The Life of a Water Bottle

THE LIFE OF AI WATER BOTTLE Americans buy nearly a billion bottles of water every single week - an average of more than three bottles per week for every man, woman and child in the country. And after all that water is gone, only a small percentage of these 51 billion empty bottles are recycled. The rest end up in landfills, or worse. Where does YOUR water bottle go? THE WATER BOTTLE Americans purchase approximately 51 BILLION bottles of water every year, spending an average of $11 billion. Bottled water costs 1,000 times more than tap water. Drinking 2 liters of tap water a day only costs 50 cents per year. Bottled Water LITTER GROUND An unknown percentage of water bottles end up as litter along highways, in vacant fields and elsewhere, some making their way to the.. LANDFILL OCEAN Bottles that end up in the oceans become a threat to wildlife that eat them Most water bottles used in the United States end up in landfills. As plastic bottles decay, they can leach harmful chemicals into the ground, potentially polluting the as they break apart into smaller pieces. Those that remain intact, wash onto shorelines around soil and water. the globe. RECYCLED Plastic can take centuries to break down, but it never fully biodegrades, even assisted by saltwater and UV rays. Some sea creatures ingest so much plastic they stop eating real food and starve to death with a full stomach. About 22% of plastic water bottles used in the United States are recycled. RECYCLING FACILITY At the recycling center, the bottles are sorted, placed on a conveyor, crushed and bundled for shipment. Most plastic bottles are made from polyethylene terephtalate (PET) FLAKE MAKIN' Specialized companies buy bundles, chop them into flakes, and sell them to companies that produce recycled plastic goods. A one-ton container of flake holds an estimated 20,000 processed water bottles - enough to create fiber to make about 500 T-shirts The first PET bottle was recycled in 1977. 17 million barrels of oil are used in It takes 63 20 oz PET bottles to producing bottled water each year. make a sweater FLAKE SOFT PLASTICS FIBER HARD PLASTICS Some companies use flakes to create reusable shopping bags, tarps and other flexible products. Other companies buy flakes, melt them into Flakes are also melted and molded into just about anything you can think of, including: • Automotive parts • Plastic lumber for decking and park benches • Railroad ties • Fumiture • Water bottles • Household products liquid and then spin them into filaments as thin as hair. These filaments are woven into yam used to make products, including: • Wall covering for office cubicles • Fleece clothing, blankets, etc. • Luggage and bags • Carpets and rugs Fourteen 20 oz. PET bottles yield enough fiberfill for a ski jacket. Nineteen 20 oz. PET bottles yield enough fiber for an extra large T-shirt, or enough to make one square foot of carpet. TRASH INC THE SECRET LIFE OF GARBAGE TRASHINC.CNBC.COM INFO SOURCE: EPA, CNBC RESEA RCH, NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION, TREEHUGGER.COM CNBC THE LIFE OF AI WATER BOTTLE Americans buy nearly a billion bottles of water every single week - an average of more than three bottles per week for every man, woman and child in the country. And after all that water is gone, only a small percentage of these 51 billion empty bottles are recycled. The rest end up in landfills, or worse. Where does YOUR water bottle go? THE WATER BOTTLE Americans purchase approximately 51 BILLION bottles of water every year, spending an average of $11 billion. Bottled water costs 1,000 times more than tap water. Drinking 2 liters of tap water a day only costs 50 cents per year. Bottled Water LITTER GROUND An unknown percentage of water bottles end up as litter along highways, in vacant fields and elsewhere, some making their way to the.. LANDFILL OCEAN Bottles that end up in the oceans become a threat to wildlife that eat them Most water bottles used in the United States end up in landfills. As plastic bottles decay, they can leach harmful chemicals into the ground, potentially polluting the as they break apart into smaller pieces. Those that remain intact, wash onto shorelines around soil and water. the globe. RECYCLED Plastic can take centuries to break down, but it never fully biodegrades, even assisted by saltwater and UV rays. Some sea creatures ingest so much plastic they stop eating real food and starve to death with a full stomach. About 22% of plastic water bottles used in the United States are recycled. RECYCLING FACILITY At the recycling center, the bottles are sorted, placed on a conveyor, crushed and bundled for shipment. Most plastic bottles are made from polyethylene terephtalate (PET) FLAKE MAKIN' Specialized companies buy bundles, chop them into flakes, and sell them to companies that produce recycled plastic goods. A one-ton container of flake holds an estimated 20,000 processed water bottles - enough to create fiber to make about 500 T-shirts The first PET bottle was recycled in 1977. 