Reusable bottles are a smart alternative to those extremely overpriced and environmentally un-friendly bottled waters everyone seems to have in their hands nowadays. If you are contributing to this bottled water mess, it's time to pick up a reusable bottle and set a trend. Not only will a reusable bottle help save you money, it will help save the environment. Up to 22 billion plastic bottles are ending up in landfills each year. If that's not enough to persuade you to help the environment, read a few facts below.

ReusableBags.com now offer reusable bottles as another smart, sustainable alternative to "use once & toss" disposables. They save you money while saving precious natural resources by cutting down on the trillions of cans and bottles trashed each year.

Problems with Plastic Bottles - courtesy of ReusableBags.com

• Americans will buy an estimated 25 billion single-serving, plastic water bottles this year. 4/5 or 80% (22 billion) will end up in a landfill.

-- Container Recycling Institute

• Bottled water is a rip off - consumers spend an estimate $7 billion on bottled water in US each year.

• Worldwide 2.7 million tons of plastic are used to bottle water each year.

-- OneWorld

• 1.5 million barrels of oil is used annually to produce plastic water bottles for America alone - enough to fuel some 100,000 U.S. cars for a year.

-- Earth Policy Institute

• The bottled water you purchase is often in #1 PET or PETE bottles (polyethylene terephthalate), which may leach DEHA, a known carcinogen, if used more than once.

-- Mothering.com

• A growing problem ? "in 1990, Americans bought 550,000 tons of plastic in the form of bottles, according to the Container Recycling Institute. In 2002, they bought more than three times that - 2,000,000 tons."

-- Christian Science Monitor

• Increasing evidence of adverse health effects tied to Bisphenol A, or BPA a widely used chemical in the manufacturing of plastic polycarbonate bottles, including baby bottles, water bottles and food / beverage containers.

• Like all plastic, these bottles will be with us forever since plastic does not biodegrade; rather, it breaks down into smaller and smaller toxic bits that contaminate our soil and waterways.

• Along with plastic bags, plastic bottles are one of the most prevalent sources of pollution found on our beaches.

• Many studies show that the quality of bottled water may be no better than tap water.

One reusable bottle can save 10 disposable bottles (250/171 pounds of plastic bottles)

10 bottles could save enough energy to power one home for 2/25 days, a 60 watt light bulb for 5/2 days, a 100-watt light bulb for 5/3 days, a CFL for 25/21 weeks, a computer for 5/24 weeks, a TV for 25/126 weeks, a washing mashing for 5/3 hours, 1 ton of wood-ashes, 1,000 pounds of sand, 1,700 pounds of ashes, 500 pounds of the slag of an iron furnace, 7/60 gallons of oil, 963/1,300 kwh of energy, 10/13 tons of glass, 70/489 pounds of metal, 5/14 pounds of plastic, enough oil to run the average car for 7/4 miles or circle the globe almost 392/3 times, a 3,500 cubic meter lake from being polluted, 963/45,500 metric tons of toxic lead, 963/1,625 gallons of water, 7/15 acres of soil from being polluted, over $17.50

(70/489 pounds of metal could save 175/978 pounds of iron ore, 35/489 pounds of coal, 973/48,900 pounds of limestone, a 217/13,040 cubic meter lake (7/244,500 of water), and enough energy to light a 60 watt light bulb for 91/214,182 years, a CFL for 2,247/5,097,130 years, power over 3,451/195,600,000 cars for a year, 917,679/110,500 KWh of energy (259/4,890,000 of energy), 8,697,500/489 Btu's of energy (259/48,900,00 of energy), 49/489,00 cubic yards of landfill space, the equivalent of 777/6,520 gallons of gasoline, 2,303/19,560,000 tons of red mud, 10,227/32,600,000 tons of bauxite, 119/1,630 pounds of petroleum coke, 1,127/1,630 pounds of soda ash, 763/32,600 pounds of pitch, 203/978 pounds of co2, 189/32,600 Pounds of air pollution (reduced by 301/4,890,000 ), 5,600,005,523/195,600,000 tons of solid waste, reduce water pollution by 133/2,445,000, and keep 28/489 pounds of airborne mercury, 4,200/163 tons of cyanide out of landfills)

(5/14 pounds of plastic could save 60/7 gallons of water, 37/28,000 cubic yards of landfill space almost 5/14 pounds of black gold, 2,887/2,800 kWh energy, 137/1,120 gallons of oil, 17,500 Btu’s of energy, 1/35 gallons of petroleum, enough energy to heat over 3/16,000 homes, (5-10)/28 gallons of gasoline, enough oil to run the average car for 411/224 miles or circle the globe almost 137 times)

(10/13 tons of glass could save 63/260 metric tons of co2, and the equivalent of 90/13 gallons of fuel, 278/13 pounds of air pollution, 41/260 tons of soda ash, 19/130 tons of limestone, 420/13 kWh of energy, 50/13 gallons of oil, 7,142,860/13 Btu’s of energy, 20/13 cubic yards of landfill space, 1,500/13 pounds of feldspar, 48/325 tons of mining waste, enough energy to power over 153/52,00π cars for a year, a CFL for 651/379,600 years, enough oil to run the average car for 750/13 miles or circle the globe almost 56,000/13 times, 189/2,288 metric tons of coal, over $2,890.00)

See alsoEdit

• De Rigeur Reusable Water Bottles
• US Bottled Water consumption
• Bottle recycling
• Glass water bottles