One of the biggest scams ever: bottled water...quote mine .article.: National Geographic

[Stuart G]

http://newswatch.nationalgeographic.com/2012/05/17/u-s-bottled-water-sales-are-booming-again-despite-opposition/

U.S. Bottled Water Sales Are Booming (Again) Despite Opposition

Posted by Charles Fishman on May 17, 2012

Despite organized anti-bottled-water campaigns across the country and a noisy debate about bottled water’s environmental impact, Americans are buying more bottled water than ever.

In 2011, total bottled water sales in the U.S. hit 9.1 billion gallons — 29.2 gallons of bottled water per person, according to sales figures from Beverage Marketing Corp.

The 2011 numbers are the highest total volume of bottled water ever sold in the U.S., and also the highest per-person volume.

Translated to the handy half-liter size Americans find so appealing, that comes to 222 bottles of water for each person in the country — four bottles of water for every man, woman and child, every week.

Indeed, bottled water sales aren’t just growing — it’s fair to say they’re booming. Volume increased by 4.1 percent in 2011 — five times as fast as the 0.9 percent growth in the sales of beverages overall, according to Beverage Marketing. Bottled water sales, in fact, are growing twice as fast as the economy itself.


these two next quotes from National Geographic... are in my opinion...very important:

Although the U.S. has among the safest tap water in the world, the U.S. remains the largest market for bottled water. The next two, in order, are China and Mexico, both countries in which tap water is either unavailable, or typically not considered safe to drink.

The increase in Americans’ consumption of bottled water is extraordinary — the growth having more in common with digital-era products than typical consumer products.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________

This link is from their own source: (International Bottled Water Association...)

http://www.bottledwater.org/us-consumption-bottled-water-shows-continued-growth-increasing-62-percent-2012-sales-67-percent

April 25, 2013

ALEXANDRIA, VA – The International Bottled Water Association (IBWA), in conjunction with Beverage Marketing Corporation (BMC) has released 2012 bottled water statistics, compiled by BMC, a research, consulting, and financial services firm dedicated to the global beverage industry (www.beveragemarketing.com). The new BMC data show that the overall consumption of bottled water increased by 6.2 percent and bottled water sales were up 6.7 percent.

In 2012, total U.S. bottled water consumption increased to 9.67 billion gallons, up from 9.1 billion gallons in 2011. In fact, 2012’s consumption growth was the strongest it has been in five years. In addition, per-capita consumption is up 5.3 percent in 2012, with every person in America drinking an average of 30.8 gallons of bottled water last year. Bottled water increased in absolute volume more than any other beverage category in the U.S.

Bottled water sales increased by 6.7 percent in 2012, and now total $11.8 billion.

According to Gary Hemphill, managing director, information services, at BMC, “All signs point to U.S. consumers’ already displayed thirst for bottled water continuing in the years ahead. Changes in per capita consumption indicate persistent interest in a product that consumers embrace as a healthful alternative to other beverages.”
(these next two quotes from National Geographic are in my opinion very important:



_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

[baldguy]

1. Lewis Black on Bottled Water

[Initech]

86. Cause if anyone knows bottled water, it's fucking Pepsi and Coke!

[Tommy_Carcetti]

2. And it's been having a negative impact on the springs here in Florida.

Arguably the best treasure this state has.

I used to get excited when I saw a bottle of water listed as coming from the Florida springs. Now I can't help but cringe.

[Lurker Deluxe]

38. How?

Just out of curiosity. The water is coming out of the ground no matter where it goes, how can putting it in a bottle change the spring?

That would be like putting sunscreen on lowering the output of the sun.

Please explain.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

43. They're pumping the aquifer faster than they can replenish it.

Florida has a giant system of water underneath its limestone base. The springs are access points to that aquifer, and after it flows out of the spring, some of it feeds the rivers and lakes, and some of it goes back into the ground to replenish the aquifer.

However, bottling companies have been taking water out of the aquifer for bottling purposes, which means less of it is going into the ground. You have a drought summer (which has happened recently, especially in the northern parts of the state), couple that with the massive bottling operations for water companies to sell a product that can just as easily be accessed from the tap, and there's a whole lot less water going back into the aquifer. As a result, you see a lot lower output at the springs, and some of the smallest springs have dried up entirely.

