Over two million plastic beverage bottles are used every five minutes in the US, two million! How many of these are recycled? Only 10% This leaves us with a surplus of 800,000 plastic bottles every five minutes that end up in landfills, or in our oceans. 100 million marine mammals and turtles in the North Pacific are killed every year by plastic in the ocean. Somewhere between 70 to 100% of North Pacific sea birds are affected by eating plastic. This albatross starved to death because it ate too much plastic trash. 120,548 plastic bottles end up in landfills or the ocean every minute
The Challenge …. only drink out of reusable water bottles refilled with filtered tap water
If each person in the US. replaced their disposable water bottles with reusable containers filled with tap water, we could keep billions of plastic water bottles out of the ocean. At least then we`d be acknowledging we have a problem. “So let it begin with me,” as the song would say. Just putting your one out of ten plastic container in the recycle bin is not enough, although it is a good start. But, it is now too late for that option to be our only option. So let`s take a look at the “refillable challenge”.
I often hear “I want to make a difference in the world” so, “just do it!” Believe it or not most people really want to see this beautiful small world become…. better. They do want to help the poor and the under-privileged, not to mention future generations. So, to achieve these goals let`s begin with canceling our heated letter campaign to our local congressman. It probably will not help, this special interest group of lobbyists is much too powerful at this point. But, you can become a leader in your community.
Start with your local convenience stores. They can make the “one giant leap for mankind“ that we are desperately needing. Talk to the managers, owners, cashiers and see if they would adopt this simple plan. This proposal will benefit all, both ecologically and financially. Not to mention that the first store that starts to “go green“ will become quite popular in most neighborhoods.
Okay, let`s get to the specifics. Your local convenient store can offer free refills of filtered water in reusable bottles. . Advertising themselves as the “Store that Cares“ will bring in more customers. Just as they did with the offer of discounted coffee to get more customers, they can now do the same with free water. It wouldn`t hurt if they also took the step of letting others know that “No Bottled Water is Sold Here. What a simple, yet potentially successful campaign this could be.
Naturally, there will be some unhappy people, but some people do not like fried chicken on Sundays. Nowadays, if ever, no one can please everyone at the same time, nor some of the time. There are some you just won`t please, ever, but don`t let that stop you. Remember the government may become involved if this idea catches on. There are those in the water industry that are huge supporters of many politicians. Surly we may hear rebuttal on how the plastic bottles are safe, and that we are merely alarmists. However, we Americans, along with many other countries are now learning, with the help of the internet, how to read “between the lines.“
If a company would have the courage to make this gutsy move they would be the talk of the town, state, country then the world. A store could not afford this type of recognition and free advertisement through typical means. But, like Liberace said “I don’t care what you say about me just spell my name right”.
Now ,let`s go back to the bottom line theory. The purchasing public makes or breaks a business . Generating new loyal customer equals happy stock holders. So, think about it, would you support someone who is making a difference? Most people would not even have to think about it before they would say “YES.“ It is a win-win for everyone. And it is a beginning to making a real difference in our world, our future, and ourselves.
source on pollution….
http://www.slideshare.net/JeffBennett/plastic-bottles-ocean-pollution-draft-1401540
