HOW DRY I AM -- Quenching Our Thirst The Retro-Way

Ahhhh, water -- so crisp, so fresh and so integral to the existence of life on Earth. In fact, all known forms of life depend on the tasteless, colorless and odorless fluid. Seventy one percent of our planet is covered with it, eighty five percent of our brain is made with it and ninety one percent of our landfill is cluttered with empty bottles of it. Errr…maybe the last statistic was fudged ever-so-slightly for dramatic value (the real number is 90%), but if you’ve had the displeasure of peeking into a landfill lately, it is wildly apparent that people aren’t recycling their H20 containers as religiously as you might imagine. The real question on my mind is this: How did our modern-day society became soooooo dependent on plastic-covered portable water?

Before man could even conceive of a petrochemical H20 container, there was the humble leaf which, when cupped in just the right manner, could collect adequate amounts of rainwater in a single shot. (Of course, it wasn’t exactly convenient for particularly thirsty people who were running from danger.) Hollowed-out gourds were another tried-and-true favorite – far more durable in construction and especially well-suited for repeated chug-a-luggings. I’m no history expert, but somewhere within the vast timeline of humanity, various different cultures around the world figured out how to craft assorted vessels out of clay, wood, animal skin, porcelain and metal (among others)…which finally led to the design of the handy-dandy cup that has served all of us so well. That is, until the 1990s.

While we were all minding our own business up until then, happily drinking tap water out of our mismatched glasses and mugs (only to wash and reuse them the next time that we got thirsty), something sinister was happening in the boardrooms of beverage companies across the U.S. Eager to diversify their product lines and bottom lines, companies like Coca Cola pounced on the notion that our increasingly mobile and health-conscious society would embrace a more “wholesome” and totable form of hydration.

Hot on the heels of an EPA study which detailed a laundry list of less-than-beneficial components in municipal drinking water across the country, an entire industry was born – and we fell for their oil-slick-shrouded-designer-water hook, line and sinker. Funny thing about their product – in many cases, it was the same old stuff that flowed from the faucets in our homes except that we had to pay extra for the privilege of carrying it with us.

Today, we face a sea of plastic junk – much of it the direct result of indulging in a several decades-long hydration habit – and it’s not just going to go poof anytime soon. Thank goodness companies like Sigg and Kleen Kanteen have galloped into the spotlight by offering a slick, modern and eco-friendly way to break the one-time-use water bottle cycle, but there are still plenty of people out there who reach for their Fiji and Dasani despite knowing better.

On this note, I couldn’t help but shine a spotlight on the BOXED WATER company, a Michigan-based purveyor of purified Minnesota H20 wrapped up in milk-carton-like containers. They proudly proclaim that 90% of their packaging is paper-based and that they donate 20% of their profits to eco-based causes involving trees and water. Well...I guess that’s something.

Greenwalas -- I look to you for feedback. Do you see a real need for boxed water in the year 2009? Does the concept thrill or appall you? From an ecological standpoint, would you willingly reach for boxed water over PET bottled water? What's so bad about just using a cup? Are you so overwhelmed with thirst at any moment in time that a portable container is the only viable option for you? I am really interested in hearing your opinions on this topic, so please don’t be shy!

http://agricultureguide.org/how-dry-i-am-quenching-our-thirst-the-retro-way/