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 OBESITY ON THE RISE:

Almost 1.5 billion litres of bottles were produced for Canadians in 2003.  Only 55% to 60% of the plastic bottles were recycled.  About 40% ended up directly in the garbage.

Jay Stanford and the City of London are taking a stand:

As Director of Environmental Programs and Solid Waste for the City of London, Jay Stanford is helping to set the precedent.  Canada is home to some of the best drinking systems in the world, yet extensive amounts of fossil fuels are consumed daily in order to package, manufacture, and ship single-use water bottles - millions of which - end up in the trash.  The most common claim amongst single-use water bottle users is that the bottles are portable, easy to grab on-the-go, and a healthy choice; what is healthy about polluting our landfills with plastic waste?  The City of London has taken a major stand by banning the sale and availability of bottled water at municipal facilities and other public locations and now has municipalities and school boards from across the country following 'The London Example'.

UMM:  When did the City of London ban the sale of plastic water bottles?

Jay Stanford: Since September 1, 2008, bottled water has not been sold or made available at London City Hall as well as two other major administrative centres.  Other locations will be phased in over a period of time provided that visitors have easy access to municipal drinking water.

UMM:  What prompted the city to take action?

Jay: It did not make sense for the city to have bottled water for sale where drinking water is easily available.  It sends the wrong message.  London drinking water is more cost effective, it costs about 1/8th of a cent for a litre of water.  Bottled water in London may range from $0.30 to $4.00 per litre.  Based on the above range, bottled water is 230 to 3,000 times more expensive than water from the tap in London.  Just because the cost is low does not mean that it is not a product of high value.

UMM: What are the environmental goals surrounding the water ban?

Jay: Drinking tap water has a much lower environmental impact than bottled water.  Using averages for consumption and transportation costs to the nearest bottling locations, all activities associated with producing, and filling, it is estimated that transporting and drinking bottled water would release between 250 and 350 times more greenhouse gases than municipal drinking water.

Municipal drinking water does not generally create an empty container that needs to be recycled.  Recycling is good for the environment but it is important to recognize that if you do not have the container in the first place, you do not have to pay to have it recycled or the environmental impacts of recycling.  Yes, good things like recycling still cause an environmental impact.

UMM: How does the quality of the municipal tap water compare with that of the average single-use water bottle?

Jay: A glass of London drinking water is tested and safeguarded to a much more rigid standard than bottled water bought in stores or vending machines.  More than 130 organic and inorganic parameters are routinely tested to safeguard the quality of London’s municipal drinking water system.  

UMM: How can others make a difference and urge their communities to take action?
 
Jay:  For many large Canadian municipalities, establishing council policies for bottled water should be seen as a high priority especially if they value the quality of their drinking water like the City of London does. 

Make a stand.  Drink from fountains, use reusable water bottles, and contact your local municipality to have your voice heard.