Bottled Water Blues

What's the estimated percentage of municipal (city) tap water in bottled water?

25-60%

What percentage of all non-carbonated PET bottles ended up in landfill or as litter in parks & along roadways in 2004?

85% (24 billion empty water bottles [66 million per day]).

groundwater sources

aquifers (rock/soil deposits capable of supplying usable quantities of water).

The FDA cannot regulate water that is:

bottled & sold within the same state.

artesian water (bottled. not from municipal source, i.e. tap water)

comes from a confined aquifer b/w impervious layers of rock from which the water flows naturally to the surface. When tapped, the pressure in the aquifer, called artesian pressure, pushes the water above the level of the aquifer, sometimes to the surface. Other means may be used to help bring the water to the surface.

well water (bottled. not from municipal source, i.e. tap water)

comes from an aquifer into which a well has been drilled & water is mechanically pumped to the surface.

spring water (bottled. not from municipal source, i.e. tap water)

comes from the surface release of an underground aquifer. Must be collected only at the spring/through a borehole tapping the underground formation feeding the spring. If some external force is used to collect the water through a borehole, the water must have the same composition & quality as the water that naturally flows to the surface.

mineral water (bottled. not from municipal source, i.e. tap water)

contains naturally occurring dissolved solids (>250 parts per million, or ppm). Minerals & trace elements must come from the source of the underground water; they can't be added later.

Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974

established health-based standards for drinking water to protect against both naturally-occurring & man-made contaminants that may be found in drinking water.

Many communities & companies also get their water from:

groundwater sources (aquifers)

bottled water from municipal sources:

is usually safe from bacterial contamination since it's chlorinated.

Recycling of PET plastic across the country has (increased/decreased)?

it has decreased over the past 5 years.

purified water (bottled.municipal source, i.e. tap water)

often distilled, deionized, or filtered (reverse osmosis), removing many of the contaminants that may exist. Tap water is purified water (i.e. all tap water is treated before it's piped out to homes/busi.s/wherever there's a faucet). Bottled-water co.s that use purified water are bottling tap water at their bottling plants. They may/may not do anything, like additional filtration, to the source.

bottled water from non-municipal sources:

often lacks any treatment, in exchange for the ability to have an "all natural product".

What percentage of PET bottles get recycled?

only about 19%.

PET

polyethylene terephthalate. Plastic bottles are made out of this. Is a plastic resin & a form of polyester. Labeled with the #1 code on/near bottom of bottles & is commonly used to package soft drinks, water, juice, peanut butter, salad dressings, oil, cosmetics, & household cleaners.

surface water sources

rivers, streams, lakes, reservoirs

At the state level, bottled water is covered by:

state regulations & industry standards.

Municipalities generally get their water from:

surface water sources (rivers, streams, lakes, reservoirs)

PET plastic is labeled with:

the #1 code on/near the bottom of bottles & is commonly used to package soft drinks, water, juice, peanut butter, salad dressings, oil, cosmetics, & household cleaners.

Municipal tap water is regulated by:

the Environmental Protection Agency under the Safe Drinking Water Act of 1974.

Bottled water that's sold in states other than the state in which it was bottles (interstate commerce) is regulated by:

the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) under the Federal Food, Drug, & Cosmetic Act and is considered a food product.

artesian pressure

the pressure in an aquifer that, when tapped, pushes the water above the level of the aquifer, sometimes to the surface.

sparkling water (bottled.municipal source, i.e. tap water)

water that has been treated & then has had CO2 added to it.