Bundanoon, NSW
Posted: 28.09.09 | Created by: Do Something
Overview
Bundanoon is a country town two hours from Sydney with a population of 2,500 residents.
The community has been concerned about the environmental and financial impacts of bottled water, with Australia's annual consumption standing at about 600 million litres a year.
This in turn creates about 60,000 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions every year.
Bringing the issue to sharp focus is the looming spectre of Norlex, who have applied to commercially extract water from a bore within the Bundanoon precinct.
Solution
Bundanoon voted in July 2009 to become Australia's first town to ban commercially pre-packaged single-use bottled water from its retail outlets.
Local businessman Huw Kingston approached Jon Dee, chairman of Do Something. Together, they organised the support of business owners and arranged a community meeting.
356 residents turned out for the meeting and overwhelmingly voted in favour of the ban - with only one dissenting vote.
Results
On September 26, the ban formally took effect with the last bottle of commercial water taken off retail shelves.
Residents and visitors are now able to make use of high-tech filtered-water bubblers donated by Street Furniture Australia and Culligan Water.
The campaign captured the interest of media and the wider community. Media reporting of the ban was unprecedented in scale for the small town, with both Australian and international coverage, including The Sydney Morning Herald, BBC, The New York Times and The Guardian.
Following the lead of Bundanoon, NSW Premier Nathan Rees announced his decision to ban bottled water in all government departments.
Please visit Bundy on Tap to find out more.