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President Trump has made sweeping efforts to scrap Obama-era environmental protections, but the current administration’s latest moves are oddly specific.

The National Park Service (NPS) announced Wednesday that it has rescinded the 2011 “Water Bottle Ban” that allowed parks to prohibit the sale of disposable plastic water bottles. That same day, news emerged that the Trump administration removed a nine-slot Capital Bikeshare station at the White House that was requested and installed during the Obama years and used by staffers.

The NPS said that the bottled water ban “removed the healthiest beverage choice at a variety of parks while still allowing sales of bottled sweetened drinks.” Revocation of the 2011 memorandum is effective immediately.

“While we will continue to encourage the use of free water bottle filling stations as appropriate, ultimately it should be up to our visitors to decide how best to keep themselves and their families hydrated during a visit to a national park, particularly during hot summer visitation periods,” acting NPS director Michael T. Reynolds explained.

According to the Wilderness Society, 23 national parks had adopted the policy, including Grand Canyon, Mount Rushmore, Hawaii Volcanoes National Park and Zion National Park. The group said the Water Bottle Ban—an effort under President Obama’s Green Parks Plan to promote the use of tap water and refillable bottles on federal lands—helped parks “simultaneously reduce park waste and carbon emissions.”

But as the San Francisco Chronicle reported, the water bottle ban was opposed by the beverage industry that had long lobbied to change the policy.

Watchdog groups criticized the initiative. “Just as we’ve seen across the board with the Trump administration, this is an example of the industry working behind the scenes to protect its profits,” Lauren DeRusha Florez, associate campaign director at Corporate Accountability International, told the Chronicle. “Plastic water bottles have a tremendous environmental impact.”

Wenonah Hauter, executive director of Food & Water Watch, was far from pleased with the announcement. “This action puts the NPS firmly on the side of major corporations that make up the bulk of the bottled water industry,” she said. “This latest move is yet another attempt to weaken the policies that protect our vital, vulnerable natural resources.”

Meanwhile, Trump has also nixed a Capital Bikeshare dock on 17th Street and State Place that was set up in 2010.

District Department of Transportation spokesperson Terry Owens told the Washingtonian that the station was removed earlier this week at the Trump administration’s request.

It’s unclear what the White House had against the bikeshare station. One suggestion, a DC resident explained to Breitbart, is that the Trump administration wanted to trim spending. Trump’s budget proposal in May cuts funds for the Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) act, which funded construction for many of DC’s Capital Bikeshare stations, the Right-wing publication pointed out.

On the other hand, as Raw Story noted, “Capital Bikeshare users average saving $631 per year on personal travel cost, meaning the removal of the 9-slot station could cost White House staff $5,679 in increased transportation expenditures.”

4. Why we shouldn’t reuse plastic bottles

A plastic bottle can exude dangerous chemicals. Pay attention to the special signs on the bottom: those numbered triangles indicate which kind of plastic was used.

  • A bottle labeled 1 (PET or PETE) is only safe for a single use. When exposed to oxygen or high temperatures, including sun heat, such a bottle will discharge toxic substances that get into the water.
  • Avoid bottles labeled 3 or 7 (PVC and PC) as they exude toxic chemicals able to penetrate your food and drinks, and lengthy exposure can even result in severe health problems.

Bottles made of polyethylene (2 and 4) and polypropylene (5 and PP) are suitablefor multiple uses. They’re relatively safe if you only store cold water in them and regularly disinfect them.

3. Bacteria and basic hygiene breaches

Drinking water from a used plastic bottle is almost the same as licking a toilet seat, a dog’s toy, or even worse scientists say. The amount of bacteria in such bottles often exceeds safety limits. We create the perfect growth conditions ourselves by taking the bottle with dirty hands, not rinsing it thoroughly enough, and keeping warm water in it.

What to do then? Wash bottles regularly with warm soapy water, vinegar, or antibacterial mouthwash.

Even with washing the bottles thoroughly, we may still get food poisoning or even hepatitis A. Research showed that most bacteria live on bottle necks that you can’t wash well enough. Twist caps and sliding caps teem with germs that you swallow along with water. To be on the safe side, use a straw.

2. Where does your water come from?

A lot of companies love to mention on their packaging that the water you buy comes from a picturesque stream. But the truth is a lot of times the water you buy in a bottle is identical to the water you get from your faucet at home!

Actually, you can even see that on the bottle itself, usually in a tiny text that everybody neglects. Companies are obliged to explain that the source of water for them is the main water supply channel. That way the water costs way, way less than what you are paying for it!

1. Not really healthy

Not even mentioning the bacteria hazard, there are common misconceptions about water.

Bottled water companies want to attract the new market of young and sporty people. So they advertise bottled water with different tastes added to it, claiming “it’s healthier for you” than other sugary drinks.

Well, in fact, sometimes this water can contain as much sugar as a soda! To not be fooled by advertising, always check the information on the label.

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