Letter: Stop drinking water from plastic bottles

In an effort to reduce waste, lower the carbon footprint and lighten the environmental impact, I would like to see the elimination of all still water in plastic bottles smaller than a gallon removed from all store shelves in our community.

Every year Americans use an average of 28 billion bottles of water. Of those 28 billion bottles, 22 billion end up in landfills where it can take up to 300 years for the plastic to biodegrade.

This is not the only impact on the environment. The production of bottled water, according to the What’s Tappening website, www.tappening.com, uses as much as 17 million barrels of oil, which is enough to fuel a million cars for an entire year.

Federal and local government strongly supports the need for this change. In July, researchers with the government Accountability Office and the Environmental Working Group urged Americans to make bottled water a second choice to tap water.

Since removing personal sized water bottles will create a big lifestyle change, I am recommending stores support this switch by offering reusable water bottles for sale at a minimal cost and when possible offer citizens to fill the reusable at no charge in designated locations with the community.

I hope everyone will join me in making an effort to make a difference in our environment. Drink up!

Tags: letters to the editor, water bottles, opinion, environment