byo h2o

Summer's almost here! And we've got your checklist for fun.

Sunscreen? Check.

Trashy novel? Check.

Plastic water bottle? No WAY!

Seriously. Plastic water bottles aren't just bad for the environment, they can do serious damage to your wallet. (BTW, we're talking about your run-of-the-mill plastic water bottles, not those cute recycled, reusable bottles made from bisphenol-A-free plastic.)

Check this out:

The average American spends about $400 a year on bottled water. That's a whole lotta lattes. (Poured into recycled cups, of course.)

At an average of $1.50 per bottle, bottled water costs about 1,900 times more than tap water. (Not as glamorous, but just as yummy.)

$1 billion is spent on bottled water every year.

1,500 water bottles end up as garbage every SECOND.

The world consumes 28 billion bottles of water every year.

86% of plastic water bottles end up as garbage.

2.5 million tons of carbon dioxide are produced and 17 million barrels of oil are used in the production of plastic water bottles.

Bisphenol-A (aka BPA), a harmful plastic found in many water bottles, can leach into the water and then into your body!

OK, so you get the point. That innocent-looking little bottle of water is actually a GLOBAL pain!

What can you do?

Get a reusable bottle made from recycled, bisphenol-A-free plastic or metal or something we haven't thought of yet, and fill it up with filtered tap water. Check with your city or town to see how safe your tap water is and, hey, maybe you don't even need the filter.

Now, about that trashy novel ... .

Got any summer eco tips you want to pass along? Share them in the comments!

Photo courtesy of Retna. (photographer: William Sweet / Retna UK)