LETTER: Keep water bottle sales

To the editor:

I think the new bottle-filler attachments to existing water fountains are a great idea. The machines are a snap to use and the water is nice, and cold. That being said, I think banning the sale of bottled water on campus is taking things too far. I use the unit in the library nearly every day, but I’m filling a bottle I bought on campus from the Quadside Café. It’s nice to be able to buy a new bottle if I forget to bring mine, or if I end up leaving it on the bus.

If we ban bottled water, are we then going to ban soda in glass, aluminum and plastic containers, because we have fountain drinks available? What about spiral notebooks? Should the Bookstore stop selling them because many people have laptops and that is less of a paper waste? These are the types of questions that need to be answered before a proposal like this can go forward with any hope of success.

Conservation is important, but the university should be encouraging participation not demanding it. The university already has a recycling program in place to reduce waste for plastic, aluminum, paper and glass products. The new filler units are also a great step in encouragement and should be used. Just don’t take away my choice to buy a bottle of water.

Laura Gittins