Life Cycle of a Cornell Water Bottle
Impacts Associated with Cornell’s Annual Bottled Water Consumption
(~500,000 20 ounce bottles/year)
Estimated Annual Energy Use
& Carbon Dioxide Emissions
Manufacture Plastic Bottle
Treat Water, Fill,
Label & Seal Bottle
250000
Manufacture
plastic bottle
Raw
Materials
Life Cycle Assessment
Treat water & fill,
label, seal bottle
200000
Environmental impacts* caused
directly or indirectly by our
consumption of bottled water
during its whole life cycle
Redemption and/or
Campus Recycling
Trasportation to
point of sale
Transportation
to Point of Sale
Landfill Disposal
150000
Cooling for
Consumption
Cooling for
consumption
100000
Landfill Disposal
(with gas for
energy
recovery)**
Bottle redemption
for deposit and
recycling**
50000
Campus
recycling**
Annual Greenhouse Gas
Emissions Equivalency
x 500,000 =
Annual GHG
Emissions of 29.8
Passenger Vehicles
0
Energy use
CO2
kWh(e) Emitted (kg)
*There are life cycle impacts beyond the atmospheric deterioration represented here. These range from use of landfill
space and emission of hazardous air and water pollutants to commercialization of a public resource.
‐50000**Assumes national average recycling rate of 28%, with half of recycled bottles taken by individuals to redemption centers.