Environment

Get involved in Plastic Free July

The world is becoming more and more aware of the dangers of plastic pollution, but the issue still exists. HydrateM8’s reusable bottles are helping, though. Will you pick one up for Plastic Free July?

It’s not secret that we’re not fans of single-use plastic bottles here at HydrateM8. The pollution caused by these non-biodegradable items, especially when they’re dumped in the sea – around 8 million tons of plastic ends up in the ocean each and every year.

Thankfully, both HydrateM8 and our customers are doing our part to put a stop to this. Since we launched our refillable bottles we have sold almost a quarter of a million units, which is fantastic news. That’s a quarter of a million plastic bottles that are not being tossed into landfills and harming our natural population! If you have one of our bottles yourself, don’t forget that any high street café or restaurant in the UK is legally required to fill it with water upon request.

There is still work to be done in the battle against plastic pollution, however. That’s the thinking behind Plastic Free July, a crusade that began Down Under back in 2011 and has steadily grown into a worldwide movement.

The aims of the Plastic Free July campaign are simple; just reduce your use of single-use plastic for a single day, a full week, or the entirety of the month. That means checking the shelves of the supermarket very carefully in order to avoid purchasing anything wrapped in single-use packaging, and ducking plastic takeaway items such as cups, straws, carrier bags and those ever-troublesome plastic bottles.

Eventually, this should lead to the ability to go completely plastic-free – which sends a very powerful message to manufacturers that we will not longer stand idly by while the planet is destroyed. There is only one language that corporations understand, and only one message that really gets through – reducing their profit margin!

Of course, one month alone won’t do this – but it’s a great start. You may also be surprised at just how much plastic you use each and every day, as countless household appliances – from the alarm clock that wakes us up in the morning to the TV set you watch to unwind before bed – all rely on the substance.

Allow us to clear – we are not campaigning for an entirely plastic-free world. That would be counter-productive, and frankly unrealistic. The point of Plastic Free July is to change habits, and prevent us from reaching for those convenient but destructive single-use plastics that have such an impact on the environment. Like all things, plastic can be very useful is used appropriately and in moderation.

If you’re wondering why single-use plastic is such a concern, consider some of the statistics. It’s believed that a staggering 480 billion single-use plastic bottles were sold throughout the world in the year 2016 – a number that is also believed to climb year on year. That’s a whole lot of plastic and, depressingly, it’s believed that around 91% of those bottles are not recycled. That’s 436 billion plastic bottles being thrown into landfills or the ocean. Are you starting to get the picture as to why that’s a problem?

Even as small a nation as the UK is playing a part in this issue. Our island is believed to use 13 billion plastic bottles per year, recycling just 7.5 billion of them. That’s 6.5 billion bottles unaccounted for, which is simply unacceptable for a population the size of Britain.

HydrateM8 are determined to put a stop to this waste and environmental impact, which is why we designed our reusable bottles. We are delighted with the impact that we have made so far, and a quarter of a million bottles sold is a fantastic result. Sincere thanks to each and every one of you that has done your part to change the world! As the stats above dictate, however, there is still work to be done.

Are you prepared to join us in the Plastic Free July campaign, and do your bit to reduce the use of single-use plastics? It’s not just a matter of improving the present. It’s about ensuring that there is a future for our children.

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