Today I discovered that bottled water by Pepsi Cola (Aquafina) and Coca Cola (Dasani) are actually from municipal sources! It’s pretty much like buying water that’s filtered by a Brita or Pur system. I always thought bottled water was from the springs of the mountains throughout the world, which is partly true for some bottled water distributors, but not all are. Drinking from the tap is usually unheard of in some places, and for me, I usually drink bottled water when I’m on the go, but when I’m home I drink from the filter.
I know this isn’t an environmental blog but I’m starting to feel really bad because when I go to the gym I bring a bottle of water with me and when I’m finish I toss it in the trash. There aren’t even any recycling bins there! Now I’m thinking about how many bottles of water are to be recycled only to read that Americans go through 100 millions of plastic bottles every day and roughly recycle 25% of them! That is insane! In some places in the world it’s probably safer to drink water bottles, and for your health you should, but if I think if you can drink the water from the tap or filter, you should.
I definitely need to get one of those gym water bottles.
{ 6 comments… read them below or add one }
My thoughts when I travel out of the country will probably be different, but if I have to buy water then I don’t drink it. It’s a waste of money.
I carry around a 32 ounce nalgene bottle with me everywhere I go (I own four of them) and I fill it with water from the tap at home (the water from the tap where I work tastes disgusting.)
Even if you are using the bottled water, there is no reason to throw the bottles out at the gym. Take it home with you and refill it. It will save you money, and there’s no need to buy another one.
I know I know… I’m going to take my empty water bottles home, but using the water bottles like your nalgene one is probably a lot better since it holds more water. I’m definitely looking into getting myself one of those.
Yup, we don’t buy bottled water. We filter our tap water.
Aquafina and Dasani are reverse osmosis filtered. It’s quite a bit more pure than you’ll get from a Brita or Pur filter, but you can buy under-the-sink RO systems for under $150. Municipal water where I live tastes vile. The RO system was worth the money.
It’s better bottling by ourselves only, not so different with them
There are still much more free waters …….
I always carry a 500ml bottle of water with me and refill it throughout the day. Once it gets quite old I throw it away and replace it but I don’t go through a huge amount of bottles.
BTW are there any UK readers who remember the media frenzy which compared Dasani water to the episode of Only Fools and Horses where Del and Rodney were selling bottled tap water (http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/business/3809539.stm)? Reading this post brought back the memories and made me chuckle.