Students For Stainless Steel Reusable Water Bottles

Memorandum

To: the United States Environmental Protection Agency

From: Students for Stainless Steel Reusable Water Bottles

Re: Grant Project / 12 Feb. 2019

Application Group Name: Students for Stainless Steel Reusable Water Bottles (SFSSRWB)

Individuals in the Application: Madelyn Hamilton, Annalise McCammon, Olivia Conan, Gracie Castillo, Remington Craig

Group Leader / Point of Contact for the Application: Madelyn Hamilton, 573 S 660 E, Smithfield UT 84335, [email protected]

Total Funding for the Application: $13,530

Priority Groups to be Served: Sky View High School students

Detailed Explanation of the Problem

About 21% of the students surveyed at Sky View High School (SVHS) do not have a reusable water bottle that they can bring to school (Castillo).

Plastic water bottles (which may be used instead of reusable bottles) contribute to much of the world’s pollution. The effects of plastic water bottles reach further than the students, faculty, and SVHS. The school has drinking fountains that can fill up water bottles to help lower pollution and raise student water consumption.

Justification of Problem Importance

Every year, seventeen million barrels of oil are used to produce water bottles.

It also takes a huge amount of water and energy. While plastic water bottles are recyclable, about 80% of the population will not recycle them. There are currently more than 2 million tons of plastic water bottles in landfills in the United States (Plastic). It takes 400 years for polyethylene terephthalate (PET), the plastic used for water bottles, to naturally decompose. Much of this plastic ends up in oceans and kills sea life (Steel).

Detailed Description of Proposed Solution

To reduce the negative impact it has on the environment, SVHS should provide a reusable stainless steel water bottle for every student’s use.

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Steel is safer than aluminum, does not have the BPA plastic might contain, and is easy to clean. Stainless steel water bottles can potentially be used for up to 12 years and can be recycled when they cannot be used anymore (Steel). All students will be given a water bottle when the program is first introduced, and incoming freshmen will receive them in subsequent years. The students will have the privilege to bring their reusable water bottles to school every day and be able to refill and use them when needed.

Initial Plan for the money

The expense of each stainless steel reusable water bottle that would be purchased for the SVHS students is $15.The school will purchase a water bottle for every student during the first year. Because there are 1353 students, the price the school would be paying to get these water bottles is $20,295. The fee the students will have to personally put forth is $5, changing the price to about $13,530. In the following years, each of the incoming freshmen students will receive one stainless steel water bottle. The price would be around $5,940. The total may change depending on the number of freshmen each year.

Table of Contents

1 Introduction

1-1 Description of Problem 5

1-2 Description of Solution Product 5

1-3 Justification of Solution Idea 5

2 Needs Assessment

2-1 Demographics of Target of Population 6

2-2 Urgency of Target Population Need 6

2-2 Past Attempts and Results at Addressing Problem 7

3 Program Plan

3-1 Explanation of Each Step 7

3-2 Timeline 8

3-3 Barrier Identification and Solutions 8

4 Budget

4-1 Expenses 8

4-2 In-Kind Contributions 8

4-3 Explanation of Items Not Included 8

Appendix 1: Infographic 9

Appendix 2: Timeline 10

Appendix 3: Budget 12

Appendix 4: In-Kind Contributions 13

Appendix 5: Explanation of Items Not Included 14

1 Introduction

1-1 Description of Problem

Plastic water bottles are harmful to the environment. According to healthyhumanlife.com, “It takes up to 1000 years for a single bottle of water to decompose”. This is especially dangerous because there are millions of water bottles in landfills in the United States (Plastic). Not only are water bottles dangerous for the earth, but they can also harm the human body. One source says that plastic water bottles may contain bisphenol-A (BPA) or other toxic chemicals that are dangerous to consume. Exposure to BPA may lead to health issues such as dizziness, respiratory and digestive issues, and some cancers (Environmental). Some countries have made it illegal, but plastic water bottles in the U.S. still might contain it (Stainless). This might be affecting the students of SVHS because out of the students surveyed 21% said that they did not have a water bottle that they could bring to school (Castillo). SVHS currently has drinking fountains that are made specifically to refill water bottles but does not provide water bottles for the students.

1-2 Description of Solution Product

Stainless steel water bottles help to eliminate the health and environmental issues that plastic water bottles can cause. SVHS should provide a stainless steel water bottle to students. The product is called “TAL 26 oz Double Wall Vacuum Insulated Stainless Steel Ranger Pro Water Bottle” and it is found on Walmart.com. The selected water bottle is the best choice for SVHS because of its high ratings from people who have purchased it before. The customer rating on Walmart’s website was 4.3 out of 5 stars. Customers have described it as “perfect”, “loved”, and their “favorite” water bottle (TAL). SVHS students will be expected to take full responsibility for the water bottle, so they will take it home and bring it back every day.

