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Plastic Recycling Facts

  • In 2006, Americans drank about 167 bottles of water each, but only recycled an average of 23 percent. That leaves 38 billion water bottles in landfills.
  • Bottled water costs between $1 and $4 per gallon and 90 percent of the cost is in the bottle, lid and label.
  • According to the Beverage Marketing Corp, the average American consumed 1.6 gallons of bottled water in 1976. In 2006 that number jumped to 28.3 gallons.
  • It takes over 1.5 million barrels of oil to manufacture a year’s supply of bottled water. That’s enough oil to fuel 100,000 cars.
  • Eight out of 10 plastic water bottles become landfill waste.
  • In 2007 we spent $16 billion on bottled water. That’s more than we spent on iPods or movie tickets.
  • Plastic bottles take 700 years before they begin to decompose in a landfill.
  • If everyone in NYC gave up water bottles for one week they would save 24 million bottles from being landfilled; one month would save 112 million bottles and one year would save 1.328 billion bottles from going into the landfill.

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