Advantages of Bottled and Tap Water

Bottled and Tap Water Have Their Place

OK, so we know from my previous blog that it takes more water to make a bottle of water, than the amount of water contained in it.  We also know that it takes a lot of petroleum to make that bottle.  Only a small percentage of plastic water bottles are recycled and so they end up in landfills or – worse – littering and polluting land and sea – see The Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

We know that in many countries, bottled water and tap water have different regulations.  Often (not always), bottled water is simply tap water anyway, with or without some form of treatment.  Manufacturers are not always required to state the source of the water, nor what’s in it.  As a result, some – definitely not all – bottled water is less healthy than tap water.  (Which seems daft, as bottled water is used  for, well, for drinking, while tap water is used for washing, watering gardens, parks and pools, filling toilets, and drinking).

Oh yes, and there’s the minor detail of price.  Up to 10,000 times the cost of tap water!  Now I for one, would far rather use that extra money on more investments, or a holiday, or something I’m saving up for.

And we saw from the video that many people prefer the taste of tap water in a blind test.

But like everything else ‘green’, it’s a matter of personal choice.

If you want to drink water (and water is a lot better for you than soda pop!), you need to decide whether to buy bottled or use tap water.   These are the main advantages of each:

Major Advantage #1

Tap water is considerably cheaper.  You will free up money for other uses.

Major Advantage #2

Tap water is extremely convenient.   You don’t have to go and buy it at the store, carry it home (water is heavy!) and make space to store it.

Whatever happened to the old-fashioned water fountains?  We used to drink from them all the time!

Bottled Water Advantage #1

If your tap water is unsafe, you need an alternative.  Filters should work, but if not, and you don’t have access to another water source (e.g. a spring or well), bottled water is probably your only alternative to genuinely unsafe drinking water.  In addition, If you are travelling in 3^rd world countries and are used to 1^st world water supplies, then you probably don’t want to risk drinking the local tap water (it may be fine, but different, and you don’t want to risk getting ill).

Bottled Water Advantage #2

If you are outside away from home, and haven’t brought your own drink with you, bottled water is readily available (even if it can cost as much as gas in the US!) and easy to buy if you get thirsty.

Laughably, there’s now snob value in refusing bottled water and saying “I prefer tap”.

Tap water in the USA is world-renowned for being excellent, although some areas of the US have tastier water than others.  It’s good in the UK too, in many European countries and in South Africa.  In Spain the water doesn’t taste great and is quite hard, I believe.

In my next blog, I look at how you can improve your tap water with a little-known trick.

In the meantime, try this Water Quiz   See how much you know!