How to Save the World, Part II

Next up: bottled water.

To put it simply, just stop drinking it. What is the point? Bottled water is simply an advertising hype, trying to make you think of safety purity. The truth is bottled water is not cleaner or safer then tap water. In fact, in a recent study by the National Resources Defense Council, one-third of bottled water tested contained a contaminant. The bottled water industry is poorly regulated with a significant share of the market completely unregulated. When it is regulated, bottled water is subjected to less rigorous and less frequent testing then city tap water. And as if that's not all bad enough, bottled water is allowed to contain small amount of E. coli or fecal coliform (which indicate potential fecal contamination) while positive results are prohibited in tap water.

In addition to this frankly disgusting information, we are spending 240 to 10,000 times more per gallon for bottled water then for tap water. And, just in case you aren't yet dumbfounded, a quarter (on a conservative estimate) of bottled waters are actually just bottled tap water. And according to FDA regulations, they are allowed to call this spring water. Obviously the bottled water industry is quite lucrative. In fact, one researcher said, "At as much as $2.50 per liter (or $10 per gallon), bottled water costs more then gasoline." I don't think we can blame Venezuela for that.

As if it isn't bad enough that you're possibly drinking poop and paying a 10,000 times markup on it, bottled water is hurting the environment. Bottled water produces unnecessary garbage and consumes excessive energy. Worldwide, 2.7 million tons of plastic are used to bottle water each year. In fact, making bottles to meet America's demand for bottled water requires 1.5 million barrels of crude oil a year, enough to fuel 100,000 US cars for a year. About 86% of these bottles become garbage or litter and take...oh..anywhere from 400 to 1,000 years to degrade.

The simple solution? Buy a reusable bottle and fill it up...from your tap! Or better yet, reuse your old water bottles. After all, they should last you another 399 years minimum. If you just can't bear the thought of drinking straight from the tap, invest in a Brita pitcher or Pur filter that attaches right to your faucet. There is absolutely no excuse for the pure excess and waste of drinking bottled water. Are we really that lazy as a society that we can't fill up a bottle before we leave the house for work or the gym?

That being said, bottled water certainly has a place. But for people whose tap water is unsafe to drink. Here's my challenge to you. For one year, stop buying bottled water. Heck, stop buying bottled beverages all together, and use the money you save (which could be quite substantial depending on your habits) and donate it to an organization that helps provide access to clean water to the millions of people around the world that actually need it.