Bottled water

[PoetPhilosopher]

For environmentalists and health-conscious people, is bottled water prone to doing more harm than good?

 

[The Sum of Awe]

I’m no expert but I would say so. It’s a huge waste of plastic, especially if people don’t recycle the bottles. I think refillable water bottles are the way to go.

I’ve never heard an argument about the good that bottled water does.

 

[bobhikes]

For environmentalists and health-conscious people, is bottled water prone to doing more harm than good?

Far more harm, Not only the materials but the contaminants depending on the material. Then you have the waste, I try to use half empty bottles to water plants and feed my pets but even then they collect and I end up pouring them down the drain. I only use bottled water when hiking or picnicking but my family uses it daily and hardly ever finish a bottle.

 

[Kenny]

For environmentalists and health-conscious people, is bottled water prone to doing more harm than good?

Absolutely... more plastics in the environment as well as chemicals in them.. We use to use glass for everything - reused them.

 

[PoetPhilosopher]

Some studies are also seeming to suggest that bottled water has a couple of chemicals which may raise estrogen levels.

 

[Stevicus]

For environmentalists and health-conscious people, is bottled water prone to doing more harm than good?

Why are Disposable Water Bottles Harmful to the Environment?

There's no question about it: we live in a thirsty world. Though the United States has access to a fantastic water source, both residents and visitors still turn to water bottles in plastic disposable bottles. Yes, it is recommended to have some in storage in case of an emergency such as a...

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Why is Bottled Water Harmful to the Environment?​

Let us count the ways…

• The entire life cycle of disposable water bottles uses fossil fuels, contributes to global warming, and causes pollution.
• More than 17 million barrels of oil are required to produce enough disposable plastic water bottles to meet America’s annual demand for bottled water.
• According to the Container Recycling Institute, 86% of disposable water bottles used in the United States become garbage or litter, adding 38 billion disposable water bottles in U.S. landfills.
• The water bottling process releases 2.5 million tons of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere annually.
• Disposable water bottle waste washes into the ocean and kills 1.1 million marine creatures each year.
• Bottled water is tested for microbes and other pollutants 4 times less than tap water.

As you can see, producing disposable water bottles has already done a great amount of damage because 90% of bottled water’s cost comes from making the bottle.

Plastic Water Bottle Pollution: Where do all the Bottles End Up?

Plastic water bottle pollution is worse than you think. Here are 15 ways plastic water bottles are destroying our environment.

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As a result, U.S. landfills are overflowing with 2 million tons of discarded water bottles. And because plastics are produced with fossil fuels, not only does that make them an environmental hazard, but also an enormous waste of valuable resources.

Here are just 15 of the most dangerous ways bottled water is polluting the earth, one bottle of water at a time, as well as six things you can do about plastic water bottle pollution.

Quick Tip: Stop adding plastic to landfills today by purchasing a refillable water bottle. Learn the pros and cons of every reusable water bottle type in our free, definitive guide.

Get the guide: How to Choose the Best Water Bottle

Plastic water bottle production​

Americans consume more than 25 percent of the planet’s natural resources. The production of bottled water uses 17 million barrels of oil a year.

1. It takes 3 times the amount of water in a bottle of water to make it as it does to fill it.
2. Plastic water bottles are made from a petroleum product called polyethylene terephthalate (PET), which requires giant amounts of fossil fuels to make and transport.
3. The production of bottled water uses 17 million barrels of oil a year. That’s slightly more than it would take to fill one million cars a year with fuel.
4. It takes almost 2,000 times the energy to manufacture a bottle of water than it does to produce tap water.
5. If you fill a plastic water bottle so it is about 25% full, that’s about how much oil it took to make the bottle.

Plastic water bottle consumption​

People in the U.S. open 1,000 bottles of water every second and put 60 million plastic water bottles in the trash each year.

1. Every single second, 1,000 people open a bottle of water in the U.S.
2. Each day, people in the U.S. throw away more than 60 million plastic water bottles , most of which end up in landfills or as litter in America’s streets, parks and waterways.
3. Americans throw away 35 billion empty water bottles a year. Of those, only 12 percent are recycled.
4. Out of everything we put in our recycle bins at home, approximately 50 percent of it is never recycled.
5. Every person in America drinks an average of more than 30 gallons of bottled water a year. That means it takes 90 gallons of water just for one person to drink bottled water. In a world where 783 million people don’t have access to clean drinking water, that’s half of what one person would need for the entire year.
6. Although the U.S. comprises less than 5 percent of the world’s population, we consume more than 25 percent of natural resources and produce 30 percent of the trash and pollutants. Plastic constitutes 90 percent of all of the trash floating on the ocean’s surface – approximately 46,000 pieces of plastic per square mile.
7. Each week, it takes 40,000 18-wheeler trucks on our roads just to deliver our bottled water.
8. Americans drink more bottled water than milk or beer a year, and bottled water consumption increases by 10 percent each year.

Plastic water bottles in landfills​

80 percent of plastic water bottles end up in landfills. It takes up to 1,000 years for every single bottle to decompose.

1. 80 percent of the plastic water bottles we buy end up in landfills.
2. U.S. landfills are overflowing with more than 2 million tons of discarded water bottles.
3. It takes up to 1,000 years for every single bottle of water to decompose. Each bottle leaks harmful chemicals into our environment along the way as it decomposes.
4. Studies show that the toxins decomposing bottles of water leach into our environment cause a variety of health issues , including reproductive problems and cancer.

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