Our first blog of 2016 was due to cover our colleague Mario’s return to school. That’s not (just) a reflection on the need for a better-educated workforce at NDA Packaging. It’s rather that we’d been delighted to receive an order from Mario’s old primary school, which presented our intrepid teammate the perfect opportunity for a nostalgic visit. Therein lies a tale, which a photography lapse means will be told another time.
Which left us with a topic gap a few days before month end, for our now regular bi-monthly written reflections. Since we pride ourselves on timely bottle deliveries, it would hardly reflect well if we missed the beat on our blog, would it?
“Write about the importance of hydration during winter months” suggested Mario. Good idea, except we covered the same topic in our January blog last year and send regular mailshot reminders on the issue, as we do the customisability of our bottles and their resale value as fundraisers etc.
Then, whilst seeking inspiration (in the bath), the radio sports reporter made a timely announcement “On February 1st” he said “the (football) transfer window will shut”. You guys too then, except in both our instances the window will open again next season, next blog. Our planet though, is running out of chances.
Unless the planet you belong to is not this one, disputing the impact of climate change is the 21st century equivalent of not believing the earth is round. The issue is now so big it’s easy to feel helpless. “What can we do?” Well, nothing more really than recognise we can all play our small parts. For us at NDA Packaging that means spreading the word that using our refillable water bottles with tap water is an infinitely better solution than buying disposable bottled water.
Let’s give this some perspective. For hydration and good health reasons, water has become the beverage of choice (memo: Sugar tax, another blog topic). In 1980 Britain consumed 60 million litres of bottled water per annum. How many remember the glass Perrier bottles and the general bemusement at their introduction? After all, drinking bottled water was something we did on holidays abroad, mainly because the quality of their tap water was not as reliable as ours in the UK.
Three decades later, aided by ingeniously slick marketing, annual UK bottled water consumption is now approaching 3 BILLION litres. In simple terms the market is 5,000 times bigger than it was in 1980, with bottled water retailing at up to 500 times more than the cost of UK tap water, which still remains amongst the highest quality in the world.
Are we mad?!
In emission terms, if you were seeking a low carbon solution for drinking water sustainability, you couldn’t develop one with less embodied energy than by firstly piping it directly to our homes and buildings and secondly retaining and reusing the vessel you were consuming it with.
Instead, in 2016 the majority of bottled water is now sold in single use PET (polyethylene terephthalate) bottles, designed for immediate disposability. Ignoring the litter and landfill implications (although an annual landfill the equivalent of 2 new Wembley stadiums shouldn’t be ignored) 162g of oil and seven litres of water are required to manufacture a 1 litre disposable PET water bottle. Which releases the equivalent of 100g of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere. Some research has claimed that drinking one litre of bottled water has the same impact on your environment as driving your car for one kilometre.
So the next time you buy one of our reusable bottles and refill it (again and again and again) with tap water, it’s not just your budget you are helping protect, it’s your planet. The one you assume you’ve inherited from your forefathers, when in truth you are borrowing it from your children.
