Whether it’s a nice hike in the hills or a trip to the beach or a weekend kids’ activity or a long day at the office – only food ‘n water can keep us going. Many people often pick up a stacked plastic cup from the water cooler in the office or reach for a paper cup at the coffee machine. Grabbing a couple of water bottles and packaged snacks from the convenience store are pretty common practices. However, the all this could be enjoyed in a more eco-friendly + wallet-friendly manner… a little more mindfulness is all it takes.
Reusable Bottles are IN!
It’s a pretty obvious thing really! Before stepping out of the house, remember to carry a couple of reusable water bottles and a reusable box of snacks/fruit from home to store in your bag or to keep in the car. Instead of using throw-away plastic or paper cups in the office for your beverage, keep your favorite mug handy at your desk.
Not much there to explain! With food and water readily available when you need, there is no big urge to reach out for those single-use bottles/cups and plastic wrapped quick snacks from stores anymore. It’s really that simple.
* Carry your own reusable water bottle and home packed snacks when you step out to keep your energy up.
* Opt for metallic bottles and washable mugs at your workplace.
* Make conscious choices when picking up that can of soda next time.
Maybe you only have plastic water bottles at home at the moment. Once they are ready to be recycled and replaced, opt for stainless steel washable bottles instead that have longevity and durability.
What is the problem with plastic bottles?
According to previous studies, over 20 billion plastic bottles are being trashed each year in landfills and incinerators, in the US. That’s billion with a B. Each plastic bottle takes 500-800 years to degrade. Over time these plastics breakdown into micro plastics and enter the soil and waterways damaging marine and human life. Most plastics like bottles, milk cans, food packs can be washed and recycled up to 2-3 times to make other things. But unfortunately, not all plastic bottles even get into the recycle bin. A mere 12% plastics are recycled… a staggering ~80% of plastics ever made are unfortunately still lying intact on our planet, as of 2015.
Making a plastic bottle in itself costs energy, and so does recycling. All this is built into the cost of a water bottle that we as consumers are paying for. Perfectly good, drinkable, filtered tap water that costs ~0.10 cents ends up costing several $ in a bottle – that’s a multiplier of 1000x! It’s the price we pay for perceived convenience .
Aluminum cans are a greener alternative. They take ~100 years to degrade but they are also infinitely recyclable. However, this process is highly energy intensive and also involves transportation and packaging costs. All of this again gets built into the cost of drinking from a can. And once again, someone is paying for it. No prizes for guessing who…
