The Dangers Of Bottled Water

Bottled water has become a controversial topic as of late. There are always two sides to every argument, some think that bottled water is beneficial to society, whereas some people think that it is detrimental to society as a whole. Bottled water is detrimental to society because it costs the country an abundance of money. It is also harmful to society because it is damaging to the environment. A lack of sanitation in bottled water has also been connected to illnesses among people who drink it. Bottled water is in no way shape or form worth the price that one will spend financially, nor is it worth the gamble of becoming sick from all the harsh chemicals that come from the bottle itself.

One of the biggest harms to the world is pollution caused by people. Most of the plastic materials used by people are left to pollute. Bottled water is one of the biggest plastic materials produced. Some people say that bottled water is safer, convenient, and provide jobs to workers in many ways. The reasons for buying bottled water differ. Some people buy bottled water because they don’t like the taste or smell of tap water, while others on the other hand buy it because of health concerns with water contamination. Pollution is one of the biggest problems hurting the environment today, and water bottles that are thrown out after each one-time use, contribute greatly to its increasing buildup. Bottled water is not only expensive to us, but also to the environment. Bottled water is hurting the economy, harming human lives, and damaging the environment.

Billions of gallons of bottled water are consumed in the United States every year. Many Americans choose bottled water for its convenience and say that the taste is much better than tap water. They say tap water is flat and tasteless. Some argue that the cost of bottled water far exceeds the cost of tap water. One study showed that one bottled water per day would cost the consumer $365 per year while the same amount of tap water would cost ten cents. While bottled water is more expensive, it provides over 130,000 jobs resulting in over six billion dollars in salaries for american workers “Bottled Water Matters.” In the article, “ Bad To The Last Drop,” Tom Standage says that bottled water is too expensive and encourages people to stop buying bottled water and give the money to charity. In the article “ In Defense of Bottled Water,” Thomas J. Lauria says that eliminating bottled water would have the unintended consequence of driving people to choose more unhealthy beverages which have thicker plastic bottles and would be worse on the environment. He also says that bottled water is an important choice in situations where there is a lack of tap water or concern about water

Water is essential to life, scientific fact, not debatable (Tracy). More than half of all Americans drink bottled water; about a third of the public consumes it regularly (Olsen). Many drink or buy bottled water simply because they believe it is of better quality, cleaner, and better tasting. On the contrary, several individuals do not know the cons of drinking bottled water. Today, there are many misconceptions and myths about bottled water. Many people are uneducated about what goes into our bottles and how it not only affects us but also our environment. In the article “The New Oil” by Jeneen Interlandi and Ryan Tracy they discuss the issues that have to do with water and the privatization of it. They believe there is a crisis and something has to be done. Due to the cost, pollution, shortage, and health issues, bottled water should be outlawed. Water should not be controlled by water bottle companies and should not be allowed to be sold in plastic bottles.

I have always found it sort of curious when I see people buying bottled water. My grandfather told me that when he was a boy they drank water from the hose and it was free. I know growing up our household certainly didn’t bother with things like that, so facet water is what we got as well. The costs of groceries these days is expensive, spending extra money on water always seemed like such a waste to me. Now, that being said, some people live in areas where the water isn’t very clean, and buying bottled water is much safer than drinking the city’s water. Also, bottled water has become more popular because it is paired as a service; Bottled water is easy to grab on the go. It takes more time to find a water bottle, with a lid, and fill it up than to grab an already bottled water.

Tap water is extremely cheaper than bottled water is. According to Livingston, tap water costs only $2.00 every thousand gallons, whereas the cost per gallon of bottled water is $1.21. "That means, priced by gallon, bottled water is more than 600 times more expensive than tap water" (Livingston). Buying a bottled water may be cheaper at the time, however, that $1.00 or so adds up. When people buy bottled water, it is often the same as tap, just that’s been filtered or purified (Livington). So, why spend money on bottled water when it's rather identical to tap, with no

People are paying an outrageously larger amount of money for bottled water, than they are for tap. “ That $11.8 billion was spent on nearly 9.7 billion gallons of water, putting the average cost at $1.22/gallon. 64% of this amount, however, was spent on single- the 16.9oz/500 mL container mentioned above which can push costs up to $7.50/gallon. American Water Works Association showed that tap water costs only $0.004 a gallon, less than 1/300 the cost of bottled water”(Business Insider). Rather than utilize the tap water most people have in their homes, they would rather buy bottled water when they are on the go or to use instead of drinking tap. Tap water is an inexpensive alternative to bottled water, with many

