Kick the bottled-water habit | csmonitor.com
Kick the bottled-water habit | csmonitor.com
In many cases, bottled water is actually derived from tap water and filtered – which is why PepsiCo has just agreed to add the words “public water source” to the label of its Aquafina water. But water from glacial springs is not inherently superior. Worse, shipping it around causes unnecessary environmental damage. Refrigeration wastes even more energy. Then there are the millions of plastic bottles, many of which end up in landfills.
Surely bottled water is purer and safer? Actually, no. The regulations governing the quality of public water supplies are far stricter than those governing bottled-water plants. True, there are sometimes contamination problems with tap water, but the same is true of bottled water.
The industry responds that it is not selling water; it is selling “portable hydration.” But filling a bottle from the tap works just as well. The industry also likes to point out that bottled water is a healthy, calorie-free alternative to sugary soda drinks. The same goes for tap water.
Bottled water would appear to be the ultimate triumph of marketing. If you can get people to pay so much for something that is already available at very low cost in their own homes, doesn’t that suggest that they will buy anything? Canned air, anyone? Of course, in a free society, people should be able to spend their money on silly things, provided they are in full possession of the facts. But many people are not, judging by the persistence of the idea that there is something magically superior about bottled water.
But now a backlash against bottled water is gathering pace as people realize just how daft it is. (Actually it is worse than daft; it is decadent to shun perfectly good tap water, given that more than 1 billion people on the planet lack access to it.) Many fancy restaurants now proudly proclaim that they serve tap water to burnish their green credentials. Restaurant patrons are increasingly prepared to ask unashamedly for tap water when offered expensive bottled stuff.
I think it’s great that people are paying more attention to the environment- however, I really think the blame here is a little misplaced- I don’t think this is as much an issue of “water safety” as it is of convenience- while I filter my own tap water at home, I continue to buy bottled when I’m out and about- and why shouldn’t I make that choice, if I decide I prefer water to say, a soda, or a juice? The green issue here is also interesting- if people really wanted to be more environmentally conscious, they could start by recycling their bottles. I’m appalled by the amount of bottles that end up in the trash!
Comment by Jude — August 24, 2007 @ 6:03 pm