Former Governor Charlie Crist implemented measures to slow the removal of water for bottling purposes, but I think those got removed by our wonderfully esteemed Governor McFraudy.

You do know that fresh water is a finite resource, right?

[Lurker Deluxe]

54. Never heard they were pumping water out of a spring

Wells may be drilled into the aquifer, just like any water well would be.

Well water may be finite, because it is removed from the ground in a different way does not make it disappear. It is a closed system and it has no where to go.

If it comes from the tap, or from the bottle, chances are it would have the same effect of the water system. You think that tap water and the aquifer are not connected?

Have a link to let me read some more about this? I don't find anything.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

63. Check any bottle of Zepheryhills.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zephyrhills_(water)

Taken directly out of the spring.

The difference between the effect of tap water and bottled water as it relates to the springs is that tap water's use is limited to the immediate residence, whereas water companies such as Zepheryhills will take millions and millions of gallons out of the Florida aquifer, ship it to other states for sale to people who can get the same quality water out of their own taps.

[Lurker Deluxe]

66. From your source

"Spring water shall be collected only at the spring or
through a bore hole tapping the underground
formation feeding the spring. There shall be a
natural force causing the water to flow to the surface
through a natural orifice"

Yes, spring water is collected and sold in a bottle. I have never seen any source saying that the water is pumped out of the aquifer for that reason being defined as "spring water".

According to the FDA, “water derived from an underground formation from which
water flows naturally to the surface of the earth” may be labeled as
“spring water."

So from your source the water is from the spring but is not being pumped out of aquifer. So again, how does putting the water in a bottle instead of letting it run down the river effect the spring?

As far as tap water, the majority of bottled water comes from the tap, it's filtered at a processing center.

Assuming all bottled water came from a sping, the one you cited ...

Crystal Springs Preserve is 525 acres of natural wilderness surrounding Crystal Springs, a Magnitude 2 spring that discharges 30 million gallons of water daily

30mil a day X 365 = 11B gallons a year, more than the entire consumption of the US, from one spring.

And compard to the largest in Florida, Wakulla, that is nothing.

Flow rate of the spring is 200-300 million US gallons (1,100,000 m3) of water a day. A record peak flow from the spring on April 11, 1973 was measured at 14,324 US gallons (54,220 L) per second - equal to 1.2 billion US gallons (4,500,000 m3) per day.[4]

Again, how is the water being bottled changing the springs? Just not possible.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

74. Are you actually claiming that the springs are unrelated to the aquifer?

Do you even know anything about the Florida springs?

Water that is collected and bottled instead of allowed to run freely and seep back into the aquifer is creating a deficit in the aquifer, which means reduced or even stopped flow to the springs.

The springs are a part of the aquifer. Do you not get that fact?

I find your insistence on this matter, well, puzzling.

[Lurker Deluxe]

77. I know quite a bit about springs

Not just Florida springs.

The fact is that the amount of bottled water taken from springs is insignificant in the totals of water that flows from the system.

You have given no source to cite that bottled water effects the spring, because it simply cannot.

Run down to the coast and snatch a couple of 55 gallons drums of water and I'll measure the difference here in the Gulf.

Water moves all over the world, in an endless cycle because of evaporation and rainfall. A thunderstorm can drop 2-4 inches of rain in a matter of hours, I can do the math for you but just for an example: One inch of rain over one square mile equals 17.4 million gallons of water. You get many rain storms there in Florida??

I just do not like it when people argue a fact that is obviously not a fact. The statement was "And it's been having a negative impact on the springs here in Florida" and I asked you how that could be true.

You said they were pumping the aquifer, yet they are not.

Then you said they are taking millions and millions of gallons out of there and I demonstrated that even if that was true it would be an insignificant amount compared to the flow of just one or two of Florida's 700+ springs.

You say that the amount of water being removed and transported elsewhere in the US effects the local water table but a pair of mild thunderstorms a year would replenish the water taken with ease.

It just bugged me that you said that ... nothing personal, just cannot believe it to be true so asked for a source.

