BOTTLED-WATER-FREE NATIONAL PARKS: FAQ This document is intended to serve as a resource for superintendents and other National Park Service (NPS) officials seeking to eliminate the sale of bottled water in their NPS unit(s). Over 30 NPS units in 3 regions are already bottled-water-free, including iconic parks like the Grand Canyon National Park and Zion National Park. Corporate Accountability International produced this resource by reviewing documents and information from several units (which we will broadly refer to as parks for the sake of brevity) which have recently gone bottled water free. Drawing from these documents and other materials, we provide answers to common questions NPS officials may have about how parks have gone bottled water free and information about best practices that parks have developed in order to achieve this goal. This document is part of a larger, forthcoming guide for national parks seeking to go bottled water free. Table of Contents Page Question 1 1. Why should national parks go bottled water free? 2 2. What percentage of the waste stream can a park expect to eliminate with a bottledwater-free policy? 2 3. Why not just encourage recycling and/or engage visitors with educational materials to reduce plastic waste? 3 4. How does the feasibility study fit into the process of going bottled water free? 3 5. What are the costs of installing and maintaining water refill stations? 4 6. How do bottled-water-free national parks ensure that visitors have access to water to stay hydrated? 4 7. Can reusable bottle sales make up for lost revenue in bottled-water-free parks? 5 8. How do parks educate visitors on their bottled-water-free policies and the importance of choosing the tap? 7 9. What do park-goers think about national parks going bottled water free? 8 10. What are other examples of bottled-water-free institutional policies?
1. Why should national parks go bottled water free? National parks that end the sale of bottled water align themselves with the mission of the NPS and demonstrate their role as leaders in environmental stewardship. Furthermore, many parks see economic benefits as well as environmental benefits by going bottled water free. The environmental harms of bottled water are well documented: As Shawn Norton, NPS branch chief of sustainable operations and climate change, notes, Americans discard approximately 50 billion plastic water bottles each year. Producing that number of water bottles consumes approximately 20 billion barrels of oil and generates more than 25 million tons of greenhouse gases. 1 As the centennial approaches, parks can lead both on NPS sustainability initiatives and in meeting the Green Parks Plan solid waste reduction goal by eliminating a major source of unnecessary waste and recycling bottled water. In some national parks, single-use plastic bottles including disposable plastic water bottles account for 10-30 percent of the solid waste stream and a significant percentage of park recycling streams. 2 For many parks, trucking out solid waste and recycling create significant operational costs; consequently, reducing bottled-water waste could result in cost savings. Going bottled water free also makes economic sense for park-goers. Because bottled water is much more expensive than tap, providing inexpensive reusable bottles and increasing access to public water can save park-goers money. In the larger picture, bottled-water-free parks protect both public water and the environment. Our public water systems are national treasures, just like our national parks. But in the last few decades, the bottled-water industry has attempted to convince people that the only place to get safe water is a plastic bottle. This misleading marketing undermines the political will to reinvest in public water infrastructure, including public access points like water fountains in public spaces. By going bottled water free, national parks set the gold standard for sustainability and play a key role in the national movement to protect our most essential public resource our water. 3 1
2. What percentage of the waste stream can a park expect to eliminate with a bottled-water-free policy? In its Green Parks Plan, NPS set a goal to divert 50% of annual solid waste from landfills by 2015 4 Prior to going bottled water free, a number of parks reported that disposable plastic bottles, especially bottled water, accounted for 10-30 percent of their overall waste streams. 5 Eliminating the sale of bottled water is an important way for individual parks to contribute to meeting the overall Green Parks Plan waste reduction goal. Zion National Park s bottled-water-free policy eliminated an estimated 60,000 bottles (5,000 lbs. of waste) from the park s waste stream annually. 6 After experiencing an influx of waste from disposable plastic bottles, Colorado National Monument moved to go bottled water free because doing so could eliminate up to 10 percent of what is currently recycled. 