Did you know that bottled water in the U.S. is not subject to the same stringent standards as tap water? The Environmental Protection Agency sets standards for water that comes out of your sink, but bottled water is regulated by the Food and Drug Administration, which uses a different - and far less strict -- set of criteria to determine what can be in your drink.
Whether or not you're concerned about the quality of the water you drink, you can be sure that bottled water comes at a high environmental cost. According to the Beverage Marketing Corporation, Americans consumed 31.2 billion liters of bottled water in 2006. New American Dream estimates that 900,000 tons of plastic were used to make those bottles, and that the manufacturing process emitted more than 2.5 million tons of carbon dioxide.
Add the greenhouse gasses emitted by trucking those bottles around the country, the waste generated by unrecycled bottles (86% of them, says New American Dream!), and the amount of water it takes to bottle water (3.5 liters used for every liter bottled, according to the Pacific Institute), and you've got one very earth-unfriendly industry.
If you still love your bottled water, consider this: According to the National Resource Defence Council, "25 to 30 percent of the bottled water sold in the United States comes from a city's or town's tap water." That includes Pepsi's Aquafina water and CocaCola's Dasani water. What're you spending all that money for, then?
The best thing you can do for the environment - and your wallet - is to drink tap water from re-usable containers. To learn more about the drinkability of water in your town, check out the Massachusetts Water Resources Authority's annual and monthly water quality reports.
Bottled water isn't healthier than tap
National Resource Defense Council
Massachusetts Water Resources Authority
Wikipedia on bottled water
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Comments
Leah - Thanks so much for highlighting this issue. Not only is bottled water wasteful and expensive, it can also harm communities. Coke has (and may still be - I admit I am not up to date on the issue) caused severe water shortages in some communities in India by setting up Dasani bottling plants and essentially stealing the water supplies of these communities. Corporate Accountability International has run a great campaign to pressure the corporations and spread awareness.
Shannon Cain Arnold
Boston Vegetarian Examiner
Sometimes when I am out of the house, and thirsty, buying a bottle of water seems the best option available. I have a small collection of used water bottles that I bring home, wash, and rinse with boiling water before reusing.
There has been a lot of controvery about the plastic in bottles being unhealthy. After the Nalgene disclosure, I threw away my "reusable" water bottles.
To be certain that you are choosing a bottle that does not leach unwanted plastic chemical into your body, you should check the recycling symbol on the bottle. If it is a #2 HDPE (high density polyethylene), or a #4 LDPE (low density polyethylene), or a #5 PP (polypropylene), the bottle is OK. Most water is sold in plastic labeled as #1, and this is only recommended for one time use. Do not refill it.
When I fly I try to remember to bring an empty bottle with, and refill if after passing the security screen.
It's wonderful to see so many people now understanding the many negative aspects of bottled water. For more information please visit www.friensofwater.com/Bottled_Water.html.
But there is more to consider. There is a large and growing amount of information that suggests risks in drinking the chemicals that are added to the water. Do a little research. Fluoride for example: They always say that it is safe at the levels in the water. Well, there is serious question about that now. But more - the fluoride you get from drinking water is only about 1/4 of all you get! You can start at www.friendsofwater.com for more and links to other sites.
In the Boston area and other older cities, there is also the issue of metals coming from the old pipes. When I was in Medford and Cambridge years ago, tropical fish would die if put in the water. And you drink it!
You should get a good kitchen water filter AND your own reusable bottles. (There are good ones available.)
To your health.
I've never seen so much bad information put fort on one topic. Bottled water consistently tests much cleaner and purer than tap water. Only when the tests are run by one of the anti bottled water groups do they manage to find some tiny bottled water company that tests positive for anything.
The three major brands account for 90% of the bottled water in this country and have never tested positive for any contaminants period.
Yes some of the bottled water starts out as tap water. It then goes thru a filtration process that removes all the harmful chemicals that are in tap water. Those include depending on your city pesticides, herbicides, Pharmecuticals and carcinogens.
All chrlorinated water has a carcinogen in it. The EPA says its safe but I'd rather not take their word for it.
As for the carbon foot print it is the smallest of any bottled bevarge. Tiny compared to something like orange juice.
And as to the plastic Bottles the solution should be to recyle the bottles not to stop drinking things that come in recyclable comtainers. Hello we started putting things in recycalble containers so that they could be recycled. Then our politicians lacked the resolve to create good recyling programs. Instead of crusading againts there and our laziness we're attackingan evironmentally responsible company.
Only 1/2 the households in this country have curbside recycling. Instead of a silly campaign against bottled water we should be cmapaigning to fix that.
Did you know that the same not so strict criteria that the FDA uses for bottled water is the same for all food products consumed? Bottled water is a food product and is regulated like other food products. Most water bottling companies bottle and ship in the same demographic area. What is bottled in Pennsylvania is not being shipped to California. Tap water is testing at the water treatment plant. (chemicals are added to treat it) Do you know how many miles of pipes it goes through and how old those pipes are? Are they sanitized on a scheduled basis? How about the water into your home? How many times have you sanitized you home plumbing? The arguement shouldn't be between tap and bottled water. Both are healthy and good for you. Both are a better alternative to the sugary soft drinks found on the market.
Rich,
Certainly we should be campaigning for more curbside recycling programs, but production of the bottles and recycling itself uses energy. Drinking bottled water has a higher environmental cost than drinking tap water, even if you recycle the bottle.
I can't speak to your concerns about the safety of tap water, but it is an undeniable fact that it produces waste that can be easily avoided by providing everyone access to clean, drinkable tap water. If there is reason to be concerned about the safety of tap water, it would be far more productive to advocate for stricter tap water standards than to offer up bottled water as a solution.
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