Sunday, November 29, 2009

The Facts

Did you know that:


  • Americans will buy an estimated 25 billion single-serving, plastic water bottles this year. Eight out of 10 (22 billion) will end up in a landfill.
    -- Container Recycling Institute


  • Bottled water is a rip off - consumers spend an estimate $7 billion on bottled water in US each year.


  • Worldwide 2.7 million tons of plastic are used to bottle water each year.
    -- OneWorld


  • 1.5 million barrels of oil is used annually to produce plastic water bottles for America alone - enough to fuel some 100,000 U.S. cars for a year.
    -- Earth Policy Institute


  • Imagine a water bottle filled a quarter of the way up with oil. That's about how much oil was needed to produce the bottle.
    -- National Geographic


  • The bottled water you purchase is often in #1 PET or PETE bottles (polyethylene terephthalate), which may leach DEHA, a known carcinogen, if used more than once.
    -- Mothering.com


  • A growing problem: "In 1990, Americans bought 1.1 billion pounds of plastic in the form of bottles, according to the Container Recycling Institute. In 2002, they bought more than three times that - 4 billion pounds."
    -- Christian Science Monitor


  • Increasing evidence of adverse health effects tied to Bisphenol A, or BPA a widely used chemical in the manufacturing of plastic polycarbonate bottles, including baby bottles, water bottles and food / beverage containers.


  • Like all plastic, these bottles will be with us forever since plastic does not biodegrade; rather, it breaks down into smaller and smaller toxic bits that contaminate our soil and waterways.


  • Along with plastic bags, plastic bottles are one of the most prevalent sources of pollution found on our beaches.


  • Many studies show that the quality of bottled water may be no better than tap water. 


  • Source:  http://www.reusablebags.com/facts.php?id=18

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