Bottled Water vs. Home Filter
Brandon Jewell
5
Table of Contents
Introduction………………………………………iv
Chapter 1 Cost of Bottled Water vs Tap Water .. 1
Chapter 2 Enviormental Impact ........................... 4
Chapter 3 What is Bottled Water ......................... 7
Index ...................................................................... 13
iv
Introduction
What is better home filtered tap water or bottled water, we will
examine the pros and cons of both. Topics that will be examined
are health, cost, and environmental impact as well as the
convenience factor.
1
Chapter 1
Cost of bottled water vs Tap Water
Chapter 1
3
While bottled water does have a convenience factor that convenience come
at an often unrealized cost with some brands rivaling the cost of gasoline.
Upon examining this chart it is easy to see that tap water is easier
on one’s wallet.
5
Chapter 2
Environmental Impact

Chapter 2
Americans buy an estimated 34.6 billion single-serving (1 liter or less) plastic water
bottles each year. Almost eight out of ten end up in a landfill or incinerator. Hundreds
of millions end up as litter on roads and beaches or in streams and other waterways.
Taxpayers pay hundreds millions of dollars each year in disposal and litter cleanup
costs.
That's 877 bottles wasted every second.
The environmental cost of the massive consumption of bottled water has led some U.S. and
Canadian local governments to consider a ban its sale. While this seems an extreme response, the
scientific concerns are well-founded, and the facts may surprise you.
Fact #1. Bottles used to package water take over 1,000 years to bio-degrade and if incinerated,
they produce toxic fumes. It is estimated that over 80% of all single-use water bottles used in the
U.S. simply become "litter." Source: ValleyWater.org
Fact #2. Recycling is only feasible in limited circumstances because only PET bottles can be
recycled. All other bottles are discarded. Only 1 out of 5 bottles are sent to the recycle bin.
Source: SunTimes
Fact #3. U.S. landfills are overflowing with 2 million tons of discarded water bottles alone.
Source: idswater.org
Fact #4. It takes over 1.5 million barrels of oil to meet the demand of U.S. water bottle
manufacturing. This amount of oil far exceeds the amount needed to power 100,000 for a year,
which does not include fossil fuel and emissions costs of green house gases needed to transport
the final product to market. Source: SunTimes
Fact #5. It is estimated that actually 3 liters of water is used to package 1
6
7
Chapter 3
What is Bottled Water
Chapter 3
9
Many Bottled Water Brands are Simply
Filtered City Tap Water
Recent allegations against the Coca-Cola Company and its brand
name of bottled water, Dasani, have publicly highlighted one of the
biggest misconceptions about the quality of bottled water. CocaCola, advertising its bottled water as “pure, still water,” is now
being investigated for misleading consumers about the true nature
of the contents of its bottles. Rather than deriving its water from
natural springs, Coca-Cola had actually been filling its Dasani
bottles with purified tap water.
Chapter 4
bottled, iii, 1
Deathstar, ii
In one case,
a brand of bottled water, advertised as “pure, glacier
environmental, iii
water,” was
found
filtered,
iii to be taken from a municipal water supply while
health,flaunted
iii
another brand,
as “spring water,” was pumped from a
Palpatine, iii
water source
next toii a hazardous waste dumping site. While
Recreation,
“purified tap
water”
is arguably
safer andiipurer than untreated tap
Yoda,
Deathstar,
Vader,Stormtrooper,
water (depending
upon the purification methods), a consumer
Conclusion
should expect to receive something more than reconstituted tap
water for the exceptional prices of bottled water.
If bottled water does not necessarily offer purer water than tap
water, surely it provides a better tasting water product, right? The
answer to this question is no. Bottled water does not always taste
better than tap water.
In an interesting study conducted by Showtime television, the hosts
found that 75% of tested New York City residents actually
preferred tap water over bottled water in a blind taste test.
While taste is certainly highly subjective, this study shows that
bottled water essentially holds nothing over tap water. In many
cases, bottled water is no purer than tap water, and it may not even
taste better.
Is This What
Your Bottled
Water really is?
Chapter 4
In conclusion not only is bottled
water a huge waste of money, it
is often times misleading in its
advertising. With some brands
of bottled water being nothing
more than filtered city tap water
that is resold to the masses at a
great profit. It is also a huge
environmental factor with
thousands of tons of this
material in land fields instead of
the recycling facilities where it
belongs.
We can all do our pocketbooks a
favor and the environment by
drinking tap water.
11
13
Index
Bottle, iv, 3, 5,9,11
Cost, iv, 1, 3, 5, 11
Health, iv,9