When you learn to read, you begin with ”A, B, C.” When you learn to lead a greener life, you begin with ”Reduce, Reuse, Recycle,” the three ”R’s” of the School of Sustainability.

At last week’s Green Tuesday event at the Monona Public Library, people gathered to watch the film Escape from Affluenza, learning how to declare independence from rampant materialism. With emphasis on the first ”R,” the film showed people reducing waste and consumption, while becoming happier in the process.

After watching Escape from Affluenza, Robin Schmidt of Monona said, ”It doesn’t feel like we’re really big consumers,” but she realized much of her family’s recycling cart fills with food packaging. The desire for the convenience of pre-packaged and processed foods fuels our wastefulness.

The most ubiquitous food package today is the plastic water bottle. It has become a pollution problem worldwide. Yet easy solutions begin with something Robin put so well, ”I want to reassess what’s going in the recycling bin.” Let’s toast Robin for her efforts, but not with bottled water. Here’s why:

  • In 2006, the average American drank about 167 bottles of water, but only recycled 23%. With about 50 billion bottles of water consumed, 38 billion bottles accumulated in our landfills — in one year! Bottles are also filling our oceans and landing on our beaches and riverbanks, and they don’t biodegrade.
  • The manufacturing of bottled water uses over 1.5 million barrels of oil annually — 100,000 cars-worth.
  • More than one-quarter of bottled water comes from municipal tap water.
  • Water from U.S. municipal water systems must meet more stringent and frequently-monitored health standards than bottled water.
  • Bottled water costs upwards of 1,000 times more than tap water. Ninety percent of the cost is the bottle, lid, and label.
  • Bottled water uses large amounts of fossil fuel for transport.
  • Recycling-collection trucks, unlike garbage trucks, don’t compact their loads. Non-compacted light plastics take up a lot of space, so these trucks consume large quantities of fuel to recover small quantities of plastic, increasing the environmental impact of plastic bottles.

”What should I do?” The answer is not to throw plastic in the trash! Let’s face it, we must consume less — or no — pre-packaged bottled water. The cost of this convenience is just too high.

”But I want my H2O!” you protest. The water isn’t the problem. Refreshing, healthy, and calorie-free, it is a staple of existence. What we must do is package it. Ourselves. Become your own bottler by filling a Nalgene bottle with tap water. Refrigerate it, if you like. Take it with you when you head out the door.

”But I don’t like plastic, even the Nalgene.” Buy a stainless steel bottle.

”But I don’t like the taste of tap water.” Let the water sit out overnight before you cap it, allowing the chlorine to dissipate.

”But I still don’t like the taste.” Filter the water. It is still less expensive and far less environmentally damaging than bottled water. A pitcher-type filtration system works well. An under-sink filter is even easier.

”But this takes time and effort.” Yes, it takes a little bit. But once you’ve learned the new behavior, it will be no big deal at all. You’ll look back and wonder why you ever spent so much money on a product that gave you a hernia to lug into the house, when the tap was there all along.

Want to make it more fun? How about starting a competition with neighbors or colleagues at work to see who can reduce his or her output of recyclables by the greatest percentage? Becoming our own bottlers will be easier if it starts as a community challenge or a game. Make it fun. Make it simple. And just like any lesson, pretty soon it will be as easy as ”A, B, C.”