Bottled Water Threatens Environment

[Fat Guy]

http://www.fibremarketnews.com/news/news.asp?ID=4145

"The California Department of Conservation released a report May 29th that finds that the boom in bottled waters is causing environmental problems. According to the report, more than 1 billion water bottles are winding up in the trash in California each year, and an estimated $26 million in unclaimed California Refund Value deposits annually."

[Jinmyo]

Naturally.

[vengroff]

What is the deposit per bottle in California? Over a billion bottles being worth $26 million suggests it is less than 2.6 cents per bottle. Usually 5 cents is the minumum any state bothers with. Do some of them not have a deposit, or did somebody do the math wrong?

[SobaAddict70]

More precisely, it's the packaging the waters come in, not the contents themselves.

Hopefully people will think things through before engaging in a boycott of Evian and Poland Spring.

Soba

[Fat Guy]

The only way to avoid packaging the water would be to deliver it to people's homes and places of business through some sort of amazingly intricate and complex series of reservoirs, pumping stations, pipes . . . hey, wait a second, we already have that.

[nightscotsman]

The only way to avoid packaging the water would be to deliver it to people's homes and places of business through some sort of amazingly intricate and complex series of reservoirs, pumping stations, pipes . . .  hey, wait a second, we already have that.

Have you ever tried to drink Los Angeles tap water? I guess you could filter it at home, but I can certainly see the appeal of bottled water. Recycle, people!

[hollywood]

The only way to avoid packaging the water would be to deliver it to people's homes and places of business through some sort of amazingly intricate and complex series of reservoirs, pumping stations, pipes . . .  hey, wait a second, we already have that.

Have you ever tried to drink Los Angeles tap water? I guess you could filter it at home, but I can certainly see the appeal of bottled water. Recycle, people!

It's no accident that when tap water is served at restaurants in LA, it's iced and has a lemon slice in it. As for this environmental problem, I don't get it. We fill up our recycling can weekly with water and wine bottles and soda cans. Presumably, they are not going to the landfills.

About every 6 months we get one of these scare things about the landfills. Previously, it was disposable diapers filling the fills. Then it was garden clippings (we have a separate can for garden trimmings). Then, just to balance things out, they tell us our actual nonrecyclable garbage is filling the fills. That is what we have them for, isn't it?

Edited June 3, 2003 by hollywood (log)

[menton1]

I am truly amazed at the groundswell of popularity for Dasani and Aquafina. I believe, please correct me if I'm wrong, that these two waters are nothing but tap water run through a filtering system. What power the two giants, Coke & Pepsi, have when they do clever marketing!!

[=Mark]

Bottled water has become the symbol of American lifestyles almost to the exclusion of Baseball and Apple pie, now a dark side is emerging.

Water bottles not being recycled

and

Lack of fluoride in bottled water may result in more tooth decay in kids.

According to the American Dental Association, fluoride prevents between 40 percent and 60 percent of cavities in children and adults who live in fluoridated communities. Research shows an estimated half of all American children now reach their 18th birthdays without a cavity.

[tommy]

it is terribly wasteful. especially if you don't recycle.

i've been saying for years that they should make flourinated bottled water a standard. i've been reading about the tooth decay issue for a while now, and all evidence suggests that there's a real problem here. i didn't have a cavity until i was about 28 yrs old. i can only think that the water was helping.

[fresco]

Tommy,

What exactly did you start drinking at age 28?

[MatthewB]

Tommy,

What exactly did you start drinking at age 28?

It wasn't drinking.

He quit smoking pot.

[Stone]

Have you ever tried to drink Los Angeles tap water? I guess you could filter it at home, but I can certainly see the appeal of bottled water. Recycle, people!

It's no accident that when tap water is served at restaurants in LA, it's iced and has a lemon slice in it.

Edited June 11, 2003 by Stone (log)

[tommy]

Tommy,

What exactly did you start drinking at age 28?

bottled water.

[MatthewB]

Tommy,

What exactly did you start drinking at age 28?

bottled water.

But what else did you change at that time?

[tommy]

Tommy,

What exactly did you start drinking at age 28?

bottled water.

But what else did you change at that time?

i think a lot of things changed btwn 6 and 28. can't pinpoint any particulars at this time, however.

[MatthewB]

But what else did you change at that time?

i think a lot of things changed btwn 6 and 28. can't pinpoint any particulars at this time, however.

Might not have been the water then.

[hollywood]

There was a followup on the recycling of plastic water bottles in California on NPR the other day. Story said about 35 % of plastic bottles in California are recycled but only about 15 % of water bottles get recycled. So the proposal is to double the CRV (deposit) from 2.5 to 5 cents a bottle to give consumers more incentive to recycle.

[Fat Guy]

Have we ever discussed the amazing Christian Science Monitor piece about how bottled water costs more than gasoline?

http://www.csmonitor.com/2002/0805/p11s02-wmcn.html

[hollywood]

Have we ever discussed the amazing Christian Science Monitor piece about how bottled water costs more than gasoline?

http://www.csmonitor.com/2002/0805/p11s02-wmcn.html

There is a health overlay in the water. When the MTBEs from gasoline are leaching into the water supply, paying a few cents more for purer water doesn't sound like a bad idea.

[hollywood]

Thinking about this some more the retail price is not a fair comparison. That's because there's significant cost externalization in the petroleum world. In addition to the pump price, we pay the cost of air pollution, water pollution, soil pollution, aggravation of lung problems due to smog (which in turn gets us into aesthetic costs), not to mention various tax breaks such as the (27%?) oil depletion allowance (to enable the petro companies to find alternate energy sources--still waiting on that). And, if you are really cynical, you can throw the cost of going to war over oil on the pile as well. As far as water goes, I can't think of many additional costs society has to pay in the bottled water arena except for the bottle recycling/disposal cost. So, gas definitely costs more. Just my opinion.

[Richard Kilgore]

An aside: I heard part of a report (on NPR?) recently about re-using plastic water bottles being not-a-good-thing because they leach toxins with continued use. The report said not to re-use them more than a few times, or to use water bottles that are designed to be re-used that do not leach. Anyone else recall this and more detail about what kind of plastic is okay?

[KNorthrup]

I didn't hear it on NPR but it was a story in the local paper. In terms of what did and did not leach, I don't think it was much more informative than the bottles the water comes in are meant for single-use only and the sort of sports bottles you buy for the gym or hiking don't leach.

[tryska]

i buy bottled water in difference sizes and then refill with tap water as necessary.

am i part of the problem? or do i just have to worry about catching cancer from this practice?

[jhlurie]

New question (not weighty enough for its own thread, I think):

Bottled Water. Expiration Dates. Why?

Discuss.