In an effort to combat the amount of waste produced from disposable water bottles, Minnesota schools are joining a national movement to ban the bottles from campuses. But donâÄôt expect University vending machines to lose them any time soon.

College of St. Benedict recently became the first school in Minnesota to ban the sale and purchase of bottled water on their campus. That means no bottled water in vending machines, at sporting events or any other campus venue.

âÄúIâÄôve been mentioning it under my breath for a long time,âÄù said Dana Donatucci, University of Minnesota recycling supervisor. âÄúI think it would have a beneficial impact on the image of the University because weâÄôre making the choice for environmental reasons.âÄù

The waste resulting from the bottles isnâÄôt the only concern. There are also the expenses that go along with them to consider.

âÄúLess bottles sold means less bottles to remove, less bottles to pick up and less cost for us,âÄù Donatucci said.

For many students, grabbing a disposable water bottle at an on-campus restaurant or vending machine is easy.

âÄúItâÄôs about convenience,âÄù PSEO student Kendall Buckley said. âÄúI use [a water bottle] for a couple of days and then I either lose it or I throw it away because thatâÄôs what you do with water bottles.âÄù

If disposable water bottles were banned on campus, students might reach for soft drinks instead.

According to contract administrator Leslie Bowman, there are 240 beverage vending machines on campus and some need to be filled more than once a day.

Banning bottled water at the University of Minnesota might be a bit more challenging than at other colleges because of its contract with Coca-Cola.

Since the âÄúExclusive Beverage and Sponsorship AgreementâÄù contract with Coca-Cola, the University deals exclusively with the company. The contract states that the University is prohibited from “purchasing, selling, distributing, dispensing (for free, sampling, or otherwise), vending, or otherwise serving” any beverage product (including Pepsi) that competes with Coke anywhere on the Twin Cities Campus.âÄù

 âÄúThere is specific language [within the contract] about major changes with products and bottled water is one of them,âÄù Bowman said.

If support for a ban gains momentum on campus âÄúthere would have to be a major discussion and probably an amendment to the contract,âÄù she said.

The contract has an estimated value to the University of $38 million and is one of the largest contracts across the nation.

âÄúI think if we really want to address the issue we need to have more [water refilling] stations on campus,âÄù Donatucci said. âÄúSome schools have one per building.âÄù

St. Benedict has installed 31 “hydration stations” on its St. Joseph campus, with at least one in each building. While both Bemidji State University and the University of MinnesotaâÄôs Morris campus decided against the ban, they are working to promote tap water. Morris has recently installed filters to improve the taste of their tap water, and Bemidji gives new students reusable water bottles.

The University has similar practices of its own. Reusable bottles are given away during campus events and water bottle refilling stations can be found at various locations around campus.

âÄúI think a lot of people are using reusable [water bottles] already,âÄù Carlson School of Management senior Lacey Bartosh said. âÄúLots of things have improved since I first started.âÄù

Currently all the plastic that is recycled on the Twin Cities campus is sold by Waste Management to plastic recyclers in the Twin Cities area.  

âÄúIn my opinion the coordinate campuses donâÄôt have has much access to strong recycling programs like the Twin Cities,âÄù Bowman said.