quote:
Originally posted by AMP
Are not the majority of all bottled beverages in similar plastic bottles as the bottled water?
Why pick on the bottled water alone?
Yes. I estimate that we have about twice as many soda bottles in our trash as water bottles.
You have a valid point when talking about selective spotlight on one item. There are some differences...
Soda packaging has not changed dramatically in the last few years. Bottled water has gone from almost no sales to now a third of mobile packaged beverages in one decade. There is almost no make it yourself soda choices while water is found in every home. Soda also has many choices including fountain and aluminum.
Interesting fact...about half of Americans recycle, but almost 60% of aluminum cans are recycled. Either recyclers drink more than others or somebody like janitors and the homeless are doing the difference.
You are right that I am probably unfairly picking on one segment. I am doing it because the big messages are being ignored. It is a way to talk while getting attention. I realized this a few years ago when we were seeing the anti-litter messages totally ignored. I have spent three and a half decades saying don't litter and nobody listened.
A few years ago, we ran a anti-litter campaign that just focused on one item in litter, cigarette butts. (I called the campaign "nobody wants to see your butt".)
We weren't against smoking, we were against dropping the remains on the ground. But suddenly, we got some good free media and attention to the messages.
I promise to try the same approach with soda and other items in the waste stream toward a goal of zero waste.