Take That Extra Step and Eliminate Bottled Water

The other day when I was walking out of my gym, a fellow member was walking about 10 feet in front of me. Suddenly, she stopped, took a final gulp of water from her PLASTIC water bottle and threw it in the trash can or, as I like to call it, the LAND FILL BIN.

I was shocked. I almost said something, but I was afraid if I did, I would sound angry, so I kept silent, stopped, and let her walk ahead of me. I then picked the bottle out of the can and walked the mere 35 feet back to the recycling bin she had passed on her way out of the gym.

ARE WE REALLY THAT LAZY?

Too many times I've seen recyclables placed in the land fill bin when a recycle bin is a mere 50 feet away. Are we that lazy? Why don't facilities set up waste centers where you can dispose of all your waste at the same time: compost, recycling of all kinds and finally, the smallest container should be the land fill bin because that should be our absolutely last option when disposing of waste.

But back to plastic bottles. Here are some scary statistics:

• 1.5 MILLION barrels of oil are used each year to make plastic water bottles in the U.S.
  
  
• EVERY SINGLE DAY, 40 MILLION plastic bottles go into landfills
  
  
• Americans place 22 BILLION empty water bottles in the land fill EACH YEAR

You might say, "But I always recycle my bottle!" Clearly, you neighbor and his neighbor and the neighbor down the street DON'T! Furthermore, the last time I checked, oil was a scarce resource, so we really don't need to be using it up to make bottles for water! Finally, it takes 50 to 80 years for plastic containers to decompose. So that plastic bottle that you placed in the landfill today will still be around when you baby girl is a grandmother.

Why are we so hooked on bottled water? I'm glad we are drinking more water because it is good for our health; however, according to a UCLA study, tap water in the United States is at least as safe as, if not more than, bottled water. Furthermore, 25-40% of all bottled water in the U.S., including some major brands, is made from tap water. And since we are all hurting in the money department these days, did you know that you can drink 40,000 8-ounce glasses of tap water for the price of 3 $1.50 bottles of spring water???

So what are the alternatives?

I've been drinking from a Sigg water bottle for years. It's aluminum and fashionable and I don't travel anywhere without it. Really. It's like an appendage to me.

Klean Kanteen is another safe option.

When it comes to your special events, served filtered water in pitchers, or just use those large water dispenses like we keep in our offices. Many hotels and conference centers include these in their meeting rooms now. Finally, if you want something a bit more fashionable, use the Giraffe Beverage Tower.

Environmentally Friendly Hotels

I've been doing a lot of traveling and staying at hotels lately. When I wrote my last blog entry, I had just returned from the ISES (International Special Events Society) Northeast Regional Education Conference in Providence, Rhode Island where I was a speaker. My topic was Green Events: A Standard, Not a Trend. I'm just trying to do my part about spreading the gospel of green and received lots of positive feedback. The movement is picking up momentum! Halleluiah! Praise the Lord!

Since then, I've traveled to Silver Thorne, Colorado, Dover, Delaware and New Orleans, Louisiana and I've experienced how different hotels are either diving in or merely dipping their toes into the green movement. Two properties featured compact florescent light bulbs (CFLs) in their sleeping rooms, but one – a nice hotel -- had plastic cups instead of glass. Talk about a contradiction!

One of the properties was where I was producing a conference. It had a re-use your bed linen and towel program. Unfortunately, the housekeeping staff didn't seem to be towing the party line. For bed linens, I had to place a sign on my bed if I DIDN'T want my sheets changed. Wouldn't the more eco friendly alternative be to place the sign if I DID want my sheets changed? I surely don't need new sheets each day and since I'm usually in a hurry, remembering to place the sign on my bed to prevent the house keeping staff from removing my sheets can be a lot to ask! At home, I wash my sheets weekly (and on some occasions, less frequently depending on how chaotic my life is!).

The game plan for towels was that IF you wanted to reuse your towel, you should hang it on the rack. Others left in a heap on the floor would be changed. I dutifully hung up my towels, but they still took them away. The next day, I left a note indicating that I wanted to participate in the re-use your towel program. The morning housekeeper honored this request, but the staffer who handled the turn down service later that night didn't get the memo and took my towel away. I mentioned this to the sales director and she promised to speak with the house keeping staff.

From now on, I'm making a pledge to only stay at eco friendly hotels. And if I'm forced to stay at a semi-green or non-green hotel, I'll write a letter encouraging them to hop on the green band wagon.

Green Tip:
Environmentally Friendly Hotels

To locate an environmentally friendly hotel, go to www.environmentallyfriendlyhotels.com or www.greenhotels.com.