Aqua2Go. To the Nearest Landfill.
by Lloyd Alter, Toronto on 07.11.07
ARRGH!!! Just when we think the message is getting through about bottled water, now we have the pure convenience of aseptic packaging! For water! Tetrapak aseptic packaging was designed for liquids like milk or juices that qo bad quickly; they are made of layers of polyethylene and aluminum foil and virgin pulp (the so-called renewable resource.) They are recyclable by pulping and separating, using lots of hot water and producing low grade downcycled material; it is rarely done in North America. Yet Aqua2go calls it sustainable packaging: "Sustainability satisfies the environmental, societal and economic needs of today without compromising those of future generations. Unlike cans or bottles, the Tetra Brik™ Aseptic package is among the most sustainable packages on the market today. 70-85% of the cartons are made from wood -- a renewable resource."
And it is being sold to Whole Foods and other organic food stores by Tree of Life, an organic distributor, all of who should know better. Tap water, put through a reverse osmosis purifier, and expensively overpackaged. But it is pure convenience! ::Aqua2go via ::Sustainable is Good and ::Hugg
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Whole Foods should know better. Being a customer and shareholder this is pretty disappointing...at least with glass or plastic it has the chance of being recycled (errr downcycled). This packaging is 100% landfill. Ridiculous
That's rather ridiculous.
All I can think to say is "Why?! Why!?!?1?!"
I doubt anyone is going to buy it...
according to the package, it holds...210mL?!
notwithstanding the fact that bottled water is bad for the environment, the fact that it contains so little water will dissuade people from buying it in the first place...i think the general public will prefer bottled water to this...
-sigh- either way, tap water is the way to go.
Lloyd....If packaged water is going to be used for purposes such as emergency preparedness when tap water is not available, wouldnt the water boxes be a better choice given less oil is used in the manufacturing of the packaging?
Bottled water is not going to go away overnight. At least in the production phase of its life, this packaging is better than the traditional plastic used by other brands. Also the water is not being shipped half way around the world. You are not going to get the American consumer to take giant leaps. It all starts with small steps.
Lloyd, it is just like with cars: either we remain to drive a Hummer or we start switching to hybrid cars. It is the same with packaging: carton is not perfect but at least we significanlty use less infinte raw materials (oil!). When it comes to aseptic technology: all specialists agree that this is really a breakthrough technology that in the future will help us avoiding spoiling tonnes of energy for keeping our milk chilled all the way from the cow to our fridge. Imagine what that would mean for the environment...
Ok, get a CLUE! First off ON THEIR WEBSITE they have a direction for recylcling and USE recylced materials.....NOW, how about the health of our children. You are all about a cleaner environment for our future kids---as are they! WATER is a VERY HEALTHY alternative then JUICE for little kids. It is a great product and every mom I know agree's. If it was so useless, why then it is so popular!