Bottled Water
Is Bad for Mother Earth and
Probably Bad for You and Your Family



Many think that bottled water is healthier than tap water. 
There is no basis for this belief.  Tap water is more regulated.

A great deal of bottled water is contaminated. 
Much of it has not been filtered, or only superficially filtered to improve taste and odor.


We recommend that you filter and bottle your own tap water, 
to remove fluoride, chlorine, hormones and other contaminants.
(Most filters do not do all that.  Most don't even claim to!)


The NRDC did a study of 103 brands.  Many labled "natural" or "pure" had been run through basic filters that removed bad taste and odors but not other contaminants.

The NRDC tested 103 bottled waters and found over 25% were simply tap water
Several tested failed the bacteria test.

see the 4-year NRDC study:  http://www.nrdc.org/water/drinking/bw/bwinx.asp





The Canadian government has just found that plastics that contain Bisphenol A (BPA) is toxic. 
They are planning a ban on BPA in the next 60 days.  Unfortunately, 
water bottles and baby bottles contain BPA.  (4/23/08)
Companies are responding, annoucing plans to stop using BPA.

Some bottled water has fluoride.  (see No Fluoride.)


The soft plastic used in bottled water can itself contaminate the water. 
The plastic quickly releases undesireable chemicals into the water.





In the US and many other places, you may be paying more for bottled water than for gasoline.

One study put the cost of bottled water at 7.5 times that of tap water.
 
A Canadian study reported that a one-litre brand-name bottle of water costs about 3,000 times more expensive than an equal amount of municipal tap water.


Click here to go to our store to get a Kitchen Water Filter.

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3/10th of 1% of all the world's water is usable by humans.

 37% of the world's population lack access to water for basic hygiene.

Households without plumbing spend on average 90 minutes a day hauling water for family needs.
 
Women, usually responsible for hauling water when plumbing is absent,
on average carry 45 pounds of water at a time.

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Global sales of bottled water reached $100 billion in 2005.

The cost to provide clean drinking water to half the 1.1 billion who need it is between
$10 and $30 billion a year.




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Massive water bottling is a form of defacto privatization.


 
Water put in the bottles we are buying is taken from general suppies, often limiting access by others.

Water shortages near water bottling plants have been reported all over, including
Wisconsin, New Hampshire, Florida and Texas.




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17 million barrels of crude oil are used annually to
produce the plastic used to bottle water,
according to the Earth Policy Institute.

Bottled water is hauled long distances for distribution,
burning massive quantities of fuel.

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90% of the cost of a bottle of water is for label, cap and bottle.


Mountainous rubbish heaps have been created all over from thrown-away bottles


friendsofwater suggests that you get water filters for your kitchen, to remove chlorine, fluoride, volatile organic compounds like hormones.  You want water filters that leave healthy water with the trace elements that your body needs.

And get water bottles for your family.


Buy a kitchen water filter.
Get your family their own water bottles.
Stop buying bottled water.
Save money.
Save the environment.
Support your family's health.



Click here to go to our store to get a Kitchen Water Filter.

Click here to learn more about Water Filters 
and to learn how to choose the right filter for your home.



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Water belongs to the earth and its people,
not private companies to put in bottles and sell it back to us.


Save Water.  Filter Water.  Celebrate Water.

www.friendsofwater.com