By Steph Haruna
With the excitement of a New year fading, it is easy to forget the resolutions we may have made for 2020. This year, more than 28 million Brits expected to favour eco-friendly resolutions. Whether your resolutions were sustainable or not, it is important that as a community we take active steps in plastic reduction. An easy way to do this is by joining us in bringing our reusable bottles or cups to campus.
What is the damage from disposable coffee cups and plastic bottles?
Picture this: on a cold Monday morning on your way to your 9am lecture, you stop by your local café and grab a cup of coffee, and throughout the day you take regular sips of water from your store-bought plastic water bottle. In both instances, you have used products that contribute towards a detrimental impact the planet. Plastic bottles are made from polyethylene terephthalate, which require a large amount of fossil fuels and energy to manufacture, and as a result these pollute the environment considerably.
Plastic bottles are made by chemically bonding oil and gas molecules together, and the very origin of a plastic bottle has adverse effects on the environment by polluting the atmosphere from the toxic chemicals released when it is created. Not only that, but it takes 450 or more years for plastic bottles to decompose, which is ridiculous when you consider that it has only been used once then dumped. The use of a plastic bottle is short but the effects they have on the planet are permanent, which is why it would be much better to invest in something much longer lasting.
Where can I buy reusable mugs and bottles?
Buying a reusable bottle is a much more sustainable alternative than water packaged in a plastic bottle, or buying coffee in a disposable cup, there’s no doubt about that. We’ve put together a list of places you can get some stylish bottles/mugs and what sustainable schemes are available to you here at the University of York:
• There are plenty of free water fountains situated around both campuses, and if you carry around your own personal, reusable cup or mug, you should bet taking advantage of these water fountains to ensure you stop wasting money on plastic bottles. Some of our favourites come from Klean Kanteen insulated bottles and Chilly’s steel bottles, which you can personalise online!
• Another place to look is KeepCup, where you can get a fancy glass coffee cup to replace those disposable coffee cups (I have one, and it’s amazing how long it keeps your tea and coffee hot!).
• The university also sell reusable coffee cups, also known as YORCUP. You can buy your £5.00 YORCUP from any outlet across campus, and you get your first hot drink for free!! Each time you’ve used your cup, you can return it to any outlet to be cleaned, and they then store the cup for when you next want a hot drink. When you return your cup to an outlet, keep hold of your YORCUP sleeve and simply show this when you’re ordering your next hot drink and you will get your drink in a clean YORCUP. You will also receive a 20p discount when avoiding the latte levy, which is when the university charge 20p per each use of a disposable coffee cup.
• The University have also added catering outlets and water fountains to the Refill app. This allows you to download the app and find the closest locations to refill your water bottles. This app is essentially beneficial as it saves you from buying bottles of water through out the day and helps you to locate areas around campus that have water fountains in a free and accessible way. You can download the Refill app on both the Apple Appstore and Google play.
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