It's the most wonderful - and most hectic - time of year. AAA estimates that 100.5 million Americans will take to the skies this holiday season, a 1.4 percent increase from last year. As we navigate our way through mile-long airport security lines, flight delays and missed connections this holiday season, airport sustainability can all too easily be the last thing on any of our minds as we board.
Although environmentally friendly might sound incongruous with air travel, the International Council on Clean Transportation recently reported that fuel efficiency of new airplanes has improved by 45%. Airports as a whole are catching on and are also making sustainable changes a priority: Logan International Airport in Boston, MA has committed to cutting their carbon emissions by 40% and energy consumptions by 25% by 2020 and JFK has also announced an area of their airport will be dedicated to growing potatoes that JetBlue uses in their in-flight potato chip snacks.
But what can you do to even further the environmental consciousness and sustainability efforts at the airport? According to the Environmental Science Associates, about 22% of the airport waste stream is made of beverage containers. Specifically, The Wall Street Journal recently reported that one of the most purchased items in airport, and one of the most talked about products this year is none other than, bottled water.
So choose wisely when you buy at the airport and grab a more sustainable pre-flight beverage (that is unless you have your reusable water bottle on hand). The JUST water paper bottle is made up of 53% renewable materials (paper), and provides the conscious traveler with a more responsible, sustainable bottled water choice before boarding a plane. JUST water and CIBO Express Gourmet Markets have joined forces to give travelers an alternative to the traditional bottled water that limits their footprint on the environment. It's small travel decisions like these that can add up to big environmental impacts, during the holiday season and beyond.