He and other students believe that completely eliminating the sale of disposable plastic water bottles on campus is the only way to achieve zero waste by 2020.
"We want to ban the sale of plastic water bottles because plastic is the No.
1 threat to marine ecosystems," said Mnatsakanian.
"Bottled water plants negatively affect surrounding communities, and annual purchases of bottled water are 2000 times more expensive than using tap water.
On top of that, tap water has significantly lower rates of potentially damaging substances."
The ban on plastic water bottles isn’t the first campaign aimed at decreasing their presence on campus.
"Breaking the Plastic Habit" was an SSC campaign in 2011 that pledged to eliminate the sale of plastic water bottles in dining halls and resulted in the installation of the first 10 hydration stations on campus.
The All Campuses Plastic Water Bottle Ban campaign plans to implement lasting policy not only at UC San Diego, but all UC campuses.
"Thanks to years of working with campus administration, UC San Diego Plastic Water Bottle Ban campaign leaders now have the expertise to teach student environmentalists at other campuses how to implement changes," said Mnatsakanian.
During this year’s event, Mnatsakanian directed Student Sustainability Collective leaders from campuses around the country about bypassing initiatives and aiming straight for policy changes.