March 9, 2010 News

Drink from a fountain on Concordia’s bottle-free day

by Laura Beeston

For the first year ever, universities across Canada will celebrate Bottled Water Free Day on March 11, with student organizations mobilizing to increase student awareness of water politics, privatization issues and falling access to water fountains.

During the March 22 to 26 World Water Week, TAPthirst will deliver a petition in support of a bottled water ban on campus and ask students to think twice about where their water comes from.

“We need to start getting people to think about the water they’re drinking,” said Stephanie McConkey, a member of the TAPthirst collective. “March is water month for us and we’re trying to go at this from a bottom-up approach. We really need students’ support to put pressure on the administration to create a truly sustainable Concordia.”

"R4 estimated the total number of bottles thrown out on campus at 1.2 million per year, which is around 24 bottles per student on average,” said TAPthirst member Alex Matak. “Beyond waste, it’s not just about bottled water and a consumer choice [...]. It’s one of the biggest human rights and environmental issues out there.”

According to Hospitality Concordia Director Johanne De Cubellis, the university’s contract with PepsiCo, who currently provides beverages and bottled water in vending machines across campus, is set to expire in December 2010.

“Something we want to see are the trends on campus,” De Cubellis said. “I know that on some universities there is already a ban on the sale of bottled water and I’m curious about the mentality and trend going on at Concordia.”

There is a growing trend of banning water bottles from campuses across the country. St. Thomas University, Ryerson University and Queen’s University plan to ditch the plastic by 2013.

“This is something that can gain momentum,” said McConkey. “Look at the plastic bag campaign and how fast cloth bags have caught on. Or the reusable mug. Bottled water can catch on just as quickly.”

A marked decline in the number of drinking fountains has resulted from the on-campus sale of water bottles. In newer buildings, fountains are concentrated solely around washrooms.

“The state of our public water infrastructure here at Concordia is dismal,” said Matak. “We’re not just about taking away people’s access to bottled water—it has to come hand in hand with an increase in public water access that’s better.”