It’s estimated that 17 million barrels of oil are needed to supply the demand of water bottles worldwide. That is enough fuel to run up to 100,000 cars. While there is a large demand for water bottles, only 23% of plastic bottles are recycled. The rest ends up in our oceans, landfills, and communities. In terms of water consumption, it takes three liters of water to make one liter of bottled water.
Most bottled water is sold in bottles made of polyethylene terephthalate (PET) which is produced from fossil fuels: manufacturing one ton of PET emits about 3 tons of carbon dioxide (CO2). The manufacturing of plastic accounts for the greatest amount of greenhouse gas emissions in the production of bottled water: other sources of emissions include the production of plastic bottles and the transportation of the bottled water to the point of distribution.
In an effort to promote reusing, Miami Beach has deployed Woosh water stations throughout the city. Miami Beach is the first city in the nation to deploy Woosh water stations. Woosh is a network of smart water stations that provide ultra-purified, ice-cold water, on the go, in public spaces. The stations fill any type of bottle with filtered water, using a patented O3 technology that removes impurities and keeps the good stuff in the water via an eco-friendly process.
Water bottle refill stations help transform the way people drink water in public spaces. The stations not only encourage sustainable water consumption, they also provide enhanced pedestrian experience to improve the city’s walkability and encourage more consistent and prolonged outdoor activity.
Reusable water systems provide the city the opportunity to maximize environmental efforts through the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions and allows for the conservation of precious non-renewable resources. The Woosh system measures and reports the total number of bottles saved from landfills; its integrated network provides data to municipal partners and individuals in real-time – giving a full scope of the water stations’ impact.
Learn more about Woosh stations in Miami Beach.