Tap Water Vs Bottled Water

Have you ever considered what is happening to all the plastic bottles you use? According to "Bottled Water: The Wrong Choice paragraph 2" it states, that when plastic bottles are made we are using more fossil fuels. By doing this we are damaging environment!

Water is an important source in this world and it is a source that all of us humans need. Without water we wouldn’t be living today. Water comes in many different ways but the most common and the most talked about topic is, Bottled Water or Tap Water? There are many debates on which type of water is safer, better in taste, and what is more convenient. The question is usually what tastes better. I read in the article “is tap water as safe as bottled water?” “Tap water and bottled water are generally comparable in terms of safety. So the choice of tap or bottled is mostly a matter of personal preference.” (Zeratsky) I completely agree with this statement. Everyone has his or her own opinions.

Seventy percent of the human body is comprised of water. This makes drinking water quality vital. The EPA estimates the average adult consumes 1.2 liters daily or 115 gallons of community (tap) water daily while the average consumption of bottled water per capita in the U.S. is in excess of 30.8 gallons per year and is expected to continue to increase according to the International Bottled Water Association (IBWA) and the Beverage Marketing Association’s 2013 report. Bottled water costs anywhere from 240 to 10,000 times more per gallon than the average cost of tap, but people’s perception that bottled water is purer, safer or healthier is driven, in part, by strong bottled water marketing campaigns that focus on news reports about crises that involve municipal water supplies. (NRDC, “Bottled Water Pure Drink or Pure Hype”) The sources for both tap and bottled waters as well as additives to either enrich or neutralize contents of water determine the mineral and chemical composition of drinking water. Is bottled water really any purer or healthier than local tap water?

There are many impacts that bottled water has on the environment. The choice of packaging determines many impacts. The bottles, which are either plastic, aluminum, or glass, that are not recycled are thrown into landfills and buried. According to the Container Recycling Institute, 86% of plastic water bottles in the United States become garbage. If water bottlers would have used 10% recycled materials in their plastic bottles in 2004, they would have saved the equivalent of 72 million gallons of gasoline. If they used 25%, they would have saved enough energy to power more than 680,000 homes for a year (Jemmott, 2008). Incinerating used bottles produces toxins such as chlorine gas and ash. Water bottles that get buried can take up to thousands of years to biodegrade. The most common type of plastic is polyethylene

The main issue with bottled water is the effect it has on the environment. Plastic bottles are drastically increasing the size of landfills and can take up to five hundred years to decompose. At the rate plastic

The controversy of bottled water verse tap water can be argued on both sides. However, tap water is the better alternative in the long run. Some may say there is a distinct taste difference between the two, yet most can't tell. In a college classroom, a group of students completed an experiment where they tasted a variety of waters: Great Value, Zephyrhills, and tap water. Most students guessed incorrectly, not tasting a difference (Combass). Although people have concerns with tap water, it is the most convenient. Not only is tap water cheaper, it is the safest source that positively impacts our environment.

According to The Water Project, “Bottles used to package water take over 1,000 years to bio-degrade and if incinerated, they produce toxic fumes. It is estimated that over 80% of all single-use water bottles used in the U.S. simply become ‘litter’” (“Bottled Water is Wasteful”). This fact is not the only reason I believe that bottled water does not outweigh its costs. Although statistics show that bottled water is efficient, there are many reasons to believe otherwise.

We’ll start with how bottled water means more garbage. Most people, after drinking bottled water throw away the bottle instead of recycling it. This is why 70 million percent of human waste are bottles from water. Plus, a lot of times when you drive down the road the most occasional thing you’ll see are bottles. So, if your going to drink from a bottle then recycle

much more prevalent, as well as prominent in the arena of social and political debate.

Tap water is healthier than bottled water for many reasons like how they leave the bottled

Many people are laboring under the impression that bottled water is better than tap water. Contrary to popular belief, the latter is the superior of the two. Tap water is often overlooked, while people go straight for the bottled water. Some believe that tap water is harmful, when in fact, it is perfectly safe. Tap water is the better choice for countless reasons. Some of these being the vitamins and minerals found in tap water, the lower cost, and its convenience.

“Mom can you grab me a bottle of water for my game?” Did you ever think that grabbing a bottle of water may put you in danger? A latest report by NRDC, tested 1,000 bottles of water and 103 brands. They found out that ⅓ of them had chemicals or bacteria in them. Now that I have read a couple articles I now know that tap water is safer to drink than bottled water. The first reason is that the company’s making the bottles are wasting plastic. Also if we use water from our tap, it will be free instead of buying new bottles every time we run out. If you read my essay you will know why I think tap water is better.

Tap water and bottled water are used in peoples lives daily. Yet, barely anybody seems to care for the difference between the two. The quality, price, accessibility and many other aspects areover looked in the decision for tap or bottled water. Another topic that seems to be shoved under the rug is the safety of tap water in the United States. But from investigative information it proves that there is no problem with drinking tap water in the United States.

Many people believe that bottled water is much safer than tap water. This is a false statement according to websites like CNN, National, Geographic and Money Crashers.

Americans utilize a great deal of water, in fact, the average American uses 90 gallons a day (Henshaw). So it is not surprising America has one of the cleanest water reserves in the world (“Water Quality”). A surprising statistic, however, is one-third of the American population drinks bottled water on a regular basis when the majority has clean drinking water at home (Olsen). This might be due to the fact that the bottled water industry has promoted itself as a healthier and more portable alternative to tap water. However, the truth is startling as bottled water is only a misleading, expensive, and dangerous gimmick to bring in revenue for large companies.