Say No to Bottled Water
Helping us make a world of differenceWhy is bottled water waste a concern? Here are just a few reasons…
- In spite of having easy access to clean water, the United States is the world’s largest bottled water consumer.1 In 2008, the U.S. used enough plastic water bottles to stretch around the Earth more than 190 times.
- It takes 2,000 times more energy to produce a bottle of water than it does to produce tap water.2
- Many people intend to recycle disposable water bottles; however, 69% of bottled water containers end up in the trash and not in a recycling container.3
Ditching bottled water keeps Mother Earth and your wallet green.
- One Brita pitcher filter can effectively replace as many as 300 standard 16.9-ounce bottles. So you can get great-tasting water without so much waste. Talk about refreshing.
- The average Brita pitcher filters 240 gallons of water a year for about 19 cents a day.4 Put in perspective, to get the same amount of water from bottled water would require 1,818 16.9-ounce water bottles a year.5
- For about $10 each, you can purchase a 16-ounce or 32-ounce Nalgene bottle, saving you hundreds of dollars a year on bottled water.
- Hydration at its best — carry the water you need and reduce your impact on the environment — one Nalgene bottle can last for years, making it easy to stop buying single-serve bottled water to fulfill your everyday hydration needs.
- Or buy a Brita Bottle, and filter great tasting water on the go.
Many people drink bottled water because they believe it to be of a higher quality, cleaner and better-tasting, but that’s not necessarily true.
- Dr. Gina Solomon, a senior scientist at the Natural Resources Defense Council, an environmental advocacy group, told The New York Times that “there is no reason to believe that bottled water is safer than tap water.”7
- In the U.S., public water is regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which requires multiple daily tests for bacteria and makes results available to the public. The Food and Drug Administration, which regulates bottled water, only requires weekly testing and does not share its findings with the EPA or the public.7
- Un-Habitat & UNEP, “Sickwater? The Central Role of Wastewater Management in Sustainable Development.” (PDF) Pg 38.
- Gleick, P.H, Cooley, H.S, “Energy Implications of Bottled Water.” February 19, 2009, The Pacific Institute. Pg, 6.
- IBWA, “IBWA Rebuts Misleading and Factually Incorrect Video about Bottled Water”. Alexandria VA, March 22, 2010
- This cost assumes the purchase of a $25 pitcher (one filter included), plus 5 replacement filters at $9 each, for a total yearly cost of $70, or $0.19 cents a day.
- Each filter produces 40 gallons of water and the average Brita owner uses 6 filters in a year, to produce 240 gallons, or 30,720 ounces, of fresh-filtered water. 30,720 ounces is equivalent to the water found in 1,818 16.9-ounce water bottles.
- Burros, Marian. “Fighting the Tide, a Few Restaurants Tilt to Tap Water.” The New York Times [New York City, NY] 30 May 2007: Section F, Page 1.
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