Bottled Water: Pouring Resources Down the Drain

"The global consumption of bottled water reached 154 billion liters (41 billion gallons) in 2004, up 57 percent from the 98 billion liters consumed five years earlier. Even in areas where tap water is safe to drink, demand for bottled water is increasing—producing unnecessary garbage and consuming vast quantities of energy. Although in the industrial world bottled water is often no healthier than tap water, it can cost up to 10,000 times more. At as much as $2.50 per liter ($10 per gallon), bottled water costs more than gasoline."

I was never stupid enough to fall for the marketing hype that has so many of you toting around your little highly expensive bottles of water, as if you can't survive that trip to work, school, the library, to a friends' house, the store, or wherever it is that requires you to pack "supplies" for a 15-20 min trek through city streets. The downside of your habit, as spelled out in this article, was immediately and obviously apparent to me the moment I first saw this craze arise. Oh sure, I've heard all the lame excuses about bottled water supposedly being safer and healthier than tap water, both scientifically refuted years ago. There's no excuse for it here in the U.S.

It just seems incredible that even people so concerned about the environment, doing their best to act eco-friendly, can be so wasteful in this regard. I get plenty of water, and never feel the need to carry it with me through my travels around town (or room to room, like some of you). If I were to ever find out, from my doctor, that like many of you, I simply could no longer live without sipping water at 3-5 minute intervals all day every day, I'd have the common sense to get a reusable container (you do know they make them, don't you?), and use tap water, which is at least regulated by local health departments.

Yes, this issue pisses me off. There's no excuse for this here in the U.S. and I wouldn't care if the only point was that suckers were getting fleeced, but as the article makes clear, it uses a hell of a lot of resources, and causes disposal and various other issues that affect us all.

Now if you live in other parts of the world, under conditions where your only source of safe drinking water is through bottles, then pay me no attention, I'm not bitchin at you, I'm eyeballing only those who've fallen for the corporate snake-oil sales pitches. And they know who they are.