7 Petrified Forest National Park found that it could eliminate an estimated 9,000 bottles per year from the at-large waste stream by going bottled water free. 8 Timpanogos Cave National Monument estimated that going bottled water free could reduce or eliminate 8,000 9,000 bottles from [its] waste stream annually especially since disposable plastic bottles represented the highest volume of trash collected from two key visitor areas. 9 3. Why not just encourage recycling and/or engage visitors with educational materials to reduce plastic waste? Recycling and visitor education has not proven enough for parks to meet waste reduction goals. Yellowstone National Park s experience provided a clear example. In 2013, the park decided not to eliminate the sale of bottled water. Instead, it launched a Single Use Plastic Reduction Initiative, which included building water bottle refill stations throughout the park, making inexpensive reusable bottles available to visitors and free to each employee, and creating public education materials such as signs and messaging to encourage park-goers to use the tap. 10 But Yellowstone recently found that approximately 50 percent of park waste is recyclable and this waste is mostly plastic. 11 Growing volumes of plastics (primarily bottles) threaten to prevent the park from reaching its goal of diverting much of its solid waste from expensive landfill disposal. In an internal review document, the park acknowledged, We need to make significant changes to reach our goals. 12 2
4. How does the feasibility study fit into the process of going bottled water free? In 2011, NPS Director Jarvis issued a memo that outlines the steps required for a park to end the sale of disposable water bottles, including conducting a feasibility study. 13 For many park superintendents, the feasibility study operates as a checklist of considerations that superintendents will already be thinking through before making the decision to go bottled water free. Since dozens of national parks have already completed this process, park superintendents can use these examples to guide their own feasibility studies (see appendix for examples). There are several steps parks can take while completing the feasibility study: Alert current and potential concessionaires about 18-24 months in advance that the park intends to go bottled water free especially before a contract is up for renewal. This allows these operators to plan ahead to phase out bottled water and to work out the range and price points of the reusable bottle options the park will sell. Consider announcing the plan to go bottled water free. This gains positive media attention for the park and offers parks the opportunity to begin the process of educating park-goers. Install water bottle refill stations. (See more on costs, below.) Create educational materials. Parks usually create educational materials for the visitor center and website to teach park-goers about the benefits of choosing tap water and the reusable bottle and refill options available. Some parks also choose to create educational materials for their staff to help them answer questions from park-goers and the media. A number of parks that have already gone bottled water free were able to implement their bottled-water-free policies as soon as 30 days after submitting their feasibility study and request to their regional director. 5. What are the costs of installing and maintaining water refill stations? Most parks find the costs of installing and maintaining water bottle refill stations marginal and worth the investment. Costs vary park to park, but Mount Rushmore estimated nominal costs for installation and operation: The infrastructure costs for the refill station are minimal estimated at approximately $3,000 for its installation. Operational costs will depend on usage, but are estimated by the concessioner to also be negligible. 14 Wall units cost on average about $1,500 and free-standing pedestal refill stations cost about $3,000-$5,000. Beyond the purchase of the unit itself, the majority of the cost of a refill station is the installation. Two important factors determine this cost: how close the refill stations are to the necessary infrastructure and whether there are park personnel capable of completing the installations. Parks often collaborate with their concessionaires, parks associations, funding partners, or even companies such as reusable water bottle manufacturers to fund refill station purchase and installation. After refill stations are installed, parks generally spend up to $85 per year on the maintenance of these stations. 15 3
