During this era of the world and at the pace we are going we are not leaving a path or a good future for the generations to come. The article that talks about the plastic waste and the waste of fossil fuels is Bottled Water: A Global Environmental Problem
by Abid Aslam. She wrote this on February 5, 2006 and posted it to "OneWorld.net". This goes on all over the world, people are wasting so much money on water bottles, it cost more for a gallon of water than it does for gas for your car. This is happening because some places that don't have water systems or plumbing need the water but in the long run it would cost less to install a plumbing system that will provide tap water. Even places with tap water, "Even in areas where tap water is safe to drink, demand for bottled water is increasing—producing unnecessary garbage and consuming vast quantities of energy,".
This a path that we don’t want to be heading down. As we learned in Biology class that an animals habitats are very important to them and the environment, the water bottles are killing it. 86% of the water bottles used in the United States are just thrown on the ground after. The bottles can take up to 1,000 years to biodegrade. There are many controversies in this article because although it is killing the planet, it is also saving the people in it. In my opinion I think we should slow down the Mass production of water bottles and install water treatments and sanitation systems.
Link to original article: http://www.projectcensored.org/top-stories/articles/20-bottled-water-a-global-environmental-problem/
Good point, Ryan. I found it quite interesting that people spend so much money on bottled water, that the price of a gallon of water could end up being more expensive than gas for your car. That really shows that people need to take the time to think about how much plastic is being used to create these bottles, and how they could eventually end up being littered in ponds, rivers, etc. This could end up harming many organisms that live in these aquatic habitats. Also, you mentioned that water bottles are "saving" the people on our planet. What do you mean by this? I also think that your alternative idea of slowing down the production of water bottles, is a wise one. Did you know that Poland Spring has actually succeeded in "going green" by creating smaller labels, and reducing the size of the cap? Overall, good job!
ReplyDeleteI agree with you and Simran on the idea of slowing down water bottle production. When something is so widely used, you can't ask people to all of a sudden stop using it. In Kaitlyn's blog post she mentioned that a community took to court because of a plastic bag ban. If you gradually "wean" people off using plastic water bottles, it could work to help reduce the usage of them and make the planet a little less polluted. Good job!
ReplyDeleteI agree with your comment, along with Simran and Mary Beth, that we need to cut down on the mass production of water bottles. Even in places like Reading where the tap water is good and disease free we waste plastic on bottles for sports when we could just as easily use a jug or canteen. Simran, I agree that Poland Springs is trying to "go green" but if 86% of all water bottles end up as litter on the ground it doesnt really matter how "green" the bottle is if it is just litter. you cant really litter a canteen of some sort. Also Simran I think I can answer your question about how water bottles are saving us. A lot of tap water around the world is unsafe to drink due to germs and such. In total i agree withyou good job Ryan!
ReplyDeleteGreat article to choose Ryan. I bet most of us can relate to this who's parents spend a lot of money on packages of water bottles each week for sporting events and school lunches. Like Jeff said, we could reduce the amount of plastic litter by bringing a thermos or jug to refill throughout the day because we don't have to worry about dirty water systems here in Reading. I don't think most water bottle companies understand that using less plastic in their bottles barely affects the amount of years it takes for the 86% of water bottles littered to biodegrade. One question that was stuck in my head when I was reading this was, "will there ever be a type of container could be invented to securely store water, and possibly benefit the soil in the ground when biodegraded?"
ReplyDeleteAll in all well written article Ryan.
I think that you chose a great article Ryan. It is one that truly does affect us every day. Many of us could definitely relate to this because some of us may actually do this! Your point was very well stated that it is horribly for the environment and i totally agree with you. Also most big companies don't understand this and they just want the money that comes out of it. This was very interesting how these people will not do anything about it and this shocked me. Even though some of them are tying to "go green", they really aren't. This was an all-around great written article Ryan.
ReplyDeleteI thought there were many interesting facts in this article. Like how it cost more for a gallon of water than it does gas for your car. I agree with how even if there is tap in the place people still prefer bottled water. I agree with how 86% of the water bottles used in the United States are just thrown on the ground after. I never knew it took 1,000 years to biograte a water bottle. All-in-all this is a good and shocking article.
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