Blue planet, green ideas | Give the taste of water

Drinking water from a reusable bottle to avoid disposable bottles is a good idea. But what if you don’t feel like drinking … still water? Quebec City is testing a new kind of fountain to get around this obstacle.

Jean-Thomas Léveillé
Press

White, luminous, displaying citrus fruit wedges on a large screen, the new water fountain at the Grand Marché de Québec does not go unnoticed.

But its appearance is not the only thing that distinguishes it from the usual uninviting fountains in public places, with variable flow and temperature; in addition to fresh water, it offers sparkling water, flavored, vitaminized or even containing electrolytes.

“It not only avoids disposable bottles of ordinary water, but it also allows the person who had the taste [d’un autre type d’eau] to help yourself out of your gourd without having to buy a plastic bottle, ”explains Cynthia Legault, environmental advisor at Quebec City.

This is the objective of the municipal administration: to broaden the possibilities of reducing single-use bottles by making people want to drink water. All kinds of water.

The capital has therefore set up a pilot project to measure the effectiveness of this approach, by acquiring two of these vending machines through a subsidy program from the Société québécoise de recuperation et de recycling (RECYC -QUÉBEC) – the second device was installed at the Lucien-Borne community center, in the Montcalm district.

In four months, from the end of July to the end of November, the two devices carried out some 10,000 refills, avoiding the use of so many single-use bottles.

In some 75% of cases, users have opted for simple fresh water, offered free of charge, while other types of water – which cost between $ 1.50 and $ 2.50 depending on the size of the bottle. , regardless of the number of options chosen – accounted for 25% of fillings.

Quebec machine

The fountains in question were designed by Kupa Station, a young company from Saint-Henri, near Lévis.

Founded in 2020, Kupa Station has so far installed around ten of its fountains in Quebec, in public or private places, such as businesses.

The idea of ​​offering different types of water first came from the desire to offer fresh water free of charge, explains Annie Couture, president and co-founder of Kupa Station.

“It makes the device profitable,” she explains.

And it produced a collateral benefit: getting people to drink more water and, therefore, eliminating more single-use bottles.

“It’s not just plain water bottles anymore [qu’on élimine], it’s all the bottles we see on the market, ”launches the business manager.

In light of the success of its two fountains, the City of Quebec will assess the possibility of acquiring new ones, indicates Cynthia Legault, who encourages other public or private organizations to obtain them.

She gives the example of training centers, where many Gatorade-type hydrating drinks are consumed, sold in plastic bottles, which water with the addition of electrolytes and a fruity flavor offered by the Kupa Station fountain can. to replace.

Funding

The Kupa Station water fountains are priced at $ 10,000, which is not within the reach of all organizations. This is why the company also offers them for rent.

“Our business model is very flexible,” explains Annie Couture, who says she is still struggling to assess how to meet the various needs of her customers, not excluding finding a solution at zero cost.

In addition to the paid options offered by the fountain, the device can also generate income by broadcasting advertising on its screen, she illustrates.

Two RECYC-QUÉBEC subsidy programs aimed at reducing waste at source can also help purchase water fountains, indicates the organization, which recalls that 500,000 tonnes of plastic are buried each year in Quebec.