Many of you may agree that President Trump's selection of Scott Pruitt to lead the EPA was a scary and unpromising decision. Of course, whether we like it or not, the unfortunate truth is that there's nothing we can do to terminate his appointment. We can, however, assist the EPA in helping the environment; even the tiniest of contributions matter. And one trivial change that can vastly improve our waste production is the switch from plastic to reusable water bottles.
Yeah yeah, I know. What else is new? But one point I want to make clear is that simply refilling your plastic water bottles once or twice is not the same thing as reusing a metal bottle. This problem actually faces more personal health concerns than it does environmental ones.
The plastic used to make water bottles, such as Aquafina and Deer Park, is known as plastic #1. This type of plastic is created with the intention of one-time use; because this plastic is not as durable as other materials, reusing the bottle can expose some of the chemicals from the lining of the plastic. Not only does this reuse expose the drinker to the cancer-causing chemical Bisphenol A (BPA), but according to Ban the Bottle, it also allows the build up of harmful bacteria in the water. There is no way to safely clean bottles made from plastic #1.
The other problem with plastic water bottles deals with recycling. Even those who do reuse the plastic ones have to throw out the bottles eventually. iSustainable Earth says out of the 50 billion plastic water bottles used by Americans each year, only about 23% of them are recycled. This means that the amount of waste being produced just by water bottle usage could wrap around the Earth 190 times! Buying a true reusable water bottle eliminates health concerns while helping the environment at the same time.
One of my favorite reusable bottles- and one of the most diverse in colors in patterns- is the S'well bottle. These babies are all I see people using around campus (and for good reason). With an ample selection of designs and colors, people can drink their water in style. And one of the main advantages of the bottles' material is that consumers never have to worry about ingesting BPA. They are easy to clean and the perfect size for gym trips, long classes, and more. I 10/10 would recommend buying yourself your very own S'well bottle.
courtesy of Lucy Rose
If S'well is not for you, however, there are many other types of reusable bottles that have the same effect. Camelbak, Klean Kanteen, and Platypus are all excellent choices. None of these brands use material that includes BPA, and all have a variety of designs and styles so you can save the planet in fashion.
Also causing concern is the amount of money spent each year on waste just from water bottles. Over $1 billion of waste is generated every year from these pieces of plastic- this is higher than the cost of 900 million gallons of oil. iSustainable Earth also explains that this cost is so high due to the plastic's low biodegradability. It can take about 1,000 years for the amount of water bottles thrown in a landfill each day to biodegrade. (Just to be clear, that means we would be about 1,019 years old before we see a water bottle thrown out today completely decompose.) The S'well bottle, among others, is cost-effective and eliminates a large amount of the plastic waste that just sits in landfills for years upon years.
In conclusion, making the switch from plastic to reusable water bottles helps both environmental and personal health. S'well bottles are safe to use repeatedly, efficient in eliminating the increasing amount of plastic waste production, and cost-effective on a personal and global scale.
Oh, and you'll look pretty sweet while using them.
