Water bottle manifesto

Among my friends I have become known as the water bottle lady.

It’s nothing I take offense at. Actually, I’m always a little surprised when people even notice that I take a reusable bottle with me everywhere I go. It has always seemed like the reasonable thing to do after all. Why bother going through countless plastic bottles just to get something I can get for free from the tap?

The great thing about a reusable water bottle is that it can be used for pretty much anything. So instead of lugging a fifth of liquor and some chaser with me across town, I just fill up a Nalgene and I’m on my way. It cuts down on waste, and it can be easily tucked away in my purse.

So I can’t understand why I’m such a spectacle when I arrive to a friend’s house with a reusable bottle to drink from.

I’m surrounded by people drinking out of plastic, and it’s usually some leftover water or soda bottle from earlier in the day.

When they see my Nalgene they always say, “What a great idea,” but upon a subsequent return no one ever has given up their plastic bottle for something reusable.

And really, I can never understand why not. Reusable water bottles are cheap and not too terribly difficult to keep track of. They help save the environment too because when you are drunk there is a very slim chance that you’re going to toss that plastic bottle into a recycling bin.

What’s more likely is that the plastic bottle will be left on a porch or rolling on the street somewhere.

The simple truth is most things do not get recycled.

Out of 5.1 billion pounds of polyethylene terephthalate bottles, only 2.456 billion pounds are deposited in the proper bin.  

I say that as college students we should be exercising at least some judgment when we drink. The least we can do is cut down on the waste we produce as we drown our livers with liquor. And think about it — it’s really not asking that much.

The next time you are at the supermarket or in the grocery store, pick up a Nalgene or a metal water bottle and use that to carry your intoxicating concoction with you this weekend.

Give it a try.

You might be surprised by just how much money you save and trash you avoid.

­— danfleis@indiana.edu