The increasingly pervasive use use of plastic water bottles at our school has become the norm. The very idea of plastic water bottles baffles me especially in a place such as Mequon. Tap water is available for our entire school body through new water refilling stations, and yet, we find our recycling and trash bins filled with plastic bottles.

This is most evident in our lunchroom where there stands one recycling bin directly next to two trash bins. All it takes is a toss into the blue bin and yet every day I see plastic water bottles filling the wrong bins. Students do not think twice about purchasing a plastic water bottle. This ignorance and the corresponding acceptance of it at our school is unacceptable.

It is not economically or environmentally practical to drink plastic water bottles. It is astounding to me that we all have tap water running in our houses and in our school, and yet, plastic bottles are everywhere. The bottles cost $1 – $2 while a reusable, durable water bottle can be fewer than $10. The price of a reusable bottle would quickly prove more thrifty.

Students at Homestead often complain about the distasteful water that runs in our bubblers and water filling stations. I’d say it is the predominant reason for the popularity of plastic water bottles. However, this is a convenient excuse as well. The real issue lies in the indifference to the use of plastic bottles and the acceptance of it at our school. We need more public sentiment against plastic use at our school because it really is impractical.

The possibly reassuring fact is that the solution to this problem can be easy and simple. Bring a water bottle to school. Then if you run out, fill it up at the new water filling stations or bubblers around the school. By thinking to yourself to bring a water bottle to school every morning, you can eliminate your contribution to the plastic waste and have an overall environmental impact.