A few weeks ago, I did something at work that I'm kind of psyched about. It was small, but I like to think that every little bit helps.
I have been bringing my own reusable water bottle to work for a while, and, in a meeting last month, the issue of bottled water came up. I jumped at the opportunity to make a few comments about how I am concerned about all the disposable bottles of water we go through at the studio. Then, I offered to get everyone non-disposable, refillable water bottles. To my delight, almost everyone said they were interested.
A couple of days later, I brought in a variety of hard plastic water bottles, and my coworkers picked the ones they wanted. Now, they all use them and refill them throughout the day. It's been several weeks and it seems like everyone is still using them. A couple of my coworkers have even commented on how much they like their reusable bottles. It made me happy that they were all so open to change.
Now, if I can just get everyone at the animation studio to switch. I am considering putting up a flier.
AWESOME!
Not sure how much stock to put in this, but some people think the hard polycarbonate Nalgene-style bottles may not be the safest due to a hormone-mimicking chemical that leaches from the plastic...
"Most at risk, says Colborn, are people with developing endocrine systems: pregnant women and newborns, followed by young children, and women who might get pregnant. Hunt says that if she had an infant, she would switch to polypropylene (#5 PP), which is not known to leach harmful substances. (Other plastics that are not known to leach are #2 HDPE and #4 LDPE. "Single use" plastic bottles made of polyethylene terephthalate [#1 PET or PETE] are not recommended for repeat use because of the risk of bacterial contamination from infrequent and insufficient washing.
Or you could avoid plastic altogether and switch to glass or lightweight stainless steel containers."
(Hazards of Hydration, http://www.sierraclub.org/sierra/200311/lol5.asp )
Dear EAPPster,
What kind of water are you and your friends filling the colorful bottles with? LA tap water, or special water from a cooler?
Wondering in San Antonio
Thanks for your comment, Ross, I had never heard that. I wonder how extensive the research has been on this subject. I'll definitely look into it.
In response to the question from San Antonio, we refill our bottles from a water cooler. Although the water in LA is safe to drink, it doesn't taste so great so my company has bottled water coolers in all our kitchens.