Drink Wine, Donate Water

Online wine vendor CellarThief donates 100 days’ worth of clean water for every bottle of wine it sells.

From the site “Almost 1 billion people on the planet don’t have clean drinking water – that’s 1 in 8 people. Not having clean drinking water leads to terrible illness and death – in fact 42,000 people die every week from a lack of clean, safe water with 90% of those deaths being children 5 years old or younger. If you help us sell this wine out, the Bounty is awarded! We’ll tag on another 50 days of clean water for every bottle of wine sold! That totals 5 months of clean water per bottle of wine – that can make a difference!”

A great idea, if you’re buying wine anyway, and it’s the same price as somewhere that donates water, then why not buy from them? Shipping for 3 or more bottles is $5.

[Via: Springwise]

Kate Humble Backs New Water Saving Campaign

Alasdair from Big Green Smile has written a post about Springwatch favourite Kate Humble bfronting, or indeed backing, a new water saving campaign:

“BBC television wildlife presenter Kate Humble has joined the campaign to educate Britons about the importance of water saving measures.

Figures published by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) show that the average Briton uses 150 litres of water every day, compared to the 127 litres used by the average German.

It is estimated the water treatment process and the use of hot water creates 35 million tonnes of carbon emissions each year in the UK.

Ms Humble is now trying to get the message across that straightforward water saving measures can save money and help the battle against climate change.

“Simple changes can really add up to a better environment – meaning more water for the wildlife and countryside around us as well as saving on carbon emissions,” she said.

Among the water saving measures recommended by Defra are turning the tap off while brushing your teeth and using a watering can instead of a hosepipe when watering the garden.

Waterwise recently launched a campaign to persuade people to spend less time in the shower, pointing out that an electric shower uses around six litres of water a minute.

CamelBak Reusable Water Bottles Now Available In Steel

Previously one of my favorite water bottles (it sits on my desk every day) is the CamelBak (reviewed here) BPA-free plastic water bottle.

They have now launched the industry’s first spill-proof, no-tip stainless steel water bottles. Available in single-walled and insulated versions, the new bottles were engineered from the inside out to be both user-friendly and durable in demanding environments – whether in a stuffy, hot car or on an international adventure.

The new CamelBak® Better Bottle™ Stainless features the one-of-a-kind Big Bite™ Valve, making it spill-proof even when it’s open for drinking. When the bite valve is up, the mouth piece and straw allow for easy, no-tip sipping. The valve can be flipped shut for easy storage and transport. The mouth of the bottle is wide enough to clean easily and fill up quickly – even wide enough for ice cubes.

CamelBak’s stainless steel bottles are 100 percent BPA-free, stain-resistant and taste-free, with no liners or coatings inside like those found in aluminum bottles. Because the bottles are made with medical grade stainless steel, they are resistant to dents and blemishes. Take a look.

Eco Canteen Steel Water Bottle Review

We’ve tested a lot of water bottles at Life Goggles (look under Home), but I have to say stainless steel bottles are still my favourite.

Even with BPA-free reusable plastic water bottles I simply prefer the taste of the water from them. I certainly don’t need to tell you about the reasons not to use disposable plastic bottles although the other week I used one myself without thinking, all too easily done!

So Eco Canteen sent us some bottles to test, the bottles are stainless steel, no aluminum, with a plastic cap (polyproylene #5 as apparently that’s the safest, non-leaching plastic). You can put the bottle in the dishwasher, but just wash the cap in soapy water. As you can see from the picture the bottle is clean in design, 26oz (a 16oz version is available) and has a wide enough neck to take ice cubes (one problem with my SIGG).

The Eco Canteen also has a carabiner clip on the top to hook to your backpack or sports bag, and comes with a free insulated tote (although a small additional p&h charge is included). Mine came in black, though their websites show blue and green too. It has a little shoulder strap should you ever need to carry it that way or secure it to something else. The bottle arrived securely but minimally packaged.

So if you’re looking to give up the plastic habit and save money, and want to try stainless steel water bottles then check them out.

We Want Tap Review

It’s hard to call this a product review as We Want Tap is more of a campaign that does a few products too. The campaign is by Provokateur which also did the ACME Climate Action book so I knew it was going to be a bit different and funky. We Want Tap encourages you to drink tap water as opposed to bottled water. And that’s it really but the way the company is doing it is through taste testing and a lot of promotion – it recently featured on the front cover of Design Week. The campaign even has a Facebook page of its own.

As with ACME, We Want Tap also has a video which explains what it’s all about.

The website has lots of information on there and is a great resource to try and wean people off bottled water. What We Want Tap sent me was the 400ml reusable bottle worth £6 and the DIY Bottle Labelling Kit and stickers worth £4.

Apart from beer, the only other drink I have regularly is tap water. I have to admit to filtering it though as it’s a bit funny where I live now, usually I don’t care and will have it from the tap (if it’s cold). We do recycle the filter cartridges by the way. Anyway the 400ml bottle has already come in useful and I find it much better than using an old plastic bottle when out for the day. I don’t know much about what it’s made of – plastic and metal – but if it cuts down on using bottles then I’m all for it. I like the way the lid is connected to the bottle too.

I was also sent some bottle labels and stickers. You get five labels for smaller bottles and five for bigger ones. The smaller ones also have a few little stickers to put on bottles, fridges and around the place. And they’re incredibly easy to use. Just pull off the old label and wrap around the new one. There’s a handy chart for you to tick off when you’re used the bottle once and after ten times you can recycle it. Soon all those pesky bottles will have been recycled and you can get back to using a reusable bottle. The stickers are printed using vegetable ink, printed on chlorine free 100% recycled paper with a biodegradable laminate and only the sticker backing can’t be recycled.

I heartily recommend checking out We Want Tap and if you need help convincing others about how good tap water is, they have a Tap Challenge on the site which is great.

Is There Really A Toxic Garbage Island?

Apparently some people have been talking about a patch of rubbish/garbage the size of the US state of Texas floating in the middle of the Pacific Ocean, ingeniously dubbed the Great Pacific Garbage Patch. Basically, the theory is any rubbish/trash that gets dumped in the water rides the currents to this one spot and joins an ever-increasing flotilla. However, no one seemed to have a picture of the buildup, so Thomas Morton went out to sea to investigate. Below is part one of the 12 short part series, if you can’t see it you can click here.

Quick Water Saving Tips

Saving water at any time of the year is a good idea, but obviously in the summer and after there is usually a shortage. Some quick tips for saving water:

- Repair leaks. Leaking taps, sprinklers and hoses can add to your bill and use a surprising amount of water, around 20 gallons (76 liters) per day per leak.

- Water the garden before 6am or after 8pm. It takes about 20 – 25 gallons (76 – 95 liters) less water at these times of day, clearly depending on how large your garden is.

- Shorten showers. You’re clean enough already, 2.5 gallons (9.5 liters) per minute can be saved.

- Turn off the tap while brushing your teeth. A surprising 2 gallons (7.5 liters) is wasted per minute this way.

- Use a car wash. Washing the car yourself uses a lot more water, plus car washes usually recycle the water. If you do wash it yourself, don’t leave the hose running – self-closing nozzles are cheap and handy.

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