Is bottled water a good thing for us to have? People have different views on this subject. Some people would argue that bottled water is a good thing because it is convenient and portable. Others would disagree and say that bottled water is bad for the landfills, and that the quality is not up to par. In Cotroneo’s article, “Movement Against Bottled Water Gains Municipal Adherents,” Gentile’s article, “Mayors Push Benefits of Cities' Tap Water,” and Environmental Nutrition’s article “New Study Finds Fault With Some Bottled Waters; Tap Water a Better Bet” all three authors argue that there indeed is a difference and tap water is better than bottled water in three basic ways: cost, environment and safety.

Lastly, bottled water comes with some environmental issues as well. There are many different reasons why people around the world buy bottles of water instead of using their tap water right at home from their kitchen sink. Many people use bottled water because of the rumor that bottled water is safer than tap water. Some people use bottled water because they do not like the smell of tap water, or we can use Flint Michigan as an example by saying that some people purchase because of contamination issues. There is no debate because pollution and

The United States is constantly saying to go green. "Going green means to pursue knowledge and practices that can lead to more environmentally friendly and ecologically responsible decisions and lifestyles” (Going Green). There are a variety ways that people can go green. One specific way they can do this is by not using plastic water bottles. Bottled water is a worldwide item used in a person’s everyday life. It is so commonly used even though it is far more costly than filtered water or tap water, and even sometimes gasoline. Bottled water has a significant impact on the environment, as well as the health of individuals. It is important to understand what exactly the impact of bottled water has on the universe today. People try and say that bottled water is safer, more convenient, and helps provide employment in numerous ways. Bottled water may be purer than water from the tap, but it comes with a price. It may employ people, but in comparison to the price of manufacturing and selling water bottles, it is a small amount. Plastic water bottles are prohibiting the United States from going green by negatively destructing our environment, hurting the economy and harming human lives.

Water is without question the most valuable substance we have on Earth. Around 70% of the human body and 70% to 75% of the Earth consists of water. Water dissolves more substances than any other liquid on Earth. Water controls the Earth’s temperature. The amount of water since life began has stayed the same to this day. However only less than 1% of the World's water is drinkable. So with water being such a scarce resource is really a good idea to sell bottled water when we already have water provided to us. Everyday there is more and more bottled water being bought, causing wastage from the plastic bottles. Tap water comes from local reservoirs and wells, while bottled water is delivered long distances apart producing CO2. So this raises the

We as consumers have been lied to as far as them being recycled and safe for the planet. Plastic bottles are not sustainable, no matter what we've been told. Using vast quantities of fossil fuels and water, these bottles are manufactured, filled, and shipped around the globe. (Not a

Many people around the world would like to call for an end of plastic bottles because they produce a lot of waste. They say that tap water is the answer, but they couldn't be farther from the truth. Banning water bottles would do more damage than good in the long run. It would be inconsiderate of people with mental illnesses and disabilities, makes it much harder to be able to give large amounts of water to the people who don't have access to it, would make things so much more difficult after some sort of natural disaster, and would make it very unfair to the water manufacturers to ban water bottles but not ban other bottled drinks. The real answer to the problem is to make bottles out of a biodegradable material so it will be less harmful

Each year over 2.5 billion kg’s of plastic were used in the making water bottles. Therefore nearly 1.25 billon kg’s of plastic bottles are incinerated every year, creating a total of 750 billion kg’s of C02 waste. Think about it like this, over 34.5 billion trees would be needed to counteract the C02 waste created by incinerating these water bottles. That’s enough trees to completely cover Ireland two times over! Additionally, the cost to manufacture, proses, transport, pump, and to refrigerate our bottled water comes at an insane cost of 67 million barrels of oil worldwide.

“One of the biggest challenges facing the bottled water industry is how to respond to the environmental claims levelled against it” (Grocer). Every time someone throws a bottle away, they have taken up more space in a landfill for the next four hundred fifty to one thousand years. Besides the long decomposition rate, water bottles are the cause of several more environmental issues. Overfilling landfills, health hazards caused by refilling, and the economic stresses due to the constant and inconvenient repurchasing are just a few of the negatives water bottles have on us. These plastic pollutants are doing more harm to both the environment and their users than good.