Let’s not water down dangers posed by plastic

Dubai’s tap water is safe to drink. It’s as close to packaged drinking water in purity, specifically the water packed in plastic bottles that we purchase when we are on the move. At homes, water in reusable cans is consumed in large quantities by families.

So if Dubai’s tap water is safe to drink, why buy the packaged variety in plastic bottles that are most often not recycled? Data suggests that only 9 per cent of plastic bottles are recycled globally. Reason: the costs, and low-income countries cannot afford recycling plants. The rest are discarded in the environment where animals consume them. Humans, in turn, eat produce from the soil, and also some of the animals who may have choked on the material. Plastic takes hundreds of years to break down in the soil. One study says it takes 450 years for a single plastic bottle to disintegrate and disappear into the soil.

Our convenience is, therefore, causing great harm to the environment and animals. Plastic is polluting and choking the earth and our oceans. But with the bring-your-bottle initiative, Dubai is making it easy and convenient for residents, and has installed water taps in several locations across the city. This means residents are not required to buy a fresh plastic water bottle when they step outside their homes. They can carry a reusable bottle and fill up at these locations to slake their thirst.