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"There is no good reason for Canadians to buy bottled water" - David SuzukiThere is mounting criticism that bottled water wastes fossil fuels and contributes to global climate change. Around the world, factories are using more than 18 million barrels of oil and up to 130 billion gallons of fresh water a year to create the plastic containers for water (The Sierra Club).
Today more individuals are buying bottled water rather than drinking water from the tap. Why is this? Bottled water is not necessarily any cleaner, safer, or healthier than tap water and costs up to 10,000 times more.
Quality: Bottled water is subject to less regulation and testing than tap water.
Cost: Tap water in the US costs $.0015/gallon on average (AWWA 2002), whereas bottled water in the US costs $1.27/gallon on average (NRDC 1999).
Toxicity: Most smaller beverage bottles are made from polyethylene terephthalate (PET) which generates more than 100 times more toxic emissions throughout their production than an equivalent amount of glass. Endocrine disruptors and carcinogens can migrate from the molecules of different plastic containers into the containers' contents. Toxin migration increases with heat, raising concern about storage and transportation of the bottles (Berkeley Ecology Center, Plastics Task Force).
So why are we still choosing bottled water over tap water?
Some
argue that it is convenient, easy, and accessible. But we often forget
there are long-term environmental consequences to convenience. There is
mounting criticism that bottled water wastes fossil fuels and
contributes to global climate change.
Here are some things to consider when making the choice to buy bottled water:
Let's start with the plastic bottles they come in...
Plastics are made from oil and natural gas, both of which are non-renewable resources. Although PET (the substance that water bottles are made of) requires less energy to recycle than glass or aluminum and releases fewer emissions into the atmosphere, the processes used to collect the raw materials and the manufacturing of these plastics can cause serious pollution affecting both the environment and human health.
What about the waste?
The majority of plastic water bottles are not recycled and are quickly filling landfills around the world and polluting our waters (see The cost of convenience - in plastic form).
Don't forget how the bottles are transported across countries and oceans...
A quarter of the 89 billion litres of bottled water consumed every year is consumed outside the country of its origin. The bottles are transported after manufacturing, bottling, and purchasing. Each kilometer traveled by a bottle produces unnecessary greenhouse gas emissions.
Climate change and bottled water facts:
- Sales of bottled water are going up 12 percent per year.
- It takes more water to make the bottle than it actually holds.
- The manufacturing and transport of one kilogram bottle of Fiji water consumes 26.88 kilograms of water (7.1 gallons) 0.849 Kilograms of fossil fuel (one litre or 0.26 gal) and emits 562 grams of greenhouse gases (1.2 pounds).
- Bottled water retails for 240 to 10,000 times as much as tap water.
- Bottled water costs the same as soda and three times as much as gas.
- 40 per cent of the bottled water on the market is tap water.
- Consumers associate bottled water with social status and healthy living.
- Bottled water's competition is soft drinks, not tap water.
- The bottled water industry is one of the fastest-growing beverage industries in the world.
What you can do
- Make the climate-friendly choice and drink tap water.
- Carry a re-useable water bottle to fill up throughout the day. Stainless steel water bottles are said to be the best (see note below).
- At public events and at home, use pitchers of water.
- Avoid using bottled water unless absolutely necessary.
- Find out where bottled water sold in your stores comes from and if the water pumping is impacting the environment.
- Advocate for strict provincial and local groundwater laws to protect aquifers and other water resources.
- Ensure that good quality tap water is available for everyone in your community at an affordable price.
- Advocate for adequate funding and good public management of municipal water systems.
- Research the quality of your public drinking water.
For more information on the sales, standards, and regulations of bottled water in Canada check out the Canadian Environmental Law Association, Bottled Water FAQs.
Sources:
American Water Works Association, 2002.
Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC), March 1999.
The Berkley Ecology Center, Plastics Task Force
Stainless Steel Waterbottles
Scientists advise against the repeated use of plastic water bottles made from plastic type #1 PETE as there is evidence to suggest that such bottles leach a compound known as DEHA, which is classified by the EPA as a possible human carcinogen, as well as acetaldehyde, which has received the same designation from the International Agency for Research on Cancer.