17 million barrels of oil are used in It takes 63 20 oz PET bottles to producing bottled water each year. make a sweater FLAKE SOFT PLASTICS FIBER HARD PLASTICS Some companies use flakes to create reusable shopping bags, tarps and other flexible products. Other companies buy flakes, melt them into Flakes are also melted and molded into just about anything you can think of, including: • Automotive parts • Plastic lumber for decking and park benches • Railroad ties • Fumiture • Water bottles • Household products liquid and then spin them into filaments as thin as hair. These filaments are woven into yam used to make products, including: • Wall covering for office cubicles • Fleece clothing, blankets, etc. • Luggage and bags • Carpets and rugs Fourteen 20 oz. PET bottles yield enough fiberfill for a ski jacket. Nineteen 20 oz. PET bottles yield enough fiber for an extra large T-shirt, or enough to make one square foot of carpet. TRASH INC THE SECRET LIFE OF GARBAGE TRASHINC.CNBC.COM INFO SOURCE: EPA, CNBC RESEA RCH, NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION, TREEHUGGER.COM CNBC THE LIFE OF AI WATER BOTTLE Americans buy nearly a billion bottles of water every single week - an average of more than three bottles per week for every man, woman and child in the country. And after all that water is gone, only a small percentage of these 51 billion empty bottles are recycled. The rest end up in landfills, or worse. Where does YOUR water bottle go? THE WATER BOTTLE Americans purchase approximately 51 BILLION bottles of water every year, spending an average of $11 billion. Bottled water costs 1,000 times more than tap water. Drinking 2 liters of tap water a day only costs 50 cents per year. Bottled Water LITTER GROUND An unknown percentage of water bottles end up as litter along highways, in vacant fields and elsewhere, some making their way to the.. LANDFILL OCEAN Bottles that end up in the oceans become a threat to wildlife that eat them Most water bottles used in the United States end up in landfills. As plastic bottles decay, they can leach harmful chemicals into the ground, potentially polluting the as they break apart into smaller pieces. Those that remain intact, wash onto shorelines around soil and water. the globe. RECYCLED Plastic can take centuries to break down, but it never fully biodegrades, even assisted by saltwater and UV rays. Some sea creatures ingest so much plastic they stop eating real food and starve to death with a full stomach. About 22% of plastic water bottles used in the United States are recycled. RECYCLING FACILITY At the recycling center, the bottles are sorted, placed on a conveyor, crushed and bundled for shipment. Most plastic bottles are made from polyethylene terephtalate (PET) FLAKE MAKIN' Specialized companies buy bundles, chop them into flakes, and sell them to companies that produce recycled plastic goods. A one-ton container of flake holds an estimated 20,000 processed water bottles - enough to create fiber to make about 500 T-shirts The first PET bottle was recycled in 1977. 17 million barrels of oil are used in It takes 63 20 oz PET bottles to producing bottled water each year. make a sweater FLAKE SOFT PLASTICS FIBER HARD PLASTICS Some companies use flakes to create reusable shopping bags, tarps and other flexible products. Other companies buy flakes, melt them into Flakes are also melted and molded into just about anything you can think of, including: • Automotive parts • Plastic lumber for decking and park benches • Railroad ties • Fumiture • Water bottles • Household products liquid and then spin them into filaments as thin as hair. These filaments are woven into yam used to make products, including: • Wall covering for office cubicles • Fleece clothing, blankets, etc. • Luggage and bags • Carpets and rugs Fourteen 20 oz. PET bottles yield enough fiberfill for a ski jacket. Nineteen 20 oz. PET bottles yield enough fiber for an extra large T-shirt, or enough to make one square foot of carpet. TRASH INC THE SECRET LIFE OF GARBAGE TRASHINC.CNBC.COM INFO SOURCE: EPA, CNBC RESEA RCH, NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION, TREEHUGGER.COM