Reuse of bottles: Difference between revisions

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Reusable mineral water bottles in crates.

Reusing water bottles is the practice of refilling and reuse of plastic or glass water bottles designed for one use, with tap water for multiple uses.

Reusing single-use bottles is a common domestic practice. Typically the bottle is washed out with warm soapy water after each use. Periodically a bleach solution may be employed to kill bacteria. Washing and re-using bottles cuts down on waste and landfill, and drinking tap water is much less resource-intensive than buying commercially bottled water.

Bacterial concerns

The biggest risk for reusing bottles is that bacteria could develop in the bottle between uses. Thus some elect to clean the interior with warm/hot soapy water and let it fully dry before re-filling. The American Cancer Society has suggested that the risk is likely low. ^{[citation needed]} New Zealand Food Safety Authority Recommends the concept of using plastic bottles only once; not for carcinogenic reasons, but for matters of bacteria. Mouth contact to the bottle openings can easily transfer bacteria to the water content which can subsequently contaminate both bottle and water. The contamination will result in bacterial and fungal growth in the water while kept in storage except if you cleaned the bottle very well before reuse .^[1]

Other chemicals of concern

Bisphenol A (BPA) is a chemical of concern for water bottles, especially those intended for reuse and made of polycarbonate (which shares resin identification code 7 with other plastics).^[2] High temperatures and bleaching are believed to increase leaching of BPA. Several countries have banned the use of plastics containing BPA used for water and other food items.

Leaching of phthalates from PVC (resin identification code 3) is also a concern, but PVC is not typically used for water bottles.

From about.com:

"Health advocates also recommend not reusing bottles made from plastic #1 (polyethylene terephthalate, also known as PET or PETE), including most disposable water, soda and juice bottles. According to The Green Guide, such bottles may be safe for one-time use, but re-use should be avoided because studies indicate they may leach DEHP—another probable human carcinogen—when they are in less-than-perfect condition." The website for the American Cancer Society contradicts this.^[3]

DEHA is neither regulated nor classified as a human carcinogen by the U.S. Occupational Safety & Health Administration, the National Toxicology Program or the International Agency for Research on Cancer, the leading authorities on carcinogenic substances.

In 1991, on the basis of very limited data, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency classified DEHA as a "possible human carcinogen." However, in 1995, EPA again evaluated the science and concluded that "...overall, the evidence is too limited to establish that DEHA is likely to cause cancer."

Further, DEHA is not inherent in PET as a raw material, byproduct or decomposition product. DEHA is a common plasticizer that is used in innumerable plastic items, many of which are found in the laboratory. For this reason, the student’s detection of DEHA is likely to have been the result of inadvertent lab contamination. This is supported by the fact that DEHA was detected infrequently (approximately 6% of the samples) and randomly, meaning that the frequency of detection bore no relationship to the test conditions.

Moreover, DEHA has been cleared by FDA for food-contact applications and would not pose a health risk even if it were present.

Finally, in June 2003, the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Testing and Research conducted a scientific study of migration in new and reused plastic water bottles from three countries. The Swiss study did not find DEHA at concentrations significantly above the background levels detected in distilled water, indicating DEHA was unlikely to have migrated from the bottles. The study concluded that the levels of DEHA were distinctly below the World Health Organization guidelines for safe drinking water.^[4]

References

^ http://www.nzfsa.govt.nz/consumers/food-safety-topics/chemicals-in-food/waterbottles/index.htm
^ Mikkelson, David (8 April 2009). "Reuse of Plastic Bottles". Snopes.com. Retrieved 29 June 2010.
^ http://www.cancer.org/docroot/med/content/med_6_1x_reusing_plastic_water_bottles.asp
^ http://www.plasticsinfo.org/s_plasticsinfo/sec_level2_faq.asp?cid=705&did=2839

@@ Line 27: / Line 27: @@
 Moreover, DEHA has been cleared by FDA for food-contact applications and would not pose a health risk even if it were present.
-Finally, in June 2003, the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Testing and Research conducted a scientific study of migration in new and reused plastic water bottles from three countries. The Swiss study did not find DEHA at concentrations significantly above the background levels detected in distilled water, indicating DEHA was unlikely to have migrated from the bottles. The study concluded that the levels of DEHA were distinctly below the World Health Organization guidelines for safe drinking water.
+Finally, in June 2003, the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Testing and Research conducted a scientific study of migration in new and reused plastic water bottles from three countries. The Swiss study did not find DEHA at concentrations significantly above the background levels detected in distilled water, indicating DEHA was unlikely to have migrated from the bottles. The study concluded that the levels of DEHA were distinctly below the World Health Organization guidelines for safe drinking water.<ref>http://www.plasticsinfo.org/s_plasticsinfo/sec_level2_faq.asp?cid=705&did=2839</ref>
 == See also ==

Revision as of 22:19, 29 July 2010

Bacterial concerns

Other chemicals of concern

See also

References

Further reading