In the wake of high gasoline prices, presidential candidates and pundits are debating drilling offshore and in ANWAR or recovering oil from tar sands or shale. However, there is something that all of us can do immediately to reduce our addiction to oil while contributing to the health of the planet.
     Though some products appear to be benign on the surface, or even guarantee some positive results, their production and distribution may have side effects which are less than positive. Bottled water meets that criterion since no one would question the benefits of consuming pure water or the human body’s need for hydration.
     However, at least two ounces of oil are used to produce every plastic water bottle, which given the 50 billion plastic bottles consumed last year in the United States, adds up to millions of gallons of gasoline. Not only are the plastic bottles made from crude oil, which has to be transported thousands of miles across oceans or through pipelines, but once bottled, the water is shipped thousands of miles across oceans and national boundaries.
     One study estimates that 18 million barrels of oil are being converted into plastic water bottles every day, while the bottled water industry consumes 41 billion gallons of fresh water everyday for a product which American consumers already possess.
     In some cases, communities have complained that local bottling plants are depleting local water sources and there is an international movement to maintain a fundamental human right to clean water by opposing attempts to privatize water. Because consumers have been sold a bill of goods that tap water is unsafe and the packaged product is superior, there is a risk that the public will not support or maintain their public water systems.
     Since 40% of bottled water is taken from public water sources, or out of the tap, and health standards are less stringent for bottled water than tap water throughout the United States, consumers are paying for a product which is basically free and with no guarantee that the bottled product is healthier than their tap water. If water is produced and sold within a state, the FDA has no jurisdiction and it lacks adequate staffing to inspect national or imported brands.
     There is also increasing concern that the chemicals used in plastic bottles are toxic and that water left in these bottles for periods of time or in warm settings will carry traces of these harmful chemicals. If you need to carry water with you, avoid using any plastic bottles numbered 3, 6 or 7 (in triangle on the bottom) since they contain potential carcinogens and avoid leaving water for long periods of time even in the safest #1 bottles. Do not reuse bottles intended for single use or leave bottled water in hot places.

     To compound the problem, less than 25% of plastic bottles are recycled and end up being hauled to landfills, consuming more gasoline or diesel, where they will slowly decompose over thousands of years. The Great Pacific Garbage Patch. a mass of floating plastic in the remote Pacific, northeast of Hawaii, not only graphically illustrates our plastic dependency, but also our profligate lifestyle.
     The benefits of recycling plastic bottles is also questionable, given the fact that the bundled bottles are shipped to Asia where they are reprocessed into other products and then shipped back to Europe or the United States, further consuming energy and releasing carbon emissions.
     Because of their concern, some major cities have banned the use of bottled water in their facilities or events and have also banned the use of plastic bags for many of the same reasons. While a number of companies are researching bioplastics made from plant material, which would be biodegradable as well as cheaper, given the rising cost of oil, they would not reduce the energy consumed or emissions produced in the transport of bottled water to distant markets nor protect community water sources.
     In view of the above, the best way to combat this unnecessary waste of energy is to kick the habit of buying water in plastic bottles and switch to drinking water straight from your tap, either direct or filtered, and if necessary, carried in a safe reusable plastic, ceramic, aluminum or stainless steel container, all of which are available in local stores. In the process, you will cut costs and know that your water is safe, while decreasing your carbon footprint, reducing our dependency on imported oil and helping to preserve the planet.
     If you are convinced of the above, you can not only boycott bottled water but also join others by making a pledge declaring that water is a human right, not a commodity to be exploited for profit, at thinkoutsidethebottle.org. Tell them we sent you!
      - Tony White