At Bloomsburg University every day I see students and professors using plastic water bottles, instead of reusable water bottles. Some people that I know use multiple plastic water bottles every day, instead of investing in a reusable water bottle that can last for years. Unfortunately, this is a major problem in the United States, where generally clean drinking water is available and water bottles can be filled up at work or school more easily. According to earthday.org Americans purchase about 50 billion water bottles per year, this equates to about 13 bottles per month for every person in the U.S. By buying a reusable water bottle 156 plastic water bottles could be saved annually. This is the problem for many single-use plastics in the United States. Globally, at least 14 million tons of plastic end up in our oceans every year. All of this could be minimized or prevented if mandated recycling were put into place in the United States, and in other countries that have the infrastructure to do so. There are consequences to our actions of either, not knowing about other single-use plastics or not caring enough to use them. Our environment suffers from our actions. Plastic pollution is a huge issue, and even more so microplastics are a big issue. By mandating recycling and educating about the consequences of our actions a change can be made and we can help to build sustainability in the United States, and this can be done through people like myself who care enough to educate and speak out to make a difference.