Need a fashionable alternative to the Plastic Bottle?

By Amy Kux, Itsabelly San Francisco

Alternative to the Plastic Bottle

Piggy Backing on the 40th Anniversary of Earthday, I thought it was appropriate to present the importance of reusing and eliminating waste by eliminating the usage of plastic bottles.

Here are just a few facts about the harm that plastic bottles have on our planet:

• Bottled water produces up to 1.5 million tons of plastic waste,
• The Food and Water Watch reports that plastic requires 47 million gallons of oil per year to product,
• Tap water is held to more stringent standards than bottled water.
• 80% of plastic bottles are not recycled
• Plastic bottles take 700 years to begin composting
• Plastics are the most common man-made object sighted at sea. During a 1998 survey, 89% of the trash observed floating in the North Pacific Ocean was plastic
• 24 million gallons of oil are needed to produce a billion plastic bottles
• The United States is ranked number one as a global warming polluter compared to other large nations
• Bottled water is the second most popular beverage in the United States
• The state of California spends $72 million a year collecting and burying disposable cups and bags
• In the Pacific Ocean, there is a floating island of plastic trash twice the size of Texas

So what can we do to help “Save our Earth?”

A simple solution is to buy a BPA free stainless steel or plastic reusable bottle.  Lucky for us, this is an increasing market and these products are found everywhere.  One company I am personally fond of is EarthLust (www.earthlust.com).  I love the fact that this company has an array of great designs and different sizes to fit anyone’s taste.  In addition, they donate 1% of their proceeds to causes to support our planet.

Just recently, they have added a baby bottle/ sippy cup to their collection.  To me, this is very exciting as my daughter is now into grabbing everything I have, so being able to have a stylish “Mommy and Me” eco-friendly bottles is the perfect solution.

D