Whether, When and How to Safely and Creatively Reuse Plastic Bottles

The best thing to do is to err on the side of caution and simply not reuse plastic bottles and bags for items of human consumption, such as water and food. Many people use water or other drink bottles over and over again, despite the risk of the plastic allowing toxic chemicals into the contents. However, there are a great many ways people can reuse plastic bottles creatively in order to help the environment and save on costs at home. In fact, these other forms of reuse not only give a second life to otherwise purposeless plastic bottles, they also can lead to more effective recycling of these bottles in the future!

Plastic bottles can be reused for other kinds of storage or use around the house. They are versatile and can be used for a number of purposes, from sorting and storing nail and screw collection to becoming temporary slug-traps in the garden with a little beer in the bottom! The bottoms of large plastic water or juice bottles make great snack bowls when the top halves are cut off, so long as the snacks or candies are individually wrapped (so they won't come directly in contact with the plastic). The sky is the limit: these clever reuses are only a place to start.

These and other creative reuses can add a personal and decorative flair for any green-oriented individual, allowing someone to show off both their creativity and environmentally-friendly attitudes while making something useless into something useful. Best of all, none of these uses preclude future recycling: if and when a secondary reuse of a plastic bottle is no longer needed, the bottles or bottle-parts can still be recycled along with other plastics by traditional means. Moreover, since recycling techniques are constantly improving, keeping plastic bottles around for longer also indirectly leads to better eventual recycling.

So, while it is safer to avoid reusing plastic bottles for food and water, they can still be reused for other things around or outside of a home. Ideally, of course, no one should use too many plastic bottles in the first place. Instead, it is best to also consider options for truly reusable items like non-disposable plastic sports water bottles as well as washable and reusable tupperware-type containers for food. Still, these have their own environmental impact as well - from washing and cleaning, so switching to them entirely is not the answer either!