There Is More You Can Do to Help America Recycle

Each year, on November 15th, millions of people across the country participate in America Recycles Day, a Keep America Beautiful initiative. This nationally recognized day is dedicated to encouraging Americans to recycle and buy recycled products.

America Recycles Day aims to educate people about the importance of recycling to both our economy and the environment, and helps motivate occasional recyclers to become “everyday” recyclers. The recycling rate in our country has increased every year, for the past 30 years, however it’s still only at 34%.

America Recycles asks people to pledge to the following:

1. LEARN about what materials are collected and recycled in your community
2. ACT in the next month to reduce the amount of waste you  produce, recycle more, and buy more products made with recycled content
3. SHARE in the next month and encourage one family member or one friend to take the #BeRecycled pledge.

It seems simple enough for everyone to take this pledge. For me, the LEARNING part is easy, I live in San Francisco, which has a Waste Zero goal and has programs in place to recycle literally everything from bulky things, like mattresses and appliances, to hazardous waste, like old paints and batteries. In fact, San Francisco Recology has a vision to create a world without waste by developing and discovering sustainable resource recovery practices that can be implemented globally.

Living in a city that is a world-leader with its Waste Zero mission means that, between composting and recycling, I already produce virtually no “trash”. However I know I can still do better and there are additional ACTIONS I can take. For me this involves two main areas,

1. Making a stronger commitment to buy more products that are made with recycled content and to really pay attention to this.
2. Making consistent smart decisions around packaging and reducing the amount of recycled material that I produce. From choosing reusable containers over ziplocs every single time (even when I’m in a rush and all of the containers are dirty) to making a conscious choice to choose Tap Versus Bottled Water and always remembering to bring my refillable container.

In the past, I’ve recommended my favorite refillable water bottles, but today, in honor of my America Recycles Pledge, I want to take this one step further by recommending the best refillable bottles that are made with recycled materials. Here are three awesome companies that are using sustainable practices to make really cool refillable bottles:

1. Liberty Bottles: I can’t say enough positive things about this company. Liberty Bottleworks is 100% dedicated to preserving the environment and truly cares! The company’s unique aluminum bottles are made with recyclable material, are entirely recyclable, AND are made in the USA at a manufacturing facility that strives to be zero waste. The Washington-based company offers several collections of distinctly unique bottles, including its “Karma Collection“, by which it supports great organizations, like Keep America Beautiful and the National Parks Conservation Association, by selling uniquely designed bottles and then contributing 5% of its net sales to the applicable charity. Liberty Bottleworks offers so many fun and artistically designed bottles and even has a Build-a-Bottle program, enabling customers to design their own bottle all the way through the process. I love this company’s products, and what they’re all about, and can’t wait to buy some of their bottles to give as holiday gifts.

   

   Liberty Bottles offer fun and unique artwork

2. BottlesUp: Made with a minimum of 75% recycled glass, food-grade silicone caps and rings, and no plastic in the product or the packaging, this company believes that it has the lowest carbon footprint in the industry. BottlesUp’s glass water bottles are sourced and made in North America and available in 2 sizes and eight colors. The company is dedicated to offering customers a truly green product and also aims to be the healthiest option, stating that glass is the purest material to drink from.

   

   BottlesUp combines the clarity of glass with a sophisticated and practical design

    

3. ECOVESSEL: While not all of the company’s bottles are made with recycled materials, the company does have an overarching respect for the planet. Part of its mission is to support organizations that work to provide clean drinking water around the world, like Water for People. ECOVESSEL’s SURF Recycled Glass Water Bottle contains up to 60% Recycled Glass and is available in five colors and two styles.

   

   ECOVESSEL’s SURF Bottle may be glass but it’s designed to be extremely durable and to withstand breaks

    

There’s always more that we can each do. Small individual changes can lead collectively to huge change. I’ve SHARED with you the actions I will take and have included three companies that I feel proud to support in an effort to help me fulfill these ACTIONS (although I must say that Liberty Bottles is my personal favorite).

