The Extent of the UK’s Single-Use Plastic Consumption

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Let’s become more conscious of the amount of single-use plastic we consume in the UK

Despite British tap water being one of the best water supplies in the world, every year in the UK an estimated 7.7 billion bottles of water are still being sold. Regarding the contribution to pollution from this single-use plastic item alone, it takes 162g of oil and seven litres of water to manufacture a single one-litre disposable PET bottle. Subsequently, 100g of Carbon Dioxide (CO2) - a major greenhouse gas is released, meaning water bottles are a significant contributor to pollution even if they are recycled after use. As we enter the month of Plastic-Free July, you can help to slow down the effects of climate change by reducing your use of single-use plastics throughout this month and beyond.

How much does your city contribute to plastic pollution?

To highlight the extent of plastic pollution just from bottled water in the UK, we have discovered approximately how much each of the major cities in the UK is contributing to plastic pollution, based on the amount of bottled water they buy.

London

Based on the figure that 7.7 billion bottles of water are bought every year in the UK, and referring to a recent study, Londoners make up nearly a seventh of this plastic pollution. This amounts to an estimated 1,539,952,400 bottles of water being bought annually, that’s 175 bottles per person.

To put this into perspective, this would amount to approximately 890 times the length of the River Thames if the bottles were laid vertically. With this figure just representing London's consumption alone, it indicates the shocking truth behind how much single-use plastic we use in the UK, from bottled water alone.

Despite this, London is doing a great deal to encourage purchasing less bottled water by installing free water fountains across the city. With initiatives such as this, in time we should see a decline in plastic water bottle waste.

Birmingham

With Birmingham having the second largest population in the UK, it’s no surprise that the estimated number of water bottles purchased annually reaches over 120 million.

To help to visualise this issue, we compared Birmingham's consumption to the Bullring shopping centre, where we found that the estimated annual amount of bottles bought equated to around 446,287 times the height of the shopping centre when stacked vertically.

Fortunately, the city is putting measures in place to try and reduce plastic waste from bottled water. At the Commonwealth Games last year, Severn Trent announced that they saved approximately 480,000 plastic bottles by running refill stations at every game station. This indicates that a large proportion of bottled water is purchased purely due to convenience.

Leeds

Leeds has a population of nearly 812 thousand people. Because of this, it’s estimated that their contribution to the 7.7 billion bottles of plastic water bought every year is also high. According to our data, Leeds residents' contribution amounts to over 85 million bottles of water bought annually.

As this figure is difficult to visualise, we have worked out what this would look like next to one of Leeds’ landmarks, the Town Hall. According to our data, Leeds’ annual consumption of bottled water could tower 247,694 times higher than the Town Hall when stacked vertically. When you consider that this is the impact of just one city globally, it’s clear to see why we must all reduce our individual plastic pollution to protect the planet.

Glasgow

Glasgow, the biggest city in Scotland, has a population of just over 635 thousand people. Because of this, we have estimated that the city buys over 66 million bottles of water every year. Shockingly, based on figures from ONS, this amounts to an estimated £156.1 million spent on bottled water alone by residents of Glasgow.

Similar to London, the Glasgow council are putting initiatives in place to reduce the need to purchase single-use bottled water. Last year the city announced the introduction of four Top Up Taps for the city, which already has six. This way being able to refill your bottle is much more convenient for residents, reducing the need to purchase unnecessary single-use plastic.

Sheffield

Sheffield is the fifth largest city in the UK, housing over 556 thousand residents. Due to the large population, naturally, plastic waste is greater too. According to our data, those who live in the city could be purchasing over 58 million bottles of water every year- a figure that will contribute greatly to environmental issues across the world.

Despite this, if you’re a resident of Sheffield, there are ways you can get a free refill when you're in the city centre. Both University campuses offer free refilling stations in all of their buildings, in addition to a lot of high street stores like Greggs and WHSmiths offering to fill your bottle for free also.

Rank	City	Population of the city	Estimated Plastic Bottles Bought Per City Annually*
1	London	8,799,728	1,539,952,400
2	Birmingham	1,144,919	120,497,570
3	Leeds	811,953	85,454,397
4	Glasgow	635,100	66,841,416
5	Sheffield	556,521	58,571,330
6	Manchester	551,938	58,088,989
7	Bradford	546,412	57,507,403
8	Edinburgh	526,500	55,411,754
9	Liverpool	486,088	51,158,573
10	Bristol	472,465	49,724,814
11	Leicester	368,572	38,790,544
12	Cardiff	362,310	38,131,496
13	Coventry	345,324	36,343,796
14	Nottingham	323,632	34,060,811
15	Newcastle Upon Tyne	300,125	31,586,805

*Based on the below methodology

Every day, 15 million bottles of water are littered, landfilled, or incinerated

Source: Water.org.uk

The true cost of bottled water for Brits

Now that we’ve established the approximate amount of bottled water each city in the UK is buying, it makes sense to estimate what this looks like on an individual basis too.

