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Smart Phoenicians know that the key to summer survival is aggressive hydration. Anyone who rides a bike, walks, or takes public transit when temperatures soar should carry water at all times. Ideally, this should take the form of a canteen or reusable water bottle, rather than a disposable bottle full of water, sometimes transported to market over a long distance. The problem, however, is refilling those canteens and reusable vessels on the go.

At ASU's main campus in Tempe, water bottle refills stations are now being introduced in key locations. See the article link below and the photo. These resemble traditional water fountains but have a special design that makes it possible to fill water bottles without tipping them at angles that result in water waste or unsanitary backwash.

This idea should be adopted within Phoenix city limits. ASU's Downtown campus is an obvious location as a counterpart to the main campus in Tempe, but there are many more possibilities:

-- Light rail stations. All stations already have chilled water fountains, which is a helpful, humane feature. Since there's already a water supply and cooling in place, it should be feasible to add a water bottle refill station.

-- Transit centers. Even in areas not served by light rail, people should be able to refill their water bottles while transferring from one bus to another.

-- Multi-use paths along the canals. Chandler recently added water fountains along its segment of the Western Canal path. Let's add water bottle refill stations to the list of possible upgrades to the Arizona and Grand canal paths.

-- Major trailheads. Not all trailheads have water, but those that do could be upgraded to include refill stations.

-- City parks. Most parks have water fountains. These could also be suitable locations for refill stations.

-- Public libraries, senior centers, and other city buildings open to the public. These would served some of the populations most vulnerable to heat stress.