1-3 Justification of Solution Idea

There are other options to try to solve the problems that disposable water bottles cause, including getting more drinking fountains and students using their ow water bottles from home. However, SVHS purchasing stainless steel water bottles is the best choice. Some students may not be able to purchase their water bottlesown. About 90% of the students surveyed at SVHS said they would use the non-disposable water bottle if they were given one (Castillo). If students have a reusable water bottle with them at all times, they will not have to leave class to go to the drinking fountain, and they can refill it as many times as they would like. More than 70% of the surveyed students said that they would refill a water bottle at least once every day (Castillo). This solution will work because according to The Water Project, it will reduce the number of disposable water bottles that are never recycled. “U.S. landfills are overflowing with 2 million tons of discarded water bottles alone” (In).

2 Needs Assessment

2-1 Demographics of Target Population

The target population includes every student at Sky View High School. The geographic spread of the target population includes Smithfield, Richmond, Cove, Cornish, Lewiston, Newton, and Trenton. This covers approximately 60.8 square miles. The target population all have a diploma in progress. The average median income of these is $56,433. The economic background is important to know because some students may not be able to afford to buy their own stainless steel water bottles.

2-2 Urgency of Target Population Need

Plastic is dangerous for humans to consume. The material is porous, leaving plenty of room for bacteria to flourish. While BPA may not be present in most bottles, there are other toxins. In a study done in 2011, “70 percent of [plastic containers] released chemicals that acted like estrogen” (Stainless). Every day students are using plastic water bottles that could be poisoning their bodies.

“Every single second, 1,000 people open a bottle of water in the U.S.” (Plastic). That is 86,400 water bottles every day. According to another source, every minute is another million plastic bottles purchased around the world. They could very well contribute to the deaths of more than a million birds and animals every year that are caused by plastic in and near the ocean (Mwamba). The longer SVHS waits to implement stainless steel water bottles, the more plastic water bottles end up in landfills and the ocean.

2-3 Past Attempts and Results at Addressing Problem

SVHS has installed drinking fountains that have water bottle fillers built into them. This encourages bringing a water bottle or refilling a plastic one. The drinking fountain has a counter to keep track of how many water bottles have been filled since it was installed. As of January 30, 2019, the counter says it has filled 29,529 water bottles. The Ala Carte has plastic water bottles (Dasani and Smart Water) that are plant-based and are supposed to be more environmentally friendly (McCammon). While these solutions have been at least partly successful, they have not solved the problem at SVHS completely. Not every student has access to a reusable water bottle that can be refilled at the drinking fountain. Even if they use a plastic one, they risk exposure to toxins and will eventually contribute to the growing pile of water bottles in landfills. While the water bottles at the Ala Carte are a good idea, not many students buy water bottles in the lunch line.

3 Program Plan

3-1 Explanation of Each Step

The steps to obtaining and distributing stainless steel water bottles to the SVHS student body are as follows:

Permission or Approval: (a) Principal Monson will be asked to approve the project.

Product Research, Bid Securing, Personnel, Location Securing: (a) Students for Stainless Steel Reusable Water Bottles (SFSSRWB) have researched and determined the best water bottle. (b) The TAL 26 oz Double Wall Vacuum Insulated Stainless Steel Ranger Pro Water Bottle from Walmart.com is determined to be the best price. (c ) Mr. Morris will look over the water bottles and make sure they are high for the students.

Ordering, Purchasing, Warranties, Insurance: (a) SVHS will order 1350 TAL 26 oz Double Wall Vacuum Insulated Stainless Steel Ranger Pro Water Bottles with custom stickers. (b) Order will need to be placed in time for the product to arrive before registration of the new year. (c) Water bottles will be ordered from Walmart.com (TAL) and the custom stickers will be ordered from vistaprint.com (Custom). (d) SFSSRWB will be responsible for ordering with the help of Principal Monson.

Installation: (a) Students will be given the option to pay a small fee at registration. (b) If they so choose they will be given a water bottle at registration.

Advertising: (a) SVHS will order a sticker giving credit to the EPA for each water bottle. (b) Student leadership will come to school the week before registration to stick the stickers to each water bottle. (c) SVHS will customize these stickers on vistaprint.com. (d) SFSSRWB will be responsible for customizing and ordering the stickers.

Maintenance: (a) Maintenance will be minimal. Students will be expected to take full responsibility for their water bottles. (b) Students will sign a contract saying that if they lose and/or break their water bottle the school is not responsible to replace it.

3-2 Timeline

3-3 Barrier Identification and Solution

There are potential barriers that could prevent the product from fulfilling its purpose. Students may lose or damage their water bottles. Students will take on dofull responsibility for their water bottles when they sign the contract at the beginning of the year, so the school will not have to replace the water bottles.

4 Budget Plan

4-1: Expenses

4-2: In-Kind Contributions

4-3: Explanation of Items Not Included

Personnel: No personnel group is hired to do anything for the water bottles.

Travel: There is no travel necessary to get the water bottles. They will be shipped to the school.

Training: There is no training necessary as the student body knows how to use a water bottle.