City of London to Ban Sale of Bottled Water on City Premises
London Municipal Council recently voted in favour of a ban which sets the fate of bottled water at city facilities such as city-owned buildings, arenas and community centres.
Municipal officials, which stressed that tap water costs about an eighth of a cent per litre while bottled water can range anywhere from 30 cents to $4 a bottle, voted 15-3 in favour of the ban. While local environmentalists have said they are concerned by the amount of energy it takes to transport the bottles, as well as the waste produced by them, particularly when most areas of Canada have safe water supplies.
London, which will phase in the ban over the next several months only at buildings with water fountains, is one of the first cities in Canada to ban bottled water. Other cities in Ontario considering restricting the sale of bottled water on school premises include ICLEI Member cities Kitchener, Ottawa and Toronto. Outside of Ontario, Nelson, BC recently banned water bottles in city-owned buildings and Vancouver has also started looking into how to implement a bottled water ban at its city-owned facilities.
In Canada, bottled water consumption was estimated at 24.4 litres per person in 1999 growing to about 60 litres per personbBy 2005, with sales worth $652.7 million. The waste that these plastic water bottles creates is one of the primary drivers for a ban in several communities; in Toronto for example, consumers toss an estimated 100 million plastic bottles a year (with 35% of these not being captured by the recycling stream), Toronto is also considering a ban.
To learn more about the ban in London, or to find more information on the City's environmental initiatives visit their website.
Municipal officials, which stressed that tap water costs about an eighth of a cent per litre while bottled water can range anywhere from 30 cents to $4 a bottle, voted 15-3 in favour of the ban. While local environmentalists have said they are concerned by the amount of energy it takes to transport the bottles, as well as the waste produced by them, particularly when most areas of Canada have safe water supplies.
London, which will phase in the ban over the next several months only at buildings with water fountains, is one of the first cities in Canada to ban bottled water. Other cities in Ontario considering restricting the sale of bottled water on school premises include ICLEI Member cities Kitchener, Ottawa and Toronto. Outside of Ontario, Nelson, BC recently banned water bottles in city-owned buildings and Vancouver has also started looking into how to implement a bottled water ban at its city-owned facilities.
In Canada, bottled water consumption was estimated at 24.4 litres per person in 1999 growing to about 60 litres per personbBy 2005, with sales worth $652.7 million. The waste that these plastic water bottles creates is one of the primary drivers for a ban in several communities; in Toronto for example, consumers toss an estimated 100 million plastic bottles a year (with 35% of these not being captured by the recycling stream), Toronto is also considering a ban.
To learn more about the ban in London, or to find more information on the City's environmental initiatives visit their website.