6. How do bottled-water-free national parks ensure that visitors have access to water to stay hydrated? Parks can increase visitor access to safe drinking water by installing water refill stations and making low-cost, reusable water bottles available to park-goers. At the Grand Canyon, BPA-free reusable bottles are sold starting at as low as $1.99, compared to the average disposable bottled water, which starts at about $1.50. 16 This allows park visitors to buy a simple reusable bottle and stay hydrated by using the park s water refill stations. Notably, parks in desert regions such as Grand Canyon, Zion, and Saguaro have already successfully eliminated the sale of bottled water and addressed potential safety issues. In fact, the NPS Public Health Office has not raised safety concerns about any park s elimination of bottled water in response to any park feasibility study currently available. 17 7. Can reusable bottle sales make up for lost revenue in bottled-water-free parks? For many parks, feasibility studies indicate that the park concessioners will experience a slight loss in revenue but can recoup some of this lost revenue through sales of reusable water bottles. Souvenir stainless steel bottles are sold for up to $19.95 in some parks; sales of these bottles can boost revenue and provide an opportunity for visitor engagement as visitors become more conscious of the environmental impacts of bottled water. Parks should replace bottled water with reusable water bottles at a reasonable price point to help meet visitor needs and offset lost revenue for concessioners and park partners. Pecos National Historic Park speculated that when visitors are given alternatives, at a reasonable price, the choice between disposable and reusable containers could prove to be negligible in terms of sales. 18 Furthermore, some parks are already experiencing declining sales of bottled water. From 2009-2011, before the park went bottled-water free, Grand Canyon National Park concessionaire Xanterra saw bottled water sales decline more than 30 percent, while reusable water bottle sales rose by 366.67 percent. 19 As parks analyze the impacts of going bottled water free on concessioners and park partners, they should also consider the potential savings from decreased recycling and solid waste removal costs. As noted above, in some parks, single-use plastic bottles account for 10-30 percent of the waste stream. 4
8. How do parks educate visitors on their bottledwater-free policies and the importance of choosing the tap? Many parks design informational signs displayed in visitor centers or at water filling stations. These signs explain the environmental benefits of drinking tap water with reusable water bottles (see examples below). Parks also often partner with concessioners in educational efforts, such as posting signs in locations where other bottled beverages or reusable bottles are available. Park-goers seem to appreciate these visual educational components. In fact, staff at Grand Canyon National Park have observed parents using these signs to educate children about the importance of sustainability and drinking from the tap. 20 Grand Canyon National Park Superintendent Dave Uberuaga at filling station featuring educational poster. 5
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9. What do park-goers think about national parks going bottled water free? Park-goers lovers of the outdoors look to national parks as leaders in environmental stewardship. They overwhelmingly support parks that promote sustainability by going bottled water free. More than 60,000 park-goers all around the country have already called on the National Park Service to phase out bottled water at a national scale. People all across the country have visited their favorite national parks to call on park leadership to go bottled water free. Community residents at Saratoga National Historical Park (NY) Students at Sitka National Historical Park (AK) 7
10. What are other examples of bottled-water-free institutional policies? The national movement to phase out bottled water extends beyond the dozens of national parks that have taken leadership. The bottled-water-free movement has widespread support all across the country as way to promote sustainability and access to safe, clean tap water. To date, more than 140 cities, six states, dozens of universities, and hundreds of small businesses have taken action to prioritize tap over bottled water. 21 This spring, the San Francisco Board of Supervisors voted to eliminate the sale and distribution of bottled water on city property including in all city parks. 22 Universities across the country, from Brown University in Rhode Island 23 to the University of Seattle in Washington, are bucking the bottle on campus. 24 Cities and states that have taken action to phase out bottled water around the country 8
