Many of us North Americans purchase water on a daily basis and some of us use solely bottled water for our homes. Here are some hard facts about plastic bottles from the Green Upgrader:

• Plastic bottles take 700 years to begin composting
• 90% of the cost of bottled water is due to the bottle itself
• 80% of plastic bottles are not recycled
• 38 million plastic bottles go to the dump per year in America from bottled water (not including soda)
• 24 million gallons of oil are needed to produce a billion plastic bottles
• The average American consumes 167 bottles of water a year
• Bottling and shipping water is the least energy efficient method ever used to supply water
• Bottled water is the second most popular beverage in the United States

Those are some pretty unreal facts, especially when you see that 80% isn’t recycled and then think about how long it takes to decompose.

321 Water is a beautifully designed water bottle with an e easy-to-use plunger mechanism that contains a carbon block filter. One push removes any chlorine, unpleasant tastes and odors in an instant, leaving you with fresh, filtered water anytime you need it. The downside is that it’s not exactly a one time investment so you might be skeptical about the savings. The carbon filter last for up to 100 uses and a 3 pack replacement cost $12.50. Essentially this is going to cost you much less with the purchase of plastic bottles.

The bottle itself cost $44.50 but the company requires a pre-orders of 10,000 to begin production for shipping by June. So this Earth Day, think about what you will do to help the planet. What other ways to save and help the planet do you have in mind or plan on doing? Share them in the comments, below!