[Tommy_Carcetti]

78. A good, long read on the subject

http://www.law.fsu.edu/journals/landuse/vol19_2/samek.pdf

Your level of offense lends me to believe you have some stake in the issue. To what, I do not know.

Regardless to say, there is a real crisis about decreased water flow at the springs, and while you want to write off shipping millions upon millions of gallons of water as being "insignificant", it is indeed a real--and not imagined--problem.

Don't believe me? Take a look for yourself.

[Lurker Deluxe]

85. The information I offered before

The quotes I listed up thread are from that very paper.

I have no stake in the issue ... I'm a machinist in Texas.

The paper you cited speaks of land use LULU, Locally Unwanted Land Use, profit issues, and quantity of downstream water.

"Governments and the Water Management Districts are faced, however justly, with the fact that the spring water industry is
emerging as a new locally unwanted land use (LULU)."

"the springs support a host of recreation-oriented businesses such as canoe and tube rentals, dive shops, boat tours, and all the auxiliary concessions that attend such activity"

"Increasingly, though, the populace receives the water that the springs deliver from the aquifer not from a tap, but from a bottle"

"Threats to the integrity of Florida’s natural springs generally arise from poor land use decisions. Those threats include careless
use of fertilizer and pesticides for agriculture, landscaping, and golf courses; other pollutants in contaminated storm water runoff;
livestock waste, often associated with the North Florida dairy industry; development in high aquifer recharge areas; leaking septic
tanks and underground storage tanks; silt buildup and sedimentation that blocks spring flow."

"It was not until the post-WWII population boom caught up with the state in the 1970s that, for the first time, Florida faced the inevitable reality: its water resources were not infinite"

"requested a 20-year consumptive use permit to pump 36.5 million gallons per year from a well within ¼ mile of Silver Springs. The St. Johns River Water Management District approved the permit ... sought to block the venture by claiming that the
amount to be pumped required a special use permit from the county that the Trust had not applied for"

Then the examples of the different springs that have had court cases decided on, or still in arbitration. There is ABSOLUTELY nothing in that entire paper that states that the springs are being harmed by bottled water. There are certainly land use cases about the areas surrounding the springs, and the fact that water is being taken from upstream making water more expensive downstream and having a detrimental effect on other money making enterprises, creating a battle for the profit generated from the natural resource. And also creating resentment from the locals who have lost access to the springs because they have been closed off from public access.

There are also issues of wells being drilled for extraction that are close to the springs and, rightfully, the locals are fighting this the best they can because that could obviously effect the balance of flow through the aquifer.

Simple fact there is this, wipe those bottling facilities off the map and that spring is still there and will still be pumping out water. The issue being discussed in this paper is the fact that a company taking water from the source of the spring and selling it makes the already scarce water supply more expensive to the local population, and attempting to tap into the aquifer outside of the spring areas could cause issues in the future.

Perhaps you misread?? Or is this just a misunderstanding ... the water supply may be effected, but the water output and the spring itself have not been.

[eppur_se_muova]

67. Pumping out too much water also leads to subsidence ...

http://www.democraticunderground.com/10022451483

Water occupies volume. Pump out water faster than it can be replaced, and the ground above collapses.

[Lurker Deluxe]

69. Yea, that would be a problem

But, it has nothing to do with bottled water.

In that example they are pumping more water out of the ground in a 10 day period than the consumption of bottled water in the US in a year, and the majority of bottled water is simply filtered tap water.

Not really a valid point in this conversation, although deplorable actions.

[winterpark]

58. Goodtime Charlie also basically gave our springs away to Nestle for the cost of a permit.

The people of Florida are seeing no money from that pumping operation at all.

[Kolesar]

3. The tire shop had no drinking fountain, but they gave away free bottles of water

All I wanted was a sip and I had to waste all that resource. They had no recycling bin, either.

[hfojvt]

81. as a janitor, I know that happens to a lot of bottled water

I am constantly throwing away half full or 80% full bottles of water.

Sometimes I will open them and dump the extra water down the drain, but I don't always have that luxury of time.

9.2 billion gallons of bottled water sold every year means at least 100 million gallons a year (barely 1% of the total) being pulled from the water system to be buried in landfills in those plastic bottles inside plastic trash bags.

