Water is a healthy choice for hydration, but if single-serving plastic water bottles are rough on the environment and soon to be taxed more, what’s a thirsty Chicagoan to do? Here are three alternatives.
Glass bottles
Made of sand, limestone and soda ash, glass is considered one of the safest packaging materials, and virtually nothing can leach from it. It also can be recycled over and over. It is much heavier than plastic, though, and transporting glass bottles around the world consumes more fuel.
Steel and aluminum
Stainless-steel water bottles don’t leach chemicals and are durable for long-term use. Another option is an aluminum water bottle with a leach-resistant interior liner. Stainless-steel and aluminum bottles take more energy to produce than plastic, but they are likely to be used for a longer time, and they are recyclable.
Corn-based bottles
Biodegradable bottles made from corn look and feel like regular plastic bottles but are kinder to the environment. They use 20 percent to 60 percent less fossil fuel in their manufacture than regular petroleum-based plastic bottles and produce 50 percent less carbon dioxide. The bottles present no danger of leaching chemicals into the water but are not yet widely available.
