Board urged to can bottles

Plastic water bottles could soon be expelled from Toronto public schools.  TorontoSun.com, Don Peat, Mon, May 12, 2008

Two Toronto District School Board trustees have issued similar calls for the board to ban plastic water bottles. Their move comes fresh on the heels of the Waterloo Region District School Board passing a similar ban last month.

The board will consider the motions from trustees Sheila Cary-Meagher and Josh Matlow at Wednesday's operations and facilities management committee meeting.

"Toronto has very good water," Cary-Meagher said yesterday. "It's time to get moving."

She wants a review of the board's contract with Pepsi to ensure it is possible to eliminate "the purchase and provision of water in plastic bottles."

Citing environmental and economic concerns, Cary-Meagher said the time was right for the board to ban the bottles altogether.

Despite recycling efforts, she said too many bottles still end up going into garbage bins — and ultimately into landfills.

In a bid to make sure students aren't left dry, Cary-Meagher wants the board to ensure there are adequate supplies of non-bottled drinking water in schools.

Matlow, meanwhile, wants the board to stop using plastic water bottles in schools and offices by September 2009.