But I suppose that is a fairly small drop in a very big ocean.

[customerserviceguy]

4. On the other hand

I think this story also represents a turning away from sugary sodas. If you're out travelling and you want a cold drink, isn't it better to reach for a bottle of overpriced water than a bottle of overpriced sugar water?

[Stuart G]

7. Perhaps..but if you want a cold drink...how about ..tap water?

OR....

carrying a thermos ..with some ice.. When you are traveling..hotels and motels provide .."ice" at least they used to

[Lisa0825]

19. I generally buy a 2.5 gallon container and refill my cup.

My tap water is safe, but I don't like the taste of it. If I make an ice cube, the salt comes out to the surface. You could lick it and taste that salt. Also, if you drop home made ice into a clear glass of tap here, you can see sediment falling out. That is not appetizing.

So I drink from the water cooler at work, and I keep large bottles at home. I rarely buy a small bottle, but take them if they are given out.

[byeya]

21. When we moved from the mountains of VA to the piedmont of NC, we noticed that the

water tasted terrible. I have every reason to believe that its safe, just nasty smelling and tasting.

In the mountains we had two water systems, either a deep well or a modern boxed in spring. We controlled it with a globe valve. Both tasted great.

So, my wife and I often drink bottled water.

Agree 100% about ice machines in motels and fast food outlets. They have been tested and many have failed.

[Fuddnik]

50. Try an undercounter reverse osmosis system.

They can be had at Costco, or Costco.com for under $200.

I keep about 10 cases of bottled water on hand for hurricane season, but, I keep the bottles and refill them from the RO unit. It costs about a penny a bottle to do that.

[Lisa0825]

111. I read up on every system I could find a while back, and none said they would remove salt. nt

[REP]

122. A good system costs a little bit more but not much more, but agree - R/O is great

I have one that removes bacteria, etc (I'm a kidney patient and I have to be very cautious about tap water). I got mine from freedrinkingwater.com - and it's a US-made system as a plus! I did a ton of research before buying this and installing it, and I've been very happy with it.

[tridim]

20. Not to throw another wrench into the works, but ice from hotel ice machines is generally filthy.

I never put it in my mouth.

[customerserviceguy]

115. Sometimes you plan ahead

and sometimes you don't. That's why convenience stores have all that overpriced junk food on display.

[demwing]

5. One of the biggest scams in history?

With such a provocative title I had hoped for your supporting evidence. Water sales are booming, what's the scam?

[Stuart G]

8. The scam is this...people are paying for something that they think is useful, but

can be replaced easily by something that is free. The "free product" in most cases is a better quality than the product that they are buying. People are wasting their money. that is why I put that headline up...Perhaps once in a while..someone might want a cold bottle of water, as opposed to warm water out of fountain...but 222 bottles worth???come on. ..

so...instead of spending that money on...Water...we donate most of that money to a local food bank...for people without food..how about that??

[demwing]

9. Wasteful? OK, but not a scam

People are drinking more water, and that's great! But people are also buying more plastic bottles, and that's a waste.

In reality, that is the problem. We buy bottled water as a short term convenience, with no regard to the long term cost.

Yet, we get what we paid for, right? How is that a scam?

[pinboy3niner]

11. It's a fucking scam

Bottled water only makes sense away from home. But they sell it to you to drink AT home instead of your perfectly good tapwater.*

*Unless you live around fracking, where your tapwater may lead to spontaneous combustion.

How is it not a scam for these snake oil salesmen to lie to you and tell you your tapwater is no good and you must have their "pure" water?

[demwing]

13. I have not seen ads that say tap water is no good

But if I did, I'd agree. If not the water, then the pipes.

Florida water (at least in my town) is good for the first sip. Drinking a full glass makes me nauseated.

Telling me it's a "fucking" scam isn't any more convincing than telling me it's a regular old scam, or that its "One of the biggest scams in history."

[pinboy3niner]

15. Call it a run-of-the-mill scam if you like

But all of the marketing promotes their bottled water as "pure" versus your tapwater (which, by implication,. is impure).

