In 2013, the University of Vermont banned the sale of single-use plastic water bottles on campus in an effort to cut down on plastic waste. A study conducted by Rachel Johnson, a nutrition professor at UVM, showed that the import of single-use plastic bottles to the campus actually increased by 6% after the ban. Now, students are just consuming less healthy beverages out of plastic. UVM markets itself as a green university, and the campus wide plastic water bottle ban is often seen as an example of this. We must show UVM that we do not support green washing, we want effective change. Help us reduce the plastic waste on campus by urging the University of Vermont to remove all single-use plastic beverages from vending machines. 

There are alternatives to plastic bottles, and students should still have access to beverages other than water in aluminum or glass bottles, which are easier to recycle. UVM has also implemented drink dispensers in dining halls, and a solution may be to put them in more locations around campus. To help offset the cost of this implementation, students can purchase specific, reusable bottles to fill from the dispensers. These are just a few ideas to help encourage the university that there are alternatives to plastic bottles.