Bottled Water Versus Tap Water

The bottled water VS tap water saga continues.  Since 2002, organizations including the Natural Resources Defense Council, the Sierra Club, the World Wildlife Fund and Corporate Accountability International have been doing their best to convince consumers to buy fewer plastic bottles, of all kinds.

On the other side of the argument are, of course, the bottling companies.  They say that their bottles only account for a small percentage of the waste stream in the U.S.  They say the bottles are recyclable and it is not their fault, but the fault of the consumer that chooses to throw the bottle away.  That may be true, but their advertising campaigns are far from truthful. 

Advertising campaigns imply that when you compare bottled water VS tap water, the water in the bottle is cleaner and/or purer.  But, just recently, in 2008, an organization known as the Environmental Working Group proved that was not true.

Using independent laboratories, the group had a number of different brands tested for impurities and contaminants.  In all cases, some contaminants were present.  In some cases, the level of contamination was higher than what is allowed by regulating agencies for publicly supplied drinking water. 

The worst offenders were store brands.  The group has actually sued one of the largest retailers (Sam’s Club) in the country, requiring them to either put a warning label on the bottle (this product may cause cancer), remove the product from the market or correct the problem.

Similar suits have been filed in the past.  In June 2003, a class action lawsuit was filed against Poland Spring charging that they falsely claimed that the source of the water was a spring, when if fact, it was heavily treated groundwater.  The suit was settled in September, with the company admitting no wrong-doing but agreeing to make charitable contributions and discounts amounting to $10 million dollars over the following five years.

That was just one of the highlights in the bottled water VS tap water wars.  The thing that many consumers do not realize is that you have a choice.  You do not have to expose yourself to chlorine and other contaminants found in tap water and you don’t have to buy thousands of bottles per year.

You can install an affordable water purification device on your kitchen tap and have gallons of safe, clean, good tasting water for a fraction of what it costs to supply your family with bottled beverages.  If you look at the cost of bottled water VS tap water that has been filtered, the difference is somewhat amazing.

Depending on the brand that you currently buy, you are paying at least $1.70 per gallon and as much as $25 per gallon for “designer” brands.  With a home purifier, you will pay less than a dime per gallon, plus whatever your public provider is already charging you…whether you drink…or not.

When you compare the cost of bottled water VS tap water that is filtered at home, you realize that you could be saving hundreds or thousands of dollars per year.  Buy a home water filter from Aquasana today.  It makes sense and cents.