Plastic Bottles

Case Study: Bundanoon, NSW
In 2009, Bundanoon's residents and business owners voted to have their town ban the selling of plastic bottles by local retail businesses. The verdict was almost unanimous with the votes with only one vote against the proposal.

The ban came into effect in September of last year so retailers had a chance to sell the remaining bottles of water.

Now instead of residents and tourists having to buy bottled water when they go out they have access to specialised water bubblers incorporating a filter system as well.
http://www.gotap.com.au/

Why plastic bottled water is so harmful:

• Financial costs: In 2009 Australians were estimated to have spent half a billion dollars on plastic bottled water. Often a litre of water is more costly than a litre of petrol.
• Once a plastic bottle is thrown out, they are a major source of pollution, ending up in storm water drains and are carried out to sea. They also make up a vast amount of landfill and serve as litter in the streets.
• Not only does the disposal of plastic bottled water contribute to pollution, but the very production, transportation and maintaining of the water bottles (keeping cool) consume massive amounts of energy.   
• If you were to drive a car for a kilometre, the same amount of energy is consumed as a single plastic bottle of water
• A mere 36% of  PET bottles are recycled in Australia as a whole
• Every year, Australia generates a huge 60 000 tons of greenhouse gas emissions-attributed to plastic bottles alone