Celeste Digiovanni may have found a solution for schools that have banned the sale of bottled water on campus.
(University of Ottawa) After banning the sale of bottled water on campus in 2010 to cut down on waste produced by plastic bottles, the University of Ottawa has launched a new initiative — selling aluminum bottles in campus vending machines.
She said the plastic water bottle ban left a gap for students who wanted easy access to transportable water.
She said many students — herself included — were buying bottled beverages, such as pop, from vending machines and reusing the bottles for water.
Wanted portable access to water Digiovanni met with the campus sustainability manager and landed herself an internship with the sustainability office to come up with a plan to come up with a solution.
Ultimately they decided to sell aluminum bottles in vending machines.
The bottles cost $3 each, and are sold empty — that way students are still encouraged to use public water and at the same time making it portable.
The bottles can be used over and over again.
Digiovanni now hopes that other schools might look at the new program for inspiration.
"I’m really hoping they might take it on."