CNBC THE LIFE OF AI WATER BOTTLE Americans buy nearly a billion bottles of water every single week - an average of more than three bottles per week for every man, woman and child in the country. And after all that water is gone, only a small percentage of these 51 billion empty bottles are recycled. The rest end up in landfills, or worse. Where does YOUR water bottle go? THE WATER BOTTLE Americans purchase approximately 51 BILLION bottles of water every year, spending an average of $11 billion. Bottled water costs 1,000 times more than tap water. Drinking 2 liters of tap water a day only costs 50 cents per year. Bottled Water LITTER GROUND An unknown percentage of water bottles end up as litter along highways, in vacant fields and elsewhere, some making their way to the.. LANDFILL OCEAN Bottles that end up in the oceans become a threat to wildlife that eat them Most water bottles used in the United States end up in landfills. As plastic bottles decay, they can leach harmful chemicals into the ground, potentially polluting the as they break apart into smaller pieces. Those that remain intact, wash onto shorelines around soil and water. the globe. RECYCLED Plastic can take centuries to break down, but it never fully biodegrades, even assisted by saltwater and UV rays. Some sea creatures ingest so much plastic they stop eating real food and starve to death with a full stomach. About 22% of plastic water bottles used in the United States are recycled. RECYCLING FACILITY At the recycling center, the bottles are sorted, placed on a conveyor, crushed and bundled for shipment. Most plastic bottles are made from polyethylene terephtalate (PET) FLAKE MAKIN' Specialized companies buy bundles, chop them into flakes, and sell them to companies that produce recycled plastic goods. A one-ton container of flake holds an estimated 20,000 processed water bottles - enough to create fiber to make about 500 T-shirts The first PET bottle was recycled in 1977. 17 million barrels of oil are used in It takes 63 20 oz PET bottles to producing bottled water each year. make a sweater FLAKE SOFT PLASTICS FIBER HARD PLASTICS Some companies use flakes to create reusable shopping bags, tarps and other flexible products. Other companies buy flakes, melt them into Flakes are also melted and molded into just about anything you can think of, including: • Automotive parts • Plastic lumber for decking and park benches • Railroad ties • Fumiture • Water bottles • Household products liquid and then spin them into filaments as thin as hair. These filaments are woven into yam used to make products, including: • Wall covering for office cubicles • Fleece clothing, blankets, etc. • Luggage and bags • Carpets and rugs Fourteen 20 oz. PET bottles yield enough fiberfill for a ski jacket. Nineteen 20 oz. PET bottles yield enough fiber for an extra large T-shirt, or enough to make one square foot of carpet. TRASH INC THE SECRET LIFE OF GARBAGE TRASHINC.CNBC.COM INFO SOURCE: EPA, CNBC RESEA RCH, NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION, TREEHUGGER.COM CNBC THE LIFE OF AI WATER BOTTLE Americans buy nearly a billion bottles of water every single week - an average of more than three bottles per week for every man, woman and child in the country. And after all that water is gone, only a small percentage of these 51 billion empty bottles are recycled. The rest end up in landfills, or worse. Where does YOUR water bottle go? THE WATER BOTTLE Americans purchase approximately 51 BILLION bottles of water every year, spending an average of $11 billion. Bottled water costs 1,000 times more than tap water. Drinking 2 liters of tap water a day only costs 50 cents per year. Bottled Water LITTER GROUND An unknown percentage of water bottles end up as litter along highways, in vacant fields and elsewhere, some making their way to the.. LANDFILL OCEAN Bottles that end up in the oceans become a threat to wildlife that eat them Most water bottles used in the United States end up in landfills. As plastic bottles decay, they can leach harmful chemicals into the ground, potentially polluting the as they break apart into smaller pieces. Those that remain intact, wash onto shorelines around soil and water. the globe. RECYCLED Plastic can take centuries to break down, but it never fully biodegrades, even assisted by saltwater and UV rays. Some sea creatures ingest so much plastic they stop eating real food and starve to death with a full stomach. About 22% of plastic water bottles used in the United States are recycled. RECYCLING FACILITY At the recycling center, the bottles are sorted, placed on a conveyor, crushed and bundled for shipment. Most plastic bottles are made from polyethylene terephtalate (PET) FLAKE MAKIN' Specialized companies buy bundles, chop them into flakes, and sell them to companies that produce recycled plastic goods. A one-ton container of flake holds an estimated 20,000 processed water bottles - enough to create fiber to make about 500 T-shirts The first PET bottle was recycled in 1977. 