Group initiative prevents use of 40,000 plastic bottles during Ocean Race
High performance public water stations from Bluewater, a world leader in providing sustainable and inclusive access to purified water for people around the globe, dispensed over 21,536 liters of great tasting water to spectators and sailors at The Ocean Race stopover village in Cape Town, avoiding the need for over 40,000 500ml plastic water bottles. With over one million single-use plastic bottles produced every minute and most ending up in landfill or the oceans, installing Bluewater’s state-of-the-art hydration stations is helping The Ocean Race end the reliance on single-use plastic bottles and their associated detrimental impacts, such as marine pollution.
Janneke Brasecke, Bluewater Africa General Manager, says that partnerships with responsible organisers of prestigious sports events and festivals such as The Ocean Race, are key to Bluewater realising their vision of ending the need for single-use plastics: “High profile events draw huge crowds, and not only can we assist in lessening the need for single-use plastic, but the presence of our hydration stations helps to make people think about where their water is coming from and what they, as an individual, can do to contribute positively to our planet.”
Bluewater’s collaboration with The Ocean Race has a long history, with both organisations spotlighting the broad range of impacts plastics are having on ocean health and biodiversity, and putting in place programmes for awareness and education, as well as providing innovative solutions to mitigate environmental impact.
“We’re so happy to partner with Bluewater here in Cape Town. When the race was here back in 2018 the region was in severe drought, so to be able to provide pure, plastic-free drinking water to visitors was a great achievement. Since then, Bluewater has provided water to events all around Cape Town, and they again made this possible for our 2023 stopover,” says Meegan Jones, Senior Sustainability Programme Advisor for The Ocean Race.
In addition to the support of The Ocean Race in its quest for sustainability, Bluewater is also the Official Supplier to 11th Hour Racing Team for The Ocean Race 2022-23, installing its hydration stations in 11th Hour Racing Team base at each stopover. The team and Bluewater share an intrinsic connection to the ocean and share a similar vision for a more sustainable future.
