BYO Water Bottles!

The first sale ban of plastic water bottles

San Francisco has become the first major US City to ban the sale of single use plastic water bottles on public property and on city permitted events.

The ban will phase out all bottles that are 21 ounces or less within the next four years, impacting city buildings, parks and festivals, as well as park vendors, food truck operators, and street fairs. There will be exceptions for some sports outings, and when no other adequate water source is available.

Not everyone is on board with the legislation that will come into effect October 1, the American Beverage Association has opposed the ban, calling it "nothing more than a solution in search of a problem." But according to National Geographic, Americans buy more bottled water than any other nation in the world, adding 29 billion water bottles a year to the problem. 

So as San Francisco-ers get ready for BYO Water Bottles, we may start to see other cities follow in their environmentally friendly footsteps. It's not unlike the recent ban by the city of Los Angeles on plastic bags. It's not without its growing pains, but when one city sets an example, we start to see others follow suit. New York's Mayor Bill de Blasio has also now expressed support for a ban on plastic bags.

What do you think? Will other cities follow behind? And what's the likelihood of it working? Let us know on Facebook or Twitter!