How To Avoid Single-Use Plastic Bottles
Did you know that about 430 million metric tons of plastic are produced yearly, which is more than the weight of all human beings combined? This number is estimated to triple by 2060, which sounds as concerning as it is. Additionally, 79% of the plastic that has ever been made, still sits in the landfills and the environment in general, as approximately 14 million tons of plastic end up in the oceans annually.
Plastic comes in all shapes and sizes, but the most urgent and approachable issue we can tackle is the single-use plastic catastrophe, for many reasons: these are mostly made with virgin plastics, they are used for one fleeting moment but stay for hundreds of years on the environment, and because it’s something that we can avoid as individuals. The power of demand, the power of choice, and the power of collective change can do wonders!
More than 1 million bottles of water are sold every minute globally, with numbers expecting to double by 2030, a fact that sounds unbelievable, as we tend to think we are moving forwards and not backwards in the murky swamps of the single-use plastic dilemma. When it comes to the U.S., Americans purchase about 50 billion water bottles annually, an average of 13 bottles per month per person.
Most of these come from single-use plastic bottles produced by the big companies, who we all know about. They must be held accountable for the damage they inflict on the environment, but I stand by my statement that consumers have a lot of power. If we stop creating demand for these products, the companies will take notice and it will have an impact on the offer.
So, what can you do, a mere mortal of the world, to stop contributing to the production of single-use plastic bottles that end up polluting our precious planet? Don’t worry, I got your back!
BEST ALTERNATIVES TO SINGLE-USE PLASTIC BOTTLES
1) DRINK FILTERED WATER
There is this mistaken belief that bottled water is better than tap water, but that’s not necessarily the case. A recent paper released in PNAS found that around 240,000 particles of plastic per liter of bottled water, most of them being nanoplastics, which are particles that measure less than one micrometer.
The best and most affordable solution to single-use plastic bottles is filtering water at home. Buy a filter that suits your needs (whether you prefer water filter pitchers, ceramic water filters, countertop filters, or any other), or you can even take a big reusable water case or large can and refill it at a store that offers drinking water dispensers).
2) OPT FOR REUSABLE WATER BOTTLES
Considering the numbers stated above, if one person uses on average 13 bottles per month in the U.S., by buying and using a reusable water bottle you will be saving 156 plastic bottles per year. If you do that, and I do that, and my cousin does it, and Mary, and Charles, and Pepito do it, then it adds up, and we create a big change! We can take that number down (50 billion) significantly.
In case you already have a reusable water bottle, then you’re good to go! Using what you have at home is always the most sustainable choice, even if the bottle’s paint has peeled a bit, or is a bit damaged. Functionality and big impact are what matters. The whole idea of a reusable bottle is that it has to be reused, which sounds obvious, but a lot of people purchase many bottles, especially for aesthetic reasons, and it defeats the purpose.
On the contrary, if you don’t currently own a reusable water bottle, there are lots of materials to choose from (aluminum, stainless steel, plastic, glass, silicone, among others), each with their own pros and cons, so consider those and your needs before making that purchase.
3) BUY 5-GALLON WATER CASES
At work (and at home, back when I lived in Buenos Aires) we hired a service in which a company brings us a certain number of large cans of water weekly. When we finish one of these big 5-gallon cases, we leave it outside the kitchen, and when the company comes and leaves the filled cans, they take the empty ones to be refilled. In this case, we don’t avoid the shedding of micro and nano plastics on the water–as the cases are made of plastic– but we do avoid single-use plastics, in favor of a circular model of refills and reusing.
4) SWITCH TO GLASS WATER BOTTLES
Glass bottles could be considered a more sustainable choice than plastic ones, for a variety of reasons. First, glass is fully recyclable and has a much higher recycling rate than plastic (76% vs 41% respectively, in Europe). A second reason is that glass can be infinitely recycled, which means that there’s no loss of quality or value each time it’s recycled, as happens with plastic. Also, when glass is left in the environment–for instance on the landfill–it won’t cause pollution because it’s non-toxic. As it’s mostly made of silica, a natural compound that won’t degrade the environment. This is something that can’t be said about plastics (which release microplastics).
This solution is not perfect because the production of glass is problematic in its own way, as it requires a lot of resources, has a high environmental footprint and damage, health problems for workers, and might promote sand shortage. That is to say, the glass production process is very energy-intense and releases greenhouse gases, and at the same time recycling glasses after they are used also demands a lot of energy.
To avoid glass becoming a single-use item and part of the problem instead of the solution, it should be reused as much as possible. Yes, it can be better than plastic in terms of the afterlife, but in sustainability we must consider the product from the moment of pre-production to its end of lifespan. An alternative would be to buy them and then refill them or see if there are refilling programs in your area.
5) INVEST IN A HIGH-QUALITY SODA MAKER
For the soda lovers who wouldn’t get their drink of choice by filtering water, you can invest in a soda maker to have at home. For this to be a more sustainable choice than a plastic water bottle, you would need to also make the swap to filtered water, either by buying a filter for your place, or purchasing from stores that offer filtered water dispensers.
6) GO BIG OR GO HOME: SWAP SMALL PLASTIC BOTTLES FOR BIGGER ONES
As Sustainable Rookie is all about starting somewhere, and not about being perfectly sustainable, this option is for those who want to take a baby step towards improvement, but for some reason the previous tips are too much or unapproachable. The first baby step you could take is to swap smaller bottles for the bigger ones. In this scenario, what you can do is stop buying smaller plastic bottles and opt for bigger sizes. A 20% shift in consumption from smaller to larger bottles could reduce the production of PET waste by over 10,000 tons annually in the U.S. alone. This way, you can gradually start reducing your plastic consumption, until you’re ready to go entirely zero waste!
Are you in on this journey towards plastic-free living?
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Hi, I’m Melina,
I’m the creator of Sustainable Rookie, and my goal is to share what I learn throughout my sustainability journey, so that I can help other people live a more conscious life.
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