[Soundman]

14. It is Not a Scam!

Take it for what it's worth, but this former water treatment superintendent drinks bottled water. For the most part the testing your municipality does is reactive and has no bearing on reality. The methods used to inject the chemicals into your water supply are notoriously inaccurate and dosage can vary from a little to off the charts. At any rate if you are connected to a municipal supply I would highly recommend (at a minimum) a charcoal filter to remove the chlorine. I personally have an organic as well as charcoal/metals filter and still drink bottled water.

My only fear about bottled water is any leaching that may occur from the plastic.

[Buzz Clik]

18. Sounds like your water treatment plant was both shady and incompetent.

Did you not submit your water for periodic testing to certified analytical labs?

The technology is in place to ensure that municipal drinking water is 100% safe 24/7.

[Soundman]

25. Sounds like you know nothing about water treatment.

please do tell me what technology is in place to assure 24/7 100 percent safety? That statement alone tells me you are totally ignorant about water treatment. I am merely stating the facts.

I take offense at your insult, but I also understand you don't know any better. And yes periodic testing as mandated by the department of health and EPA are carried out everywhere, duh. As I tried to state, the testing is reactive and usually has no relevance to local influences. Like run off after a rain storm for those that utilize surface water. Go ahead, drink up and live in a fantasy world where your water is guaranteed safe 24/7.

[MattBaggins]

31. And you live in your little fantasy world

where the bottled water manufacturers are all compliant.

[Buzz Clik]

37. Insult? Hardly. I stated an obvious fact base on your own comments:

Take it for what it's worth, but this former water treatment superintendent drinks bottled water.

You do not trust the the water you provided. Your only job was to provide water that was safe to drink, and you won't drink it.

For the most part the testing your municipality does is reactive and has no bearing on reality.

You implied that your facility does not do routine, scheduled testing. You then corrected this comment ("And yes periodic testing as mandated by the department of health and EPA are carried out everywhere, duh&quot , but that critical fact was missing from your opening remarks.

The methods used to inject the chemicals into your water supply are notoriously inaccurate and dosage can vary from a little to off the charts.

For many facilities, the only chemical of note that is injected is chlorine. Too little chlorine is not protective, too much can be toxic. This is your statement of incompetence. As a superintendent, you surely realize that people with your job have been subjected to criminal prosecution for exactly what you are describing.

Go ahead, drink up and live in a fantasy world where your water is guaranteed safe 24/7.

Count on it. I know exactly where my water comes from, I know exactly where and when it is tested, and I know that the safe range of chlorination is met every day.

Take offense all you want, but if I lived where you were NOT doing your job, I would report your facility in heartbeat.

[Soundman]

51. Wow... Go ahead...

Throw out a few buzz words, do quick wiki search. And pretend you know what you are talking about. No I will not drink chlorinated water.

I never implied that my facility(s) didn't test, you are just plain silly and ignorant! I have won several national awards and have been published in peer reviewed international publications. Not too mention I have written several operational manuals (or parts thereof)I am pretty sure I know a little more than you. If anything I was hyper vigilant as I took my charge very seriously.

There are several ways chlorine is injected. The demand can vary wildly depending on circumstance. Do you think there is a guy at the injector 24/7? Flows change, injectors plug and clear. Chlorine is highly corrosive and causes a daily battle.

Yeah sure you do.......I am sure you know everything, lol.

If you think quarterly or yearly assays will keep you safe you are deluded.

Thank you for putting words into my mouth it seems to be a quality you display regularly.

[Buzz Clik]

56. Your quotes. You don't like them? You never should have written them down.

You refuse to drink the water you were charged with making safe for consumption. That was your job.

How exactly are we supposed to take that?

Have the last word -- then go polish your awards. Used bottled water -- god knows what is coming out of the tap.

EDIT: One bit of really good advice that was given to me: never arrive someplace assuming you're the smartest person in the room.

[NCTraveler]

83. Love it.

"never arrive someplace assuming you're the smartest person in the room. "

[MissB]

102. Were you not required to do your CT calculation daily at your plant?

Or was your plant not doing that?

[Doremus]

94. Who knew DU had so many posters employed by the water industry.

Either admittedly so or emphatically denied.

