Jordan Tebbens
Megan Draheim
NCLC 210
12/01/10
Sources and Destinations
Upon traveling to any major store, from a grocery store to a convenience store, to a
clothing store, you will run into bottled water. In every family home there will be a fridge
stocked with bottled water. Even in restaurants you will find bottled water for sale. Most people
do not look at an item and wonder how it got from original source to their hand. In today’s
society people have begun to hear about the environmental impacts of everything that they do
and buy. Considering how large the bottled water industry is, thirty billion bottles made a year,
the general public must overlook the impacts of bottled water on the environment (Gleick, 2010).
Until recently, I did not know very much about the industry, except that it I should stop
buying bottled water and stick with tap. In this research paper I will be discussing how bottled
water is made, from retrieving the water to packaging it, to it being on a store shelf. I will also
be mentioning the process of recycling water bottles, the environmental, and social impacts of
bottled water.
Beginning in the 1820s, Rev. D.O. Griswold bottled spring water in the United States in
order to avoid the unclean municipal tap water. During this time period, industrialization was on
the large and tap water became loaded with many contaminants. These contaminants often led to
diarrhea, which would also lead to death. Before spring water was bottled, it was only used for
healing purposes. Many people thought it was cleansing and spiritual, also it was only drunk to
ail sickness, like an upset stomach (Chapelle, 2005). Bottling spring water was needed during
this time considering the unsanitary drinking water. Ultimately, it replaced the dirty tap water
and became viewed as the ultimate drinking water in the mid 1800’s.
During this time many jobs were opening up and the bottled water industry was a job for
strong men. Bottled water back at that time was not like what we are used to today, but it was
bottled in heavy glass. Because of the heavy glass bottles, only stronger men could handle the
job for the industry (Chapelle, 2005).
Not only was bottled water imbibed by the upper class, rich people in the United States,
but lower-class, working families made a strong attempt to bring home bottled spring water for
their family to drink. It was not considered something only the fortunate could drink, but it was
a necessity, or a “desirable amenity” (Chapelle, 2005). However, in 1913 this all changed with
the arrival of the chlorination system.
In 1913, the first chlorination system was developed for municipal tap water. After this
invention, the bottling water industry essentially disappeared. Tap water was cheap and safe to
drink so there was no need for bottled water; only very few people drank bottled spring water.
Tap water at that point was not only used for drinking, but for bathing, clothes washing, and
swimming. For almost 60 years, municipal tap water was the primary drinking water source for
most Americans (Chapelle, 2005).
In the 1970s, Disney World was having issues with their drinking water. Because of the
geology of the area water, the tap drinking water had little amounts (two parts per billion) of
hydrogen sulfide, which has odor. Even though the amount of hydrogen sulfide (not a dangerous
amount) was incredibly insignificant, the human nose is highly sensitive and was able to pick up
the odor (Chapelle, 2005). With that, the bottled water was revived. Slowly, bottled water
became popular all over the country.
It is important to note that even areas with the best tasting municipal tap water, it still
became popular. For example, in New York City bottled water quickly became prevalent in the
upper class, yuppie population (even though New York City is known for its great tasting tap
water). In recent days, the popularity has boomed with over 250 different bottled water
companies (LeMoreaux, 2001).
With the revival of the bottled water, came a few other sources of water. Spring water
was the original water used to bottle. After spring water came well water, mineral water,
purified water, and your typical tap water. The most prevalent water sources used for bottling
are spring water and purified water.
Spring water was and still is used for healing purposes. Many people will visit springs
and enjoy a relaxing day at the spa. A very famous spring is in Bath, England. This particular
spring has been used for bathing and relaxing purposes for thousands of years. A famous term
regarding a spring is “a fountain of youth.” Many believed that its healing and cleansing
purposes prolonged and enhanced one’s life. If a spring is located by a fault then the water is
hot, or a “hot spring.” A spring is naturally occurring, from its original source (LaMoreaux,
2001). The water is brought up from the aquifer to the surface naturally (groundwater).
Well water is the same thing as spring water except tubes are drilled down to the aquifer
and the water is allowed to rise to the service. These tubes are known as the well itself. Well
water is generally defined as water that is from the original source but encased in the earth, or
well (LaMoreaux, 2001).
Another available bottled water type is mineral water. Mineral water is essentially the
same as spring or well water. However, it is highly regulated and it has to meet certain levels of
important natural minerals before it can be bottled and sold. It is offered as regular mineral
water and sparkling mineral water (LaMoreaux, 2001).
The second most available type of bottled water is purified water. Purified water can be
derived from tap, well, spring, and mineral water naturally. However, it is put through a
filtration process to remove minerals and impurities. This purification process is necessary for it
to be labeled as purified water. Often, people will think this water is better, but our bodies need
many of the minerals naturally occurring in water (Royte, 2008).
Finally, while you will not see bottled water labeled as “tap” very often, there have been
controversies of companies using tap water and labeling it as purified water; Coca-Cola had a
recent issue with this. I feel like it’s important to learn about tap water because of the big war
between tap and bottled water.
With that being said, tap water is generally found in faucets. Municipal tap water,
usually run by the cities, is ground water that is treated to remove pollutants through a
chlorination process (Chapelle, 2005). Tap water is found in many houses and business thanks
to the modern plumbing system. Tap water has become very accessible and reliable across the
United States.
