Eco-friendly water dispensers may appear on Hamilton’s streets, after the City approved a motion from the environmental group Greenrock to introduce ‘hydration stations’.

If Greenrock’s pilot scheme proves successful, the group intends to install more of them around the Island.

Greenrock administrator Carolyn Moss confirmed that the environmental group hopes to install the machines early next year, in six ideal locations around Hamilton.

The water stations will be placed at “high-pedestrian areas where a lot of people use public transport”, she said.

Deputy Mayor Glen Smith told a City of Hamilton meeting that the machines would tap directly into Bermuda Waterworks pipelines, to be used for filling up water bottles. The water is not chilled, and the machines require no electricity.

Councillor Marshall Minors questioned whether businesses would object to the free-of-charge machines undercutting their sales of bottled water.

Mr Smith responded that Government is looking to ban plastic bottles, and city engineer Patrick Cooper called the pilot scheme an environmental initiative to reduce plastic waste.

Greenrock plans to cover the cost of the machines through local sponsors.

The ‘hydration stations’, produced by the Australian corporation Aquafil, are built to stand up against tropical storms and vandals alike.

The company calls them “a product that has evolved from the need to combat the extravagant waste of resources generated by bottled water”.

Useful website: www.greenrock.org.