Another addition to the list of things that make you go

(Not addressed directly to you, Buzz Clik, but rather an observation regarding some of the posters on this thread.)

[Buzz Clik]

109. On the internet, anybody can be anything.

It's best to make no claims whatsoever.

[MissB]

104. I've come across a few facilities that fudged their daily CT calcs.

Not saying that is the case here, mind you, but I have run into treatment plants that don't take their daily chlorine, pH and temperature measurements. It happens, especially in smaller cities that don't treat water treatment workers like professionals. Or the operators are tasked with running the plant, reading the meters, mowing the grass at the city parks, etc.

[Buzz Clik]

112. Were you on the regulatory/enforcement side of things?

I have witnessed such things on the consulting side. Some guy had been either knowingly negligent or incredibly incompetent and put tens of thousands of people at risk. He faked data, chose to not make measurements, much as you described. EPA was going after him with criminal charges. Scary stuff.

[MissB]

113. Yep - regulatory.

[LanternWaste]

44. Certainly not in bottled water facilities...

"please do tell me what technology is in place to assure 24/7 100 percent safety?"

Certainly not in bottled water facilities, yet many people seem to imply the insistence they are.

We may only imagine drinkers of bottled water then too "live in a fantasy world where your water is guaranteed safe 24/7..."

[wercal]

27. Pssstt

Alot can happen to the water between the treatment plant and your tap.

[Buzz Clik]

33. True, but that isn't what he was saying.

[pinboy3niner]

34. And a lot can happen before the water gets to your bottle. nt

[Kurovski]

118. I quench my thirst with the nectar of your brilliance.

And water from my countertop distiller.

[Soundman]

39. You had better believe it!

Lead and copper are the two biggies! I doubt that most people are aware that there are still a lot of lead connectors in service out there at the taps. Depending on how old your house is lead used in the solder can be an issue. The stability test is very useful to assure it stays bound.

One of the reasons I dropped out of the industry (even though I had it totally made) is i felt I was poisoning people. Unless something has changed recently, there is no known biological agent that can survive chlorine given the proper dosage and contact time. Yet people are drinking it down every day. I for one can't believe a little of a deadly poison taken every day over a lifetime does not impact ones health.

Not too mention that most municipalities under say 5-6 thousand only staff the treatment plant 8 hours a day and half days on weekends and holidays. And the weekend staff aren't the supervisors or even the senior techs.

[pinboy3niner]

53. Dropped out? Or drummed out?

In terms of water contamination, metals are the least of our problem.

Except when it comes to your tinfoil hat.

[wercal]

89. It is a very gradual process

But we are trying to get away from chlorine on some of the plants we work on..using ultraviolet light instead.

[MissB]

100. I guess if one doesn't understand dosage, then your belief about chlorine is valid.

Last edited Wed May 29, 2013, 09:30 PM - Edit history (1)

But as a (former) WT operator, you should know about dosage, right?

Maybe you worked at a poorly run plant that didn't do upkeep on the injectors (or supply their staff with enough funds to do the upkeep) or didn't use SCADA or alarms. Maybe your system wasn't doing much more than batch chlorinating.

But chlorine isn't evil. DBPs are an issue, but that's why TOC removal is an important step. We know through research what the safe levels of TTHMs and HAA5s are. We also know that bacti and viruses are inactivated by chlorine, which is why water borne disease outbreaks are more or less a rare occurrence. (That and appropriate log removal at the treatment plant.)

And folks in the industry know that bottled water is regulated as a food under FDA's rules, not under the Safe Drinking Water Act under EPA. So go for the bottled water if you want, but I take tap water any day (even if mine is unfiltered surface water!)

[Ed Suspicious]

48. It's my understanding that much bottled water is filtered water from a municipal source, n/t

[Buzz Clik]

57. Nearly all of it.

[Soundman]

60. Correct

In most cases water from a municipal supply is further treated using reverse osmosis, distillation, and or electrolytic methods. These types of treatment are not cost effective for a municipality. As a municipality may be treating millions of gallons per day. Also these treatment methods do not require a lot of vigilance as they are either working or not working. Not like injecting cl2 which is an on-going ever changing situation, not too mention when you start getting into polymers, coagulation flocculation.

