(AP) — Plastic bottles: an everyday object, but an environmental menace.
And in the UK, not enough people are swapping these throwaway items for reusable bottles – that’s according to research by Keep Britain Tidy and Brita.
They surveyed 2,138 people and found just 36 percent regularly carry a reusable bottle.
"I think our children will look back at this moment in time in horror and wonder at the way we were behaving."
At Borough Market in London, the management is trying to do its bit for the environment by installing water fountains and banning the sale of bottled water.
"We have to think of the next generation and the world that they’re living in and how we can create a much better world for them so that they’re not going to be looking back on the generation that was before and say ‘they didn’t care about us’," says David Matchett, Development Manager for Borough Market.
Discarded plastics cause terrible environmental problems.
One woman says a lot of places don’t have water fountains available "so you end up having to buy a plastic water bottle".
"I buy water, branded water, because London water tastes horrible," claims a man.
Keep Britain Tidy wants more water fountains to be introduced across the UK so people can easily stay hydrated on the go, without using lots of unnecessary plastic.