Eco-Monday: Glass vs. Plastic

We wote last week about the fact that it's in our environmental edict to stop buying plastic bottles. That's right, we buy only glass bottles, and in general, we avoid bottled water altogether, opting instead for glass bottles.
You might be wondering whether it's worth all that effort.
First, the rules.

• Our customers can request bottled water, but we don't offer it.
• We buy only glass bottles
• We buy only water in glass bottles that originates within 150-mile radius of Philadelphia

And now, the reasons we do all that.

Plastic is made of fossil fuel
Glass is endlessly recyclable--it's just heated sand, after all
Recycled glass has a 30-day turnaround time before it's back on the shelf again as new glass
Most glass is 70 percent post-consumer

There is one salient point we need to address: There is an argument out there that says that because glass is heavier than plastic, the environmental-cost savings you reap by not buying made of fossil fuels is negated by the extra fossil fuels you burn by shipping it. That's why our policy comes with a localization clause.

Remember, buy local and recycle your glass. It's not a bad policy to live by.

We got some great recycling information about glass from Earth911.com Did you know that recycled glass is used in reflective paint and can even be used to replace sand on beaches lost to erosion? Crikey!

Eco-Monday: Don't Bottle It Up

We're not talking about emotions here--we're talking about water.

That's right--the Hub doesn't buy plastic bottles. So what do we do when our clients request bottled water? Well, we purchase it from a source within 150 miles and make sure that we purchase glass bottles only. We'll address the glass vs. plastic question later, but first,

what do we do when we're thirsting for a tall, cool glass of water? Simple: We turn on the tap.

We adore tap water. It's an economically sound solution, it's readily available--and would you be surprised to learn that in a recent taste test for tap water (yes, these things really do exist!), Philadephia's tap water was rated in the top ten in 2007, at the annual conference of U.S. Mayors. (St. Louis was #1, but who's counting?)

And yes, it's safe. We found this terrific diagram from DrinkTap.org, an advocacy organization, that details the various steps each municipality puts its water through before letting citizens have access to it.

Our favorite thing about tap water? It can be readily flavored. The Hub's resident mixologist came up with this recipe to give your tap water a little zing:

1/2 gallon tap water
1 tray ice cubes
1/2 cup ginger simple syrup
12 seedless-cucumber slices
Put all ingredients in pitcher, stir and serve. Zing!

So go on, belly up to the tap. It does a body--and a corporation--good.

Tell us about your favorite ways to flavor tap water, or tell us what you think of this article, in the comments below.