Bottled Water News

Well, if you're into expensive bottled water, try Bling (at $55 a bottle,) or, at quite a step down, Fiji water for about $3. But no doubt the carbon footprint of the latter exceeds that of the former. Just don't expect to see any of these served at a growing number of cities throughout the US.

The city of Seattle has decided it will not buy bottled water anymore. Mayor Greg Nickels announced that the city could save up to $85,000 a year and is the latest city to join the crusade against bottled water.

Previously, San Francisco banned the use of city money to buy bottled water in June, 2007. San Francisco apparently requires more hydration than Seattle, as the ban was slated to save $500,000 per year...almost six times the per capita rate of the more Northern city. And Mayor Newson made a "request" to restaurateurs to stop selling bottled water, while noting that they make "quite a profit" from doing so, and therefore were not likely to comply.

Back in 2005, Los Angeles Mayor Villaraigosa ordered city agencies to stop buying bottled water for employees after reports that the city was spending nearly $90,000 yearly.

Ann Arbor went further in 2007, in also preventing the sale of bottled water at city-sponsored events.

And, of course, my local Park Slope Food Co-op has finally stopped selling it.

Should bottled water be outlawed completely? Across the pond, John Spellar, MP for Warley in the West Midlands, said bottled water was a "major environmental issue" as well as having substantial cost implications. He told the Commons tap water should be available at all dining and meeting rooms as an alternative.

Stephen Kay, spokesman for the International Bottled Water Association, not surprisingly, disagrees: "We're not in a totalitarian state. It's all about consumer choice, and consumers should be free to make those choices without having them foisted upon them."

For a neat map showing where action has been taken on this issue, check this out.

Unfortunately , it only shows how much further we need to go...when will New York City follow suit?

T

Comments

[Rob Feckler]

Going the green route is a choice. In this regard, the scientific community can help the business sector by developing materials that are eco-friendly. Together, we have a better chance at achieving our goal to protect the environment.

[Katherine Inman]

Buying or not buying bottled water is an issue that concerns the public foremost, since they are the primary consumers. Ask them directly if they would opt for tap or bottled water. Ultimately, policies should serve the interest of the ones who count.