Recyclables found Friday, September 26, 2008

On Friday, I picked up three bottles, all plastic. One was a Sprite bottle, one was a Deer Park Eco-Shape bottle, and one was a roadkilled bottle that had too much dirt on it for its brand name to be readily readable. It's only when I scrubbed the third bottle with an old toothbrush that I did a double take. My camera isn't very good, but here's a photo of it.


I also took close-up pictures of the left and right sides of the label. However, the photos aren't very clear, so here's a description of what they show. The bottle has the seal of the United States Senate on it. To the left of the seal is "WWW.SENATERESTAURANTS.GOV", and to the right of the seal is "Designed & distributed by DrinkMore Custom Water 1-877-YourWater www.DMCWater.com 24 fluid ounces Ultrapurified Water".

This is the closest I've ever come to finding a discarded recyclable that could be traced back to the person who littered with it. Unfortunately, however, there's no way to tell which senator, senate staffer, or lobbyist tossed the bottle on the road. I wish there was, because I'd love to be able to go to the appropriate senator's office and tell them how I feel about littering. And while we're at it, Mr./Ms. Senator, why the heck do the senate restaurants even provide bottled water? Can't you drink from reusable cups?

Mostly, I just wish I could get the story behind how the bottle came to be on my street. I'm guessing that someone who isn't actually a senator took it from a senate restaurant as a trophy to show friends and family, but if that's the case, why didn't they hold onto it instead of tossing it in the street?

Anyway, in summary, Friday's collection consisted of:

• 3 plastic bottles (1 Sprite, 1 Deer Park Eco-Shape water, 1 United States Senate water)