|
Avalon, the only city on Catalina Island, has 3800 residents and approx. one million visitors a year. Although the municipal water is safe for consumption, most locals and visitors purchase bottled water. More than 1,250,000 single use bottles of water are barged to the island annually. In turn, approx. four tons of baled empty water bottles are shipped back to the mainland every month. This forces other communities to deal with our waste.
Half of the residents of Avalon are from Mexico, where tap water is not considered safe.
Our low income residents are using their limited EBT funds to purchase water when that money could be used to buy nutritious foods, if their fears were allayed.
In this first year, we want to install two filtered water bottle filling stations in convenient spots that most people frequent. These stations will be Rotary blue with a large Rotary logo at eye level. The filtered units will improve the water's taste and dispel some of the mistrust of municipal water.
Rotarians and Interact students will provide bilingual information about the project to various local agencies. Our club will pursue a partnership for reusable cups or water bottles and incorporate them with the Rotary logo. These vessels will be used at Rotary service and fundraising events to show our commitment to environmental stewardship.
Because of our geographical isolation, the success of this project is easily measurable and could serve as a National model for plastic reduction. Avalon's goal is to become a model ecological town that exemplifies environmental stewardship and promotes eco tourism. We want Rotary to be a part of that process.
| 
