Tangalooma Villas

Apr
26

Movies, Books, Politicians the Water Bottle is Under Siege

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Take a plastic water bottle at your own risk; the tide of social opinion is forming away from you. From top rating documentaries, to books and political campaigns, the biggest topic around is the menace around bottled water and the waste that the industry creates.

The producing, transportation and waste of water in petrochemical plastic bottles eats up huge use of water alongside energy, and produces large amounts of greenhouse gases and waste.

Director of the recent documentary ‘Tapped: get off the bottle’ Stephanie Soechtig states “1500 water bottles end up in landfill every second – that’s 30 million water bottles a day! We wanted to show people just how much waste is generated by bottled water.” The people behind Tapped are publicizing the show with an across-America roadshow, receiving donations from donors to reduce their water bottle waste and taking their used plastic water bottle in exchange for a reusable stainless steel bottle. Download Tapped from Amazon or iTunes.

Another such film ‘The Story of Bottled Water’ was released on World Water Day in March. From Annie Leonard of the critically acclaimed ‘The Story of Stuff’, this animation shows the methodology that amounts to conning Americans into purchasing at least five hundred million bottles of water each and every week, compared with a few cents cost for tapwater. Find this animation on You Tube.

With her book ‘Bottlemania’, investigator Elizabeth Royte demonstrates one of the greatest marketing tricks of the last century and demands a sudden environmental alarm bell. She investigates the problems we must inevitably understand. Who appropriates our water supply? What will happen when a bottled-water company seizes your town’s source? Is the water that comes from a tap absolutely safe? What is the environmental cost of making, transportation and disposal of a plastic water bottle?

Politicians from all around the international community are acknowledging that they have to start the campaign – particularly when the buildings where they serve are huge consumers of bottled water. How often do we view a politician at a debate sipping from a water bottle. It is probable that they can locate a water glass in Parliament House.

Leslie Samuelrich of Corporate Accountability International, claimed “Cities and states are spending hundreds of millions of taxpayer dollars on bottled water, and that’s not to mention what’s spent to deal with all the plastic bottles that are thrown out.”

In July 2009, the NSW rural town of Bundanoon became the first place in Australia to prevent the sale of bottled water. About 60 townships in the States and a handful of cities in Canada and the United Kingdom have now stopped expending taxpayer holdings on bottled water.

It is certain that this issue will be brought to the table at World Water Week 2010 from September 5 to 11 in Stockholm, Sweden, the annual meeting for the planet’s most time-sensitive water-related dilemmas.

Article written by Tracey Bailey, founder of Biome Eco Stores.

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Feb
22

Water Bottles Need to be Clean to be Safe: How to Clean Your Water Bottle

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You are doing the right thing for the planet by filling up at home and carrying a reusable water bottle and you’ve chosen a safe, non-toxic bottle-but if it’s not kept clean then it may not be healthy.

Whether your drink bottle is a stainless steel bottle, SIGG bottle or a BPA free plastic water bottle, it is important to stop mould and other deposits forming in the bottle.

Wash your drink bottles with warm, soapy water at the end of every day and let the bottle air dry upside down with the top off every day where possible.

Should any mineral deposits or lime scale form inside, fill your clean water bottle with Distilled White Vinegar and let it soak for 24 hours. Then rinse with warm water mixed with one tablespoon of bicarbonate of soda (baking soda), rinse out and let dry. Spots inside the bottle that look like “corrosion” are most likely a mineral deposit.

Fill your bottle with filtered water wherever possible. It tastes so much better, but also because water contains different minerals in every area this may affect what happens inside your bottle.

Do not allow liquids such as fruit juice to ferment inside the bottle.

With all reusable water bottles you can also try SIGG cleaning tablets and a specially-designed SIGG bottle cleaning brush, or simply a baby bottle brush. Only ever use a soft brush on aluminium bottles with lining like SIGG so as not to damage the lining. Stainless steel water bottles like Klean Kanteen and Nathan can handle a hard brush.

While all bottles are technically dishwasher-safe, it is recommended to not put them in a dishwasher. Most dishwasher powders are caustic, so they will eat into the metal of your bottle and damage the exterior pattern. Bottle tops should also not be put in the dishwasher because extreme heat expands and deteriorates the plastic.

Never freeze metal bottles as metal can split even with only a little water inside. Water does not always expand in a predictable direction! Freezing plastic water bottles is also not advisable because it may cause the plastic to breakdown and toxins to leach. It is fine to place your bottle in the refrigerator.

Tips on cleaning your water bottle brought to you by Biome Eco Stores Australia.

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