17 million barrels of oil are used in It takes 63 20 oz PET bottles to producing bottled water each year. make a sweater FLAKE SOFT PLASTICS FIBER HARD PLASTICS Some companies use flakes to create reusable shopping bags, tarps and other flexible products. Other companies buy flakes, melt them into Flakes are also melted and molded into just about anything you can think of, including: • Automotive parts • Plastic lumber for decking and park benches • Railroad ties • Fumiture • Water bottles • Household products liquid and then spin them into filaments as thin as hair. These filaments are woven into yam used to make products, including: • Wall covering for office cubicles • Fleece clothing, blankets, etc. • Luggage and bags • Carpets and rugs Fourteen 20 oz. PET bottles yield enough fiberfill for a ski jacket. Nineteen 20 oz. PET bottles yield enough fiber for an extra large T-shirt, or enough to make one square foot of carpet. TRASH INC THE SECRET LIFE OF GARBAGE TRASHINC.CNBC.COM INFO SOURCE: EPA, CNBC RESEA RCH, NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION, TREEHUGGER.COM CNBC THE LIFE OF AI WATER BOTTLE Americans buy nearly a billion bottles of water every single week - an average of more than three bottles per week for every man, woman and child in the country. And after all that water is gone, only a small percentage of these 51 billion empty bottles are recycled. The rest end up in landfills, or worse. Where does YOUR water bottle go? THE WATER BOTTLE Americans purchase approximately 51 BILLION bottles of water every year, spending an average of $11 billion. Bottled water costs 1,000 times more than tap water. Drinking 2 liters of tap water a day only costs 50 cents per year. Bottled Water LITTER GROUND An unknown percentage of water bottles end up as litter along highways, in vacant fields and elsewhere, some making their way to the.. LANDFILL OCEAN Bottles that end up in the oceans become a threat to wildlife that eat them Most water bottles used in the United States end up in landfills. As plastic bottles decay, they can leach harmful chemicals into the ground, potentially polluting the as they break apart into smaller pieces. Those that remain intact, wash onto shorelines around soil and water. the globe. RECYCLED Plastic can take centuries to break down, but it never fully biodegrades, even assisted by saltwater and UV rays. Some sea creatures ingest so much plastic they stop eating real food and starve to death with a full stomach. About 22% of plastic water bottles used in the United States are recycled. RECYCLING FACILITY At the recycling center, the bottles are sorted, placed on a conveyor, crushed and bundled for shipment. Most plastic bottles are made from polyethylene terephtalate (PET) FLAKE MAKIN' Specialized companies buy bundles, chop them into flakes, and sell them to companies that produce recycled plastic goods. A one-ton container of flake holds an estimated 20,000 processed water bottles - enough to create fiber to make about 500 T-shirts The first PET bottle was recycled in 1977. 17 million barrels of oil are used in It takes 63 20 oz PET bottles to producing bottled water each year. make a sweater FLAKE SOFT PLASTICS FIBER HARD PLASTICS Some companies use flakes to create reusable shopping bags, tarps and other flexible products. Other companies buy flakes, melt them into Flakes are also melted and molded into just about anything you can think of, including: • Automotive parts • Plastic lumber for decking and park benches • Railroad ties • Fumiture • Water bottles • Household products liquid and then spin them into filaments as thin as hair. These filaments are woven into yam used to make products, including: • Wall covering for office cubicles • Fleece clothing, blankets, etc. • Luggage and bags • Carpets and rugs Fourteen 20 oz. PET bottles yield enough fiberfill for a ski jacket. Nineteen 20 oz. PET bottles yield enough fiber for an extra large T-shirt, or enough to make one square foot of carpet. TRASH INC THE SECRET LIFE OF GARBAGE TRASHINC.CNBC.COM INFO SOURCE: EPA, CNBC RESEA RCH, NEW YORK STATE DEPARTMENT OF ENVIRONMENTAL CONSERVATION, TREEHUGGER.COM CNBC