural Resources Defense Council contained, in at least one sample, chemical contaminants at levels above state health limits.
- In 2006, the equivalent of 2 billion (that’s illion with a “B”) half-liter bottles of water were shipped to U.S. ports, creating thousands of tons of global warming pollution and other air pollution.
- Approximately 1.5 million barrels of oil — enough to run 100,000 cars for a whole year — are used to make disposable plastic water bottles, while transporting these bottles burns even more oil.
- Most bottled water comes in recyclable PET plastic bottles, but only about 13 percent of the bottles are recycled. In 2005, 2 million tons of plastic water bottles ended up in landfills.
Fortunately we’re seeing more people using refillable bottles such as those from Klean Kanteen, Sigg, and Nalgene. We’re also seeing more companies offering refillable bottles to promote their business and establish their green-cred (some may call this “greenwashing”, but hey, if it raises awareness, I’m all for it).
Never one to be out of the loop on these matters, Swobo, maker of urban bikes and bike clothing, has introduced a new BPA, DEHA, and DEHP-free water-bottle-with-a-twist called the Tap Water I. Here’s the scoop:
The Swobo Message in a Bottle Project attempts to take the mundane, static, get in line behind everybody else, somewhat landfill doomed product offering of a water bottle, and make it a tool for a greater discussion or action.
Tap Water Rules is a series within the project, which allows you to use the water bottle as it’s intended, and then when you’re done with it, please add the appropriate postage and send your message to the address provided on the front of the bottle. The message is conveniently printed on the other side. Join us in trying to broadcast our belief that tap water does in fact rule, and bottled water is in fact, a big waste. Thanks for listening.
Printed on one side of the bottle is a letter to Nestle Waters North America expressing the bottle owner’s disapproval of bottled water. On the other side is a mailing panel on which the appropriate postage can be placed for sending the entire water bottle to Nestle (no liquids please).
I’m sure the point isn’t so much to actually send the bottle to Nestle (hopefully you’ll just keep using it), but the Tap Water I should spark some interesting conversations and raise awareness if nothing else. Oh yeah, and it looks like a pretty nice bottle too.