Biodegradable Biota Bottles Available in South Florida's Publix
by Kyeann Sayer, Nomad on 01.31.06
We've mentioned Colorado's Biota Bottled Spring water here and here. Today the company's corn-based biodegradable bottles will become available in the South Florida supermarket chain Publix. As local affiliate NBC 6 reported:
Dr. Renata Schneider, of the Wildlife Care Center, said she is excited about the new bottle because she sees animals every day that are sick because they have either eaten or been trapped by litter."A lot of these animals just don't make it into us. They end up dying before we ever get a chance to try to save them," said Schneider. "When Publix decides to go with a more environmentally friendly line of product, other people will follow suit to be competitive."
That's a story that makes turning on the local news worth it. :: NBC6 and Biota via tipster Diana
Kudos to Biota for developing a product that is not only biodegradable but encourages people to drink more water. Unfortunately, some if not most people can't seem to drink water without it being bottled. I'm not talking about those who are out-n-about and are in need of some liquid refreshment but rather those who buy bottled water in bulk, like it's going out of style (insert Madonna and her "Kabbalah water"). Why not simple purchase a Nalgene or equivalent and fill it with good o'l tap water. Is it because there's a good chance that bottled water reminds consumers of the sparkling spring they once drank from? But, let's not mention the bear that pissed in the creek up stream just before it was capped. Or, could it be the natural sparkling spring water taste that some company is simply filtering from tap water flowing through their company water pipes? Either way, it's money well spent.
The "Pur" line of tap water filters has worked well for me. I keep refilling the old bottles and family members can't tell the difference. For those who like their's fizzy, don't over look SodaClub, which TreeHugger has posted on previously.
Unfortunately, for those of us who live in cities with incredibly polluted water (I'm in Los Angeles, which was just voted the worst drinking water in the entire U.S.), there aren't many alternatives. Drinking tap water here is a health hazard. While I've tried a lot of different filters, nothing seems to get rid of the chlorine. And none of those filters can get rid of the fluoride, which has been linked to thyroid disease, among other things. Maybe the real environmental campaign we should be waging is to get the fluoride and chlorine out of our water; then less bottled-water consumption would follow.
I'm new, I haven't left a comment here before, and I have a vested interest (I work for the company I'm about to mention). That said...
Despite all the AquaScams going on in bottled water, there are indeed some good things being done. For those who prefer (or need) a very pure spring water in glass, please investigate Mountain Valley Spring Water. The company is 135 years old (and still independent), the water goes through a 3500-year cycle, and the sole spring source is surrounded by over 600 acres of company-owned forest land. A full third-party water analysis is always available on the website.
The real difference comes for those with chemical sensitivities who truly need the purest water available. As an example, the Environmental Health Center in Dallas (founded and run by Dr. William Rea) has tested the efficacy of waters over the past 30 years and only uses Mountain Valley in glass for treating its thousands of patients. In such cases, even high-quality filtration won't do.
Thanks for the brief soapbox. Congratulations as well for making some distinctions among bottled waters. It pains me to see how so many well-intentioned people tend to lump all bottled waters together.
It's pretty fancy the use of biodegradable bottles, because if there is no easygoing reclycing options you can accumulate those on the soil and just wait some months to dissapair the bottles without a high environment impact. Let´s stop global warming and let's build a better future to our children.