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Thinking outside the water bottle

By Lyndel Owens '10
October 22, 2007

St. Olaf student environmentalist Pete Williams '08, representing the student-led Peace and Justice Network, spoke at an internationally covered press conference held Oct. 10 in Minneapolis and sponsored by the watchdog organization Corporate Accountability International (CAI). The group gathered to promote its fast-growing initiative, "Think Outside the Bottle," that aims to curb the commoditization of water and channel more public funds toward public water systems.

Supporters of "Think Outside the Bottle" (TOTB) assert a preference for consuming public tap water over bottled water and support local efforts to strengthen public water systems. TOTB currently has acquired nearly 10,000 signatures of its goal of 25,000 goal. Signers include Minneapolis Mayor R.T. Ryback, who has discontinued purchasing bottled water with public money. Mayors of Salt Lake City and Boston have followed suit in recognition of the $22 billion dollar funding gap for public water systems nationwide, an amount that could be reduced if public money spent that is currently spent on bottled water were redirected.

TOTB members are committed to promoting the maintenance of public water systems and protesting the increasing corporate control of water. According to CAI, up to 40 percent of bottled water is from a public source, meaning there is no difference between infinitely cheaper tap water and bottled. Additionally, the United Nations has estimated that by 2025 two-thirds of the world's population will lack access to water, a concern amplified by the privatization of some sources by water bottle companies.

Former St. Olaf student naturalist Amber Collett '07, who is currently working with CAI, hopes to have 2,500 signatures from the Twin Cities metropolitan area by early December. "Minneapolis is a leading city in the Midwest on environmental and social justice initiatives," says Collett, "so it is important for the city to take a stand to protect its public water." Oftentimes, she adds, public water is cleaner than bottled water because the public processing facility has more health standards in place.

The St. Olaf Peace and Justice Network will coordinate on-campus efforts in November to boost participation in the TOTB effort. "We're challenging the notion that H2O is a commodity," says Williams. "It's a human right that every person on earth should have access to water."

Squeezed dry
According to TOTB:
-The bottled water industry is a $100 billion global market.
-Up to 40 percent of bottled water comes from the same source as tap water, but is sold back to consumers at hundreds of times the cost.
-American consumers currently spend $15 billion a year on bottled water. At the same time, there is a $22 billion funding gap between what cities need to spend on water infrastructure and what money is available.
-17 million barrels of oil were used last year to produce plastic water bottles. That is enough fuel for more than 1 million U.S. cars for a year, and it generated more than 2.5 million tons of carbon dioxide.
-In 2006, at least four billion pounds of plastic bottles ended up in city waste streams. It can cost cities more than $70 million in dumping and incineration fees alone.
-The United Nations warns that by 2025, two-thirds of the world's population of more than five billion people will lack access to potable water.

Contact Carole Leigh Engblom at 507-786-3271 or leigh@stolaf.edu.