Once the water for bottling has been retrieved, the companies proceed to bottle and label
the water. After that happens, all that is left is to transport it then it is ready to be sold. Many
people are used to only a typical sized water bottle, yet there are many different sized bottled
waters (Cooley, 2009). These plastic bottles can be a large jug to be used in many offices and
businesses to small lunch box sized bottles for children.
Most bottles are made out of polyethylene terephthalate (PET). The PET resin, which
looks like rice pellets, is melted and put into a mold. This particular mold does not look like
your average bottle of water, but like a small test tube. The original mold already has the cap
rings in it. It is then heated and blown into the actual bottle shape (Cooley, 2009). For
reference, the recycling code for bottled water is “1”.
Upon the making of the bottle, water is then filled into them. For purified water, two
treatments are necessary because of the Safe Drinking Water Act (Cooley, 2009). Generally the
types of treatments are ultraviolet radiation, ultra filtration, reverse osmosis, and ozonation.
Because water is considered a food, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates bottled
water. Not only do they have standards for the bottled water company to meet in regards of the
cleanliness of the water, they make sure the bottles are labeled correctly. If a bottle were labeled
incorrectly then the company would face legal charges (“Bottling up”).
There is an inconsistency however in regards to the regulation of bottled water. If a
company that bottles water, bottles and sells their water within the same state, their company is
regulated by the state. The way many states regulate their bottled water is by three different
models (“Bottling up”).
The first is a model after the FDA regulations. The second is a model by that particular
state’s Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). The final way of regulating their water is a
combination of the first and second model. This final model is widely used by many bottling
companies. Also, state and nationwide companies may join the International Bottled Water
Association (IBWA), founded in 1958, and follow those standards as well (“Bottling up”).
Once bottled, the water has to be then transported to a store or business. Because purified
bottled water generally uses municipal city water that is purified, it is usually less energy
expensive. This is because they do everything fairly locally and transport it to local businesses
by truck. Spring bottled water, however, is packed near the original source then transported all
over the place, sometimes long distances. Because of these long distances, many different ways
of transportation are used. The most energy expensive option is air cargo followed by truck
cargo, then by train or bulk ocean shipping as the least energy expensive (Cooley, 2009).
Once one buys the water and finish it, many people will recycle their water by simply
placing the empty bottle in a recycling bin. It is fairly easy to recycle bottled water if your city
has a local recycling center. After a truck picks up the recycling, it is packed and then shredded,
washed, dried, and then melted (Royte, 2008). Once melted the recycled bottles are made into
many other items. This is all usually done by a business that solely recycles bottled water.
Now that I have described what it takes to create a bottle of water, I would like to discuss
the different impacts bottled water has on both a social aspect and an environmental aspect.
Socially, bottled water has become a fad and a trend. Right now we are in the second trend of
bottled water being popular, the first during the 1800s). While many people drink bottled water
because it is in right now, there are many that advocate against it.
This battle between tap and bottle is one that has started fairly recently. Because the
bottle is convenient, popular, and stylish, many will grab a bottle of water before they would fill
a reusable bottle with tap water. Bottled water industries tend to play off the fears about tap
water and how it is thought to be unclean (Gleick, 2010). Yet tap water is just as clean and
relatively cheaper than bottled water. Also, socially the bottled water symbolizes the American
lifestyle. Since Americans are very busy drinking bottled water comes easy to us.
The biggest issue with bottled water is the environment impact it has. A lot of energy
goes into making and transporting a bottle of water. The energy expenses come from extracting
the water, cleaning the water, bottling and labeling the water, transporting the bottled water,
refrigerating the bottled water, and recycling the bottles. According the article “Energy
implications of bottled water,” “the annual consumptions of bottled water in the US in 2007
required an energy input equivalent to between 32 and 54 million barrels of oil (Cooley, 2009).”
This is a staggering number, especially compared to the amount of energy required to process
and distribute municipal tap water. It takes a significant amount less than those numbers of
energy to get tap water.
Not only is there and issue of energy use to make bottled water, but there is an issue of
the waste of bottled water. If you walk outside or drive down the road, you will see multiple
bottles of water littered on the ground. Between that and dumping the bottles in landfills, there is
an issue of it affecting the environment. Because plastic does not degrade quickly, it is hard to
get rid of it. As seen in pictures of a seagulls stomach who lives near the garbage patch in the
pacific ocean, the animals eat the plastic and may very well die because of this.
With all of these environmental impacts in mind, many companies have begun to produce
“green” water bottles. That is by using biodegradable plastics or by creating bottles that are
thinner (Gleick, 2010). This means that less plastic is used to make a bottle of water. It is still
questionable if this is any better because the companies still have to transport the water which is
where most of the energy is found in getting a bottle of water.
Thinking about my how bottled water affects my ecological footprint, I believe that I
have lessened my use of bottled water in the last year or so. I think that I have slowly become
educated about its impacts on the environment. Usually I use a Brita filter and drink that out of a
glass or a refillable plastic bottle. This is much cheaper for me than purchasing a case of bottled
water every couple weeks. Only occasionally do I use bottled water. This only happens when I
am out and need water or if I’m only offered that at someone’s house.
As humans, we all need to be educated on the impacts of bottled water. There needs to
be a movement to step away from using bottled water and switching to strictly tap water. Many
people do not recognize that when they purchase a bottle of water, not only are they harming the
environment but also they are only paying for the plastic bottle and the transport of the water. If
all Americans were less ignorant about these issues then I believe they would be less reliant on
bottled water.
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