 

 

 

Make a Conscious Choice: Tap Versus Bottled Water

The Safe Drinking Water Act (SDWA) holds all public sources of drinking water to strict safety standards, ensuring that the vast majority of U.S. citizens can trust the water that comes straight from their tap. However, in spite of this, many Americans choose to pass over free and clean water in favor of paying for bottled water. “There are many attributes that contribute to bottled water’s undeniable appeal to U.S. consumers,” said said Chris Hogan, vice president of communications for the International Bottled Water Association (IBWA). “Among them are bottled water’s healthfulness, convenience, reliability, and safety.”

Bottled water drinkers are part of a large and growing trend. In this decade alone, Americans have increased their annual consumption of bottled water by more than 11 gallons per person, from 25.4 gallons in 2005 to 36.5 gallons in 2015. In fact, bottled water is expected to overtake soft drinks as America’s largest beverage category by volume by 2017, if not by the end of 2016.

While it’s good news that Americans are choosing bottled water as a healthy alternative to other bottled beverages, including soft drinks, it seems that we’ve taken this health-conscious beverage swap to an “unhealthy” extreme. Sure, it’s great to buy water instead of soda, but our careless over-consumption of bottled water has a huge and growing impact on the environment.

I’d like to start by debunking the attributes of the ubiquitous bottled water that, according to the IBWA, have “undeniable appeal” to U.S. consumers.

1. Healthfullness: While bottled water is healthier than soft drinks and other bottled beverages, it is by no means healthier than tap water. Pick yourself up a refillable water bottle and make a habit out of visiting the many refillable water stations that are popping up around the world. If you live somewhere that hasn’t quite caught up with the refillable trend, consider buying a refillable bottle with a built-in filter so that you’ll feel good about filling up with tap while on the go. There’s a wide range of filter bottles from this simple Brita to the extreme Lifesaver bottle, which can also get you through an emergency.

1. Convenience: Americans love the convenience of a portable plastic bottle but does it really need to be disposable? Again, invest in a refillable container and make a habit out of keeping it full. In no time this solution will feel more convenient than anything else. Especially when you factor in the option to customize your water by adding booster drops, such as these Alkaline Drops with Antioxidants or natural flavor, such as H2wOw. There are small portable enhancers to meet just about any supplement or flavor boost you want, giving you the ability to completely personalize your water and have some fun with your hydration.

1. Reliability: Is bottled water really any more reliable than tap? I would argue that tap water is one of the most accessible things in the U.S. We are so fortunate to basically be guaranteed clean and safe tap water, this is a luxury that should be appreciated!

1. Safety: Many people choose bottled water because of concerns about the safety of their tap water, in some cases, these fears are reasonable however for the vast majority of people in the U.S. tap water is just as safe, if not safer. And, according to several blind taste tests, such as this one, tap is just as tasty as well. In the U.S. tap water is held to higher safety standards than bottled water. Tap water is regulated, often screened for dangerous pollutants and city government offices are required to share water information with their residents. Bottled water isn’t subject to the same reporting standards and doesn’t usually have to state what source it comes from or what methods were used to treat it. In addition, some microorganisms, that are normally of little or no public health significance, may grow to higher levels in bottled water. For example, Food Safety News reports that in June 2015, 14 different brands of bottled water had to be recalled because of possible contamination with E. coli bacteria. What’s more, the plastic used in single-use bottles can pose more of a contamination threat than the water itself.

When you look closely, IBWA’s attributes of so-called appeal aren’t valid, and are quite “deniable”. These claims are fueled in part by the huge marketing effort of the major water companies and bottling industry and in part by consumers, who need to justify their frivolous purchase of water.  In general, bottled water is no more pristine, tasty or healthy than water straight from the tap.

However, there are, in fact, real attributes to consider the next time you think about paying $1.50 or more for a bottle of water. The cost bottled water has on the environment and your wallet is very real. Bottled water is far more expensive than tap water, and it also uses many more resources to package, ship, and dispose of when the bottles are empty.

1. Price: A Business Insider column noted that two-thirds of the bottled water sold in the United States is in individual 16.9-ounce bottles, which comes out to roughly $7.50 per gallon. That’s about 2,000 times higher than the cost of a gallon of tap water. Not only does bottled water contribute to excessive waste, but it costs us a thousand times more than water from the faucet. Furthermore, when you pay a price premium for bottled water, what you’re getting is often just tap water that’s been filtered or purified in some way. Both Dasani, bottled by the Coca-Cola company, and Aquafina, bottled by PepsiCo, start out with public water sources.