With Brits purchasing around 7.7 billion bottles of water every year as a collective, this amounts to an average of 114 bottles per person every year. Whilst this habit is not only extremely bad for the environment, according to data from the ONS, it could also have a devastating impact on your bank balance too.

Recent data from the ONS shows that the average price of a bottle of mineral water in the UK is £2.15 per bottle. This means that individuals in the UK could be spending at least £245 per year on plastic water bottles - equating to £588 per UK household based on recent data that the average UK household size is 2.36 people.

So, if the harm your doing to the environment by purchasing single-use plastics hasn’t resonated with you yet, perhaps the cost of not cutting back will be more of an eye-opener.

But, why are Brits still buying bottled water?

With the UK having access to some of the best quality water in the world, it begs the question as to why we have such an issue with people buying single-use bottles.

Tap water taste is the biggest contributor

According to data from Statista, the main reason people in the UK cited for purchasing bottled water was that “it tastes better than tap water”. Whilst the taste of tap water can differ from region to region due to higher chlorine or mineral levels, relying on bottled water doesn’t need to be the answer anymore. Having a filtered water tap installed in your home is a better long-term solution both economically and environmentally. This way impurities from the water will be removed, improving its taste and quality.

Convenience is convincing Brits to buy more water

For those on the go, being able to hydrate isn’t always easy. Therefore it’s no surprise that 32% of Brits cited convenience as their reason for buying bottled water. Despite this, councils are putting measures in place to reduce the need to buy bottled water by placing free water fountains in a lot of major cities like London and Glasgow.

How to reduce your single-use plastic waste

1.Purchase a reusable bottle

One of the easiest ways to reduce the impact of your usage of single-usage plastic water bottles is to invest in a reusable bottle. Not only do reusable bottles reduce plastic waste, they reduce CO2 emissions and are a cost-effective way to remain hydrated.

When you’re on the go, make sure to use the Refill app to find your nearest free refill station to avoid needing to buy a bottle unnecessarily.

2. Find a new purpose for your bottle

Before you dispose of your bottle, consider whether there is an alternative use for it. For example, you can transform any bottle into the perfect makeshift bird feeder with a simple DIY activity. This way you are finding multiple uses for the bottle, making the purchase more sustainable.

3. Recycle your bottles

If you’re on the go and bottled water is your only option, make sure you’re disposing of it properly to reduce its impact on the environment by simply using the correct bin to dispose of your bottle.

4. Install a filter water tap in your home

Additionally, installing a filtered water tap in your home, could not only improve the taste of your tap water but reduce plastic pollution as well. Filtered water taps remove chlorine and other impurities from the water, helping to improve its taste and quality.

If helping to slow the impact of climate change is important to you, join us this July (and beyond) to make a real difference by committing to reducing your single-use plastic consumption as much as you can.

Methodology

To work out the estimated amount of bottled water each city buys every year, we used data from London Gov which claimed that 7.7 billion plastic water bottles are used in the UK each year.

Using data from a recent report from One Less Bottle, 175 bottles are used by Londoners each day. We then calculated this for the total London population by multiplying this figure by the capital's population, and divided the remaining UK population per city using population data from Nomis to work out how this figure is estimated to be proportioned out per capita to calculate each city's estimated plastic bottle usage..

We then ranked these in order of size to show a comparison of the height of the plastic problem in each city. This has been ranked purely on a population basis and is in no way suggesting that any city is contributing to plastic pollution the most, it is to visualise the countrywide plastic problem to make Brits think about their plastic consumption.

Asset methodology:

London:

To get the figure of 890, we found that the River Thames measures 215 miles in length. We then converted this into centimetres which we then divided by the average height of a 500ml water bottle (20cm) to find out how many bottles fit the length of the Thames. We then divided London’s plastic consumption by this figure to get the result (1,539,952,400/ 1,730,044.8).

Birmingham:

To get the figure of 446,287, we used the height of the Bullring (54 meters) and divided it by the average height of a 500ml water bottle (20cm) to find how many bottles are the height of the Bullring. We then divided Birmingham’s plastic consumption by this figure to get the result (120,497,570 / 270).

Leeds:

To get the figure of 247,694, we used the height of Leeds Town Hall (69 meters) and divided it by the average height of a 500ml water bottle (20cm) to find how many bottles are the height of Leeds Town Hall. We then divided Leeds’ plastic consumption by this figure to get the result (85,454,397/ 345).

To get the figure for the amount Brits spend on Bottled water:

We used source 1 which indicated that 7.7 billion single-use plastic water bottles are bought in the UK every year. We then used the population of the UK (67.33 million) which we used to find the estimated number of plastic water bottles bought per person in the UK. This figure (114) was then multiplied by ONS’s latest figures on the cost of bottled mineral (£2.15) water to give a figure of £245.

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