Sales of bottled water in the United Sates reached an historical high of 9.1 billion gallons (34.4 billion liters) in 2011. Per capita consumption also reached a new peak of 29.2 gallons (110.4 liters).
Translated to the handy half-liter size Americans find so appealing, that comes to 222 bottles of water for each person in the country — four bottles of water for every man, woman and child, every week.
What truly amazes me with respect to these statistics is that clean, drinkable tap water in the US is near universal, so, in terms of health, every single bit of that bottled water and the associated plastic bottles is essentially unnecessary.
Other questions arise when considering these figures. How many plastic bottles are consumed in shipping this water? How much energy and oil is used in the production of these bottles? How many of these bottles are recycled? What volume and weight of trash is generated by these bottles? Why as a nation have we become so addicted to bottled water?
What is really quite distressing is that even after various high profile campaigns aimed at reducing plastic bottle consumption, our nation still seems to be enamored with modern day throw away culture and convenience. A sad indictment.
Wed, 05/30/2012 - 16:16
I fill my army canteen with self-filtered water — yummy! Someone is also drinking the 222 bottles of water that I am not drinking.
Wed, 05/30/2012 - 16:15
The issue of bottled water is not simply the waste of plastic or the use of BPA’s in the bottles but also the movement of freshwater between watersheds. Companies over exploit public water sources, dry up watersheds and cause larger ecological repercussions. Classic example is the movement of freshwater to southern California to cities like LA that wouldn’t exist if they lived within their local caring capacity , at the expense of Northern California waterways. Water in the United States and parts of the world for the most part are handled very poorly. Anyone interested should watch the documentary “Blue Gold”
Wed, 05/30/2012 - 16:14
This plastic is washing up on beaches everywhere, even creating trashy beaches in Bali. To see its effects go to: http://www.changesinlongitude.com/plastic-trash-beaches/
Wed, 05/30/2012 - 16:13
I work on a college campus & am a huge recycler myself. Everyday, I pack my metal re-usable bottle of filtered tap-water across campus; sometimes 2 of ‘em. Same thing on the weekends, when I’m out & about. Sometimes I have little kids w/ me, & they need water, too. So, guess what: Sometimes I run out! Helloooohhh!!! Who can honestly pack THAT much water w/ them, everyday, & everywhere they go?? I try, folks, but the fact is, sometimes it’s necessary to PURCHASE a beverage! How wrong is it to be forced to buy a softdrink when I just want some more water??
Wed, 05/30/2012 - 16:12
The same problem is in India too… The sight of a huge pile of plastic bottles and bags blocking the drain for rain water run off is annoying. Also people have to understand the effect of BPA from the plastic bottles on their health. Recently some new companies are selling soda in plastic bottles, which previously was sold in reusable glass bottles. These changes are actually not needed. People be responsible!!!
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