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February 08, 2006

Guess I've Got to Dump the Dasani

...in order to stick to my tree hugging principles.

Tap water comes to us through an energy-efficient infrastructure whereas bottled water must be transported long distances--and nearly one-fourth of it across national borders--by boat, train, airplane, and truck. This ''involves burning massive quantities of fossil fuels,'' Arnold said.

By way of example, in 2004 alone, a Helsinki company shipped 1.4 million bottles of Finnish tap water 4,300 kilometers (2,700 miles) to Saudi Arabia. And although 94 percent of the bottled water sold in the United States is produced domestically, some Americans import water shipped some 9,000 kilometers from Fiji and other faraway places to satisfy demand for what Arnold termed ''chic and exotic bottled water.''

More fossil fuels are used in packaging the water. Most water bottles are made with polyethylene terephthalate, a plastic derived from crude oil. ''Making bottles to meet Americans' demand for bottled water requires more than 1.5 million barrels of oil annually, enough to fuel some 100,000 U.S. cars for a year,'' Arnold said.

Worldwide, some 2.7 million tons of plastic are used to bottle water each year.

Once it has been emptied, the bottle must be dumped. According to the Container Recycling Institute, 86 percent of plastic water bottles used in the United States become garbage or litter. Incinerating used bottles produces toxic byproducts such as chlorine gas and ash containing heavy metals tied to a host of human and animal health problems. Buried water bottles can take up to 1,000 years to biodegrade.

Of the bottles deposited for recycling in 2004, the United States exported roughly 40 percent to destinations as far away as China--meaning that even more fossil fuels were burned in the process.

Meanwhile, communities from near which the water came in the first place risk running dry.



But I LOVE the stuff!! Even if it's just super pure TAP-water, it tastes better than the toxic crap around here. Do you know Bangla-cola water actually ate holes through the tinfoil I had covering a stockpot full for a hurricane? I thought it had just changed the foil's color, but oh no. Tiny pinholes, like a tin lace foil doily.

Posted by tree hugging sister at February 8, 2006 09:38 AM

Comments

Most people don't realize this, but the regulatory standards for tap water in this country are more stringent than those for bottled water.

I've also heard (but can't confirm) that most tap water in this country actually is of higher quality than bottled water.

Posted by: Ken Summers at February 8, 2006 09:56 AM

The problem comes when it runs through that lines in your house or apartment building.

A Brita or Pur filter always fixes things for me.

Posted by: Cullen at February 8, 2006 02:47 PM

Cullen nails it, Ken. Those standards are for water distribution systems. If you own your home, chances are the water quality is good (depends on how old your place is).

But for offices and apartments? Ugh! I'm not certain that there are any standards for those.

But none of this means anything if the water supply is crap in the first. Most public treatment simply removes sedimentation and bacteria, and adds fluoride. If the water source has a high mineral content, that stays.

I used to live in Hot Springs, South Dakota. As the name implies, the place was nothing but thermal water outlets (heck, the river through town was heated. Never froze in winter). Water softeners were really popular there.

I don't know much about the water supply for THS, but it must have some mineral content; copper and aluminum are dissimilar metals. When combined with an electrolyte (e.g., water), you will see a reaction similar to what she describes. The same is true for copper and zinc, BTW.

THS may just have re-invented the battery.

Posted by: The_Real_JeffS at February 8, 2006 07:11 PM

Brita works for me. I was tired of lugging bottles of water in the house. Ours leaves slime if you let it evaporate.

Posted by: Cindermutha at February 8, 2006 09:03 PM

"...the regulatory standards for tap water in this country are more stringent than those for bottled water."

I use a Brita. Regulatory standards for tap water are going to vary widely from one jurisdiction to the next. On bottled water, FYI: http://www.fda.gov/fdac/features/2002/402_h2o.html

Posted by: Dave J at February 8, 2006 09:53 PM

(I didn't RE-invent anything. It was MINE ALL ALONG, I tell you! ~ MINE!!!) We've got soft city water, Jeff. With God knows what else in it. When a storm looks to be truly inbound (besides laying in the cases of Dasani, filling up both tubs and the washing machine), I take every 2qt. and bigger pan/pot and fill them up. (This was an old 6 qt. steel Revere Ware.) Being lid challenged for such an undertaking, I cover them tightly with foil and stuff them back in the island cabinets. (If the roof blows, I have potable water safe to do dishes, clean up with, etc.) When I went to use it all up after Dennis, I noticed this weird staining on the foil, held it up to show Major Dad and saw light streaming through. Now THAT freaked me out.

Posted by: tree hugging sister at February 9, 2006 09:14 AM

It doesn't take much dissimilar metal for electrolysis, THS. That's the most likely scenario here. Unless the Scottish Terror marked some new territory........

Posted by: The_Real_JeffS at February 9, 2006 10:19 AM