Opinion
Grand Canyon bottled water ban misses the point
From the beginning of March, bottled water sales will be prohibited in Grand Canyon National Park – but retailers at the park can sell carbonated soft drinks and juice in plastic bottles and visitors can still bring them.
Why are there no recycling facilities next to the water stations when CSDs are still bought in the park?
The park claims that the waste associated with disposable bottles comprises an estimated 20% of the park’s overall waste stream and 30% of the park’s recyclables. But it seems to think that this is all bottled water, while ignoring other packaged drinks. It has installed ten free water stations throughout the park to allow visitors to fill reusable water bottles.
Providing free water through water stations is a great idea and consumers should have the choice as to how they achieve hydration.
But limiting consumer choice around bottled water on environmental grounds while still allowing the carrying and sale of other drinks is hardly the solution to the park’s environmental concerns.
Consumers will arrive with their family-sized pack of cola, or buy plastic-packaged drinks in the park. They’ll set off to enjoy the spectacle. They’ll become thirsty. They’ll drink the cola. Then they’ll need more hydration as they travel through the breathtaking landscape, so they’ll refill the bottle with water from a water station. Then, when they’ve drunk the water – if they’re the same careless, irresponsible tourist that used to discard the empty water bottles – they’ll ditch the empty cola bottle in the landscape.
This ban misses the point about consumer behaviour. What is really needed is consumer education – and even legislation – on recycling and responsible environmental behaviour. Why are there no recycling facilities next to the water stations when CSDs are still bought in the park? Bottled water is not the problem.
About the author
Bill Bruce is group editorial director of FoodBev Media
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Your comments (1)
Webbie61 said on 20 Feb:
I think this article misses the point.
Consumer behaviour is changed by education (not so keen on legislation Bruce, smacks of nanny state). What better way to educate and inform than articles like this with a world-famous beauty spot taking the plunge (sorry!) and banning water wrapped in plastic. 90% of the environmental damage caused by bottled water occurs before it is even opened, so recycling is somewhat irrelevant. Even adding recycling bins doesn’t solve the problem of people throwing their rubbish on the ground — they’ll still do it!
Yes, carbonated fizzy drink bottles are also still a problem, but bottled water has an easy and readily available alternative, Coke etc doesn’t. Half of all bottled waters are filtered tap water anyhow, so providing water filling stations is a fantastic, sustainable step. And thanks FoodBev.com for publicising it. Keep up the good work.
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