ENDNOTES 1 Norton, Shawn. Plastic Water Bottles in National Parks and the Green Parks Plan. Memo to Steve Whitesell. January 5, 2010. http:// www.peer.org/assets/docs/nps/12_2_11_env_consequences.pdf (accessed August 15, 2014). 2 Parks are required by NPS to analyze their waste streams prior to going bottled water free. These findings are supported by several park waste stream analyses published by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (http://www.peer.org/). 3 Corporate Accountability International. 10 Reasons Why National Parks Should Buck the Bottle. March 8, 2013. http://www.stopcorporateabuse.org/blog/10-reasons-why-national-parks-should-buck-the-bottle (accessed August 15, 2014). 4 United States Department of the Interior. National Park Service. Green Parks Plan: Advancing Our Mission through Sustainable Operations. April 2012, 11. http://www.nps.gov/greenparksplan/downloads/nps_2012_green_parks_plan.pdf (accessed August 17, 2014). 5 Parks are required by NPS to analyze their waste streams prior to going bottled water free. These findings are supported by several park waste stream analyses published by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (http://www.peer.org/). 6 United States Department of the Interior. National Park Service. Sustainability Success Story: Water-filling Stations at Zion National Park. Sustainable Operations and Climate Change. http://www.nps.gov/sustainability/parks/downloads/gpp%20success_zion_bottles_4_17_12.pdf (accessed August 17, 2014). 7 Colorado National Monument. Request for Approval to Eliminate the Sale of Water in Individual Disposal Containers. Memo to John Wessels. February 5, 2013, 1. http://www.peer.org/assets/docs/nps/3_25_14_colo_bottle_ban.pdf (accessed August 15, 2014). 8 Petrified Forest National Park. Request for Approval to Eliminate the Sale of Water in Disposable Plastic Bottles. Memo to John Wessels. August 27, 2012, 1. http://www.peer.org/assets/docs/nps/4_24_13_petrified_forest.pdf (accessed August 17, 2014). 9 Timpanogos Cave National Monument. Request for Approval to Eliminate the Sale of Water in Disposable Plastic Bottles. Memo to John Wessels. March 8, 2012, 1. http://www.peer.org/assets/docs/nps/4_24_13_timpanogos_cave.pdf (accessed August 17, 2014). 10 Yellowstone Environmental Coordinating Committee. Single Use Plastic Reduction Initiative. April 9, 2013. see: Goals & Objectives. http://www.peer.org/assets/docs/nps/4_29_14_planning_doc.pdf (accessed August 17, 2014). 11 Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility. Yellowstone Struggles with Rising Tide of Plastic Waste, Press Release, April 29, 2014. http://www.peer.org/news/news-releases/2014/04/29/yellowstone-struggles-with-rising-tide-of-plastic-waste/ (accessed August 17, 2014). 12 Yellowstone National Park. Category: Environmental Purchasing and Waste Reduction. http://www.peer.org/assets/docs/ nps/4_29_14_green_barriers.pdf (accessed August 17, 2014). 13 United States Department of the Interior. National Park Service. Recycling and Reduction of Disposable Plastic Bottles in Parks. Memo from Director Jon Jarvis. A5623 (0130). December 14, 2011. http://www.nps.gov/policy/plastic.pdf (accessed August 17, 2014). 14 Mount Rushmore National Memorial. Reduction of Disposable Plastic Water Bottles in Park. Memo to Michael T. Reynolds. March 29, 2012. http://www.peer.org/assets/docs/nps/4_24_13_mt_rushmore.pdf (accessed August 17, 2014). 15 Parks are required by NPS to analyze these costs before going bottled water free. These findings are supported by several park analyses published by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (http://www.peer.org/). 16 Grand Canyon National Park. Analysis of Potential Impacts/Effects of Bottle Ban. February, 1, 2012. http://www.nps.gov/aboutus/ foia/upload/13-255_ruch_released_forweb.pdf (accessed August 17, 2014).
17 Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility. More National Parks Ban Plastic Bottle Sales: Plastic Bottles Are Largest Single Contributor to National Park Solid Waste Load, Press Release, March 25, 2014, http://www.peer.org/news/news-releases/2014/03/25/ more-national-parks-ban-plastic-bottle-sales/ (accessed August 17, 2014). 18 Pecos National Historical Park. Request for Approval to Eliminate the Sale of Water in Disposable Plastic Bottles. Memo to Laura E. Joss. November 5, 2013. http://www.peer.org/assets/docs/nps/3_25_14_pecos_bottle_ban.pdf (accessed August 17, 2014). 19 Grand Canyon National Park. Analysis of Potential Impacts/Effects of Bottle Ban. February 1, 2012. http://www.nps.gov/aboutus/ foia/upload/13-255_ruch_released_forweb.pdf (accessed August 17, 2014). 20 Based on Corporate Accountability International s conversations with Grand Canyon National Park staff. 21 Corporate Accountability International. Actions around the country: Highlights from around the country in the movement to Think Outside the Bottle. December 11, 2012. http://www.stopcorporateabuse.org/sites/default/files/resources/actions_around_the_ country_4_page_spread.pdf (accessed August 18, 2014). 22 Rusk, Molly. San Francisco Bans Sale of Plastic Water Bottles on Public Property. Yes!. June 13, 2014. http://www.yesmagazine.org/ planet/san-francisco-is-banning-plastic-water-bottles (accessed August 18, 2014). 23 Theen, Andrew. Ivy Colleges Shunning Bottled Water Jab at $22 Billion Industry. Bloomberg. Mar 7, 2012. http://www.bloomberg. com/news/2012-03-07/ivy-colleges-shunning-bottled-water-jab-at-22-billion-industry.html (accessed August 18, 2014). 24 Seattle University. Plastic Bottled Water-Free Campus. http://www.seattleu.edu/sustainability/what-su-is-doing/water/ (accessed August 18, 2014).