One in four of us drink the required amount of water per day, the rest of us swap it for other drinks like tea and coffee, whilst they contain water, they do not hydrate the body. Despite this, approximately 7.7 billion single-use plastic bottles are bought across the UK each year.
In the majority of life or homeware shops I step foot in, there is more often than not a reusable water bottle for sale, and I see countless adverts on social media promoting the latest and fanciest water bottle. So why are we still buying single use bottles? Well, they’re cheap and convenient for the busy humans we are. It’s too easy, you’ve left your usual water bottle at home, no problem, pop into your local supermarket and there are endless options to choose from. Don’t get me wrong, don’t dehydrate, but are there other options before immediately buying a piece of plastic that is going to take 450 years to decompose? For example, if you have an office job, is there a cup or reusable bottle there you can use for the day?
Despite the above, reusable watter bottles are becoming trendy among young adults. This is great, children are being taught to drink water from a young age! But we need to be wary of overconsumption. Buying one reusable water bottle makes a positive change, but buying several is unnecessary. Rather than creating a long-lasting alternative to something that would usually be replaced daily, we have created a slightly longer disposable loop where a product is bought, used for 12 months, and then disposed of even though it is something that is designed to be used for many years! But I get it, sometimes an upgrade is nice, make sure to put your old one in the recycling at your local centre as they can’t be recycled with regular household recycling!
I’ve done my bit, but what about businesses?
Good question, in order to make an impactful change, organisations need to be part of the process too. Perhaps they do their upmost to advertise their latest water bottle, weather the environment is at the forefront of this decision can be disputed, or maybe cafes offer a discount for reusable takeaway cups. However, when talking about water bottles, if you drink all your water and you don’t have a tap nearby, where do you fill it? Edinburgh has recently installed public water refill stations, making it easy and free to refill your water bottle on the go! This is a great opportunity for businesses, offering a refill station not only promotes the idea that you care about your customers but brings footfall into your business.
Not My Monkey 