First of all, let’s just talk about what an awesome time we had at the D2E green living festival this weekend. Oh, wow. It was awesome. We met so many green business owners, so many folks trying to live a little more sustainably, so many adorable, cloth diaper-wearing babies. We also met a bunch of you, dear readers! And we want to thank you for your words of encouragement, your high-fives, and your interest in what we’re trying to do to help this little city live a little greener! You are the earthworms in our compost, the breezes on our wind farm, the responsible politician voting in favor of our green legislation (basically, you’re helping us make it happen). We love you. A lot.
And on that note, we bring you: Green Challenge #2! Hooray!
Let's review what these Green Challenges are all about. Once a month, we’ll present you with a small, simple change you can make in your life to help you decrease your impact on the world around you. We’ll provide you with the tools and information you need to make the change easy, and we’ll even give you a little extra incentive in the form of a prize to recognize your efforts. The more people we get to participate, the more these small changes will add up to make a big difference. Why wouldn’t you want to join us?
This month, we’re focusing on something super basic: water. We all need it, we all love it, we all want to keep it clean for future generations. Funnily enough, one of the primary ways in which us city dwellers access water is helping to pollute the very thing we love so much. That’s right, folks. We’re talking about bottled water. We know a lot of you are already aware of the ickiness associated with purchasing bottled water, but there are still those of us who find our typically obsessively responsible selves out every so often, parched and desperate, caving to the quenching power of Poland Springs or Evian or Pellegrino or whoever. It happens, and that’s OK! But it’d be better if it didn’t happen at all, right? Enter the Green Challenge du jour (ou mois).
This April, as we move into summer and the season of thirst, we challenge you to rid your life of bottled water. Completely. Forever. Why? Here are some freaky facts from our friends (ah, alliteration) over at TreeHugger.com:
Around 1.5 million barrels (barrels, folks) of oil are used in the production of disposable plastic water bottles every
year. That’s enough to run 100,000 cars for a whole year. Not to mention all the oil used up in shipping these suckers
all over the country.
An increase in water extraction near bottling facilities has lead to shortages for nearby residents and farmers.
For every gallon of water bottled, two more are wasted in the purification process.
90% of plastic bottles used for bottled water ends up in landfills, where it takes thousands of years to decompose.
Bottled water can cost 10,000 more per gallon than the free-flowing tap kind.
Here’s the worst part about all of this: Even though bottled water companies go to absurd lengths to convince us their water is cleaner than the stuff we get in our own houses (for free), municipal water is actually held to higher standards than the bottled stuff. So basically, when we purchase bottled water, we’re paying to pollute our community and put questionable junk in our bodies. Gross.
But wait, there’s a solution! And it’s super simple. You’ve already got the stuff readily available in your house. Just… drink that. Nervous about what’s in it? There are a few things you can do: First, check out the water quality in your area at the EPA’s website, here. Got clean municipal water but old, questionably safe pipes? Get yourself a home filtration system (help finding the best one for you here). Need to take your water with you? Get yourself some reusable, BPA-free water bottles. (BPA is an organic compound found in plastics that’s been linked to some pretty unfortunate side effects.) Put them everywhere; keep one at work, one in your car (or messenger bag), one at your partner’s house, a small one in your purse (ladies/metrosexual dudes). This all seems pretty obvious, huh? It is. But we know that even the most ecologically diligent of you has found yourself at 7-11, thirsty and hanging your head in shame, at one point or another. Don’t let it happen again!
Need to hook yourself up with a filtration system? How about a slew of BPA-free bottles to stash around your life? Get them at these independently owned businesses, and support your local economy while you save the planet:
Boston:
Water bottles:
1048 Commonwealth Ave, Boston
(617) 277-5858
272 Friend St., Boston
(617) 227-9242
Water purifiers:
54 Charles St., Suite A, Boston
(617) 367-9046
Cambridge:
Water bottles:
1764 Massachusetts Ave, Cambridge
(617) 395-1338
Water purifiers:
1337 Cambridge St., Cambridge
(617) 491-3405
Porter Square Shopping Center
29 White St., Cambridge
(617) 868-7711
Bam! Easy peasy. Now for the incentive: Enter the Green Challenge by either tweeting about it (@gogreenologist), emailing us about it, commenting here, or otherwise letting us know you're on board. We'll randomly select a winner at the end of the month, and that person will receive either free ad space on our site for their local business (or the local business of their choice) for one month, OR a guest-blogging gig RIGHT HERE! Woo hoo!
Ready to go? Questions? Comments? Concerns? Get in touch!
P.S. Did we miss any independently owned shops where you can buy the aforementioned items? Let us know!
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