The Environmental Impact of Plastic Bottles

"Most water bottles are made from a certain type of plastic derived from petroleum and called Polyethylene Terephthalate, also known as PET. According to a study published by National Geographic magazine, the world's largest bottled water consumer, the US, produces about 29 billion water bottles per year. This involves approximately 17 million barrels of oil in PET production.
When we compare PET packaging life cycle with the life cycle of aluminum and glass, PET is the one that causes the biggest environmental impacts. When PET bottles reach the oceans, seas and rivers, they take about 400 years in the degradation process, and can cause the loss of biodiversity. In addition, they end up turning into microplastic (small plastic particles that are polluting and toxic, being responsible for killing thousands of animals around the world when they confuse these particles with food."
This study made by National Geographic magazine really had a psychological impact on all team elements and motivated us to continue the project with more wareness of the environmental impact that we want to implement in our society.