1. Environment: Bottled water is a drain on the environment. The bottled water industry uses 1.5 million tons of plastic annually to package water, and the manufacturing and disposal of the plastic sends toxic chemicals into the environment. Transporting the bottles and keeping them cold also burns fossil fuels, which give off greenhouse gases. And, according to some estimates, it takes up to three liters of water to produce one liter of bottled water! In addition, groundwater pumping by bottled-water companies draws heavily on underground aquifers and harms watersheds. Some major bottled water companies are making the drought in places like California worse, and violating local communities, by taking water for bottling on expired (and potentially illegal) permits.  

Don’t get me wrong, I do believe that bottled water has a place and plays a vital role when public water supplies are compromised, such as in the aftermath of a natural disaster. So much so that I even wrote a post just last week urging readers to purchase bottled water to have on hand in case of an emergency. When clean tap water is unavailable, I appreciate that the bottled water industry is instrumental and has been (and will continue to be) there to ensure that people have access to safe, quality water. In developing countries where there is not a safe source of tap water, bottled water is necessary. And sure, even with our access to clean, safe tap water, there will always be times when buying a bottle of water is justified, such as on days of travel or when forgetting your refillable container. It’s not an all or nothing situation but it is an opportunity to be mindful of times of careless over-consumption. Bottled water clearly comes with a cost, both for consumers and the environment. We can each make a difference individually by choosing tap water more often.

What’s On Tap? It’s Hetch Hetchy For Me!

Hetch Hetchy might sound like the latest trendy micro brew but it’s actually San Francisco’s delicious tap water that comes from the pristine snowmelt in the Sierra Nevada Mountains. If this has you thinking about California’s drought, don’t worry this is a whole other blog post that I will get to in the future but for now I’m sticking with the positive, which is lucky for me, and everyone else in San Francisco, I have access to incredible tap water both at home and while I’m out and about in the city thanks to San Francisco’s myriad of water filling stations.  According to San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, Hetch Hetchy water is quality tested over 100,000 times a year, and goes straight to the tap. Tap water is also highly regulated by the EPA and across state and local water quality standards. Seriously, why would anyone in San Francisco buy bottled water, which is often nowhere near as “clean” as what comes from our tap?

Hetch Hetchy Reservoir at Sunset Image courtesy of Justin Gaerlan https://www.flickr.com/photos/jcue786/

San Francisco’s “Drink Tap Program” began installing water filling stations throughout the city in 2010 and for the past four years I haven’t left home without a reusable canteen! Refilling stations can be found all over the city and beyond, from the Marina Green and Golden Gate Park to UCSF Medical Center and San Francisco International Airport. Not only do refilling stations provide access to free and delicious water but they encourage conserving our natural resources and reduce waste from single-use plastic water bottles.

Globaltap Water filling station at the San Francisco Zoo

San Francisco may have been the pioneer of a public water filling station initiative, however filling stations are not unique to this city. Many other cities, including Boston and Wahington DC, have “Tap It” initiatives underway and many other private and public institutions have rolled out their own Water Filling Station Programs. Filling stations are especially on the rise and popular at colleges and universities where the average student spends hundreds of dollars each year purchasing bottled water, and more than 38 million of those plastic bottles end up in landfills annually, according to San Francisco State’s Office of Sustainability. Hopefully if you’re reading this, you live in a place where filling stations exist or are planned for the near future. If not, I urge you to still consider bringing your own container with you wherever you go, water fountains are a little awkward but still work to refill and many restaurants and cafes have help yourself filtered water available. Chances are that the water you fill your own container with will be as good or better for you than what you can buy so save some money and do something great for the environment too! 

If you’re not convinced, check out TapIt’s Infographic below, showing 10 reasons why you should drink tap water. A picture is worth a thousand words.

10 reasons to drink tap water, courtesy of Tap It http://www.tapitwater.com/blog/drinking-water/

Please check back next week, I’ll be blogging about how much water you should really be drinking each day and what really counts toward your intake.