Ok my honey is out of surgery and recovery and has arrived here in her room. If anyone cares to have any questions answered I will be happy to so if I can. I will not participate in any further bickering with an uneducated know it all.

[wtmusic]

73. But...but...there's a picture of a snow-capped mountain on the label. nt

[wercal]

88. Most of it treated

With reverse osmosis...with minerals added back for flavor.

[Buzz Clik]

17. +1

[blueamy66]

121. I dare you to drink water from the tap in Arizona...dare you...

it's smells horrible and tastes worse

nothing like brushing your teeth with water that smells like fish

[LanternWaste]

41. Selling little more than a bill of goods is by definition, a scam.

Selling little more than a bill of goods is by definition, a scam. Scams need not be sinister to exist, and may even be innocuous, but are yet scams.

[brooklynite]

16. Talk about hyperbolie...

...do you think the average buyer is buying a bottle of Poland Spring because of its mineral content or "freshness"? They're buying it because 1) it's wet and 2) it's convenient. Yes, people could refill a bottle at home; they could also pack a healthy home-made lunch, but that doesn't make Subway or Chipotle a "scam".

[zipplewrath]

32. Bingo

I used to laugh at the whole bottled water craze. But slowly I began to understand that the folks drinking it at home had lousy tasting water. Yes, it was "safe", but it tasted like crap. The rest of the folks were looking for convenience, especially portability. They want something cold to take/have that is wet and sugar free. I don't particularly buy bottled water, but when traveling I have occasionally because of a lack of access to cold water (I mean refrigerated).

[RobinA]

82. If It's a Scam

it's one I willingly take part in. I don't drink bottled water because I think it is healthier, I drink it because,

a) I don't like the taste of my tap water
b) I can buy it anywhere instead of sugary drinks
c) It's portable because it comes in bottles

I remember the day when getting a non-soda drink out was near impossible. Thankfully, water is now readily available.

Bottled water sales seem to indicate that many people find value in it. I suspect it is portablility and not having to search for and use water fountains that some unknown person may have just spit in.

[demwing]

93. yes, yes, and yes / NT

[phylny]

110. I'll grab a bottle when I'm out instead of soda.

I bought a bottle yesterday and today. Why? Because I was at airports, and you can't bring your own liquid through the security lines.

[Chathamization]

120. Yes. Not sure why soda always seems exempt from

the scam talks. For some reason, paying for water is a scam, but paying for water loaded with sugar that will screw up your body is just peachy.

[Egalitarian Thug]

6. The price of a half-litre of bottled water times 222 for each person going into "private"

corporate pockets that isn't going into improving, expanding, or even maintaining municipal water systems. It wasn't all that long ago that simply turning on the faucet could get you a glass of safe, good tasting water just about everywhere in the U.S. Today, I find almost everywhere I go that tap water literally makes me gag. You can't even make coffee with it, it is so foul.

But I'm sure this is just another coincidence.

[laundry_queen]

22. bingo

Where I am, not only is the tap water pretty highly chlorinated but the taste changes dramatically throughout the year, depending on snow melt/runoff/amount of rain etc. And I live in a place where the water was voted the best tasting by surveys.

Now, it's not like I buy tons of bottled water and never drink tap water. I invested in a cheap filtration system on my water cooler, and now I don't have to worry about chlorine taste anymore. My filtered water is pretty good. This wasn't possible in other places that I've lived. Some places had water so foul sometimes it came out of the tap brown. Oh, it was 'safe' according to the water treatment plant, but who the fuck wants to drink that? Other places had so much chlorine it was like drinking out of a swimming pool - no filter was good enough. And so, I would haul large bottles of water from the local store that had a reverse osmosis system. For me, it's all about taste. I'm super picky.

[bemildred]

10. The problem is the bottles, the waste, not the water. nt

[cali]

12. There is a lot of tap water in this country that I wouldn't drink

not because it isn't safe but because it tastes horrid. the other day I was at the doc's office and I asked for a cup of water. I could smell its nasty chemical odor from an arm's length away.

My town water is great; gravity fed from a spring and icy cold even in summer, but I've had lots of foul tasting water from the tap in this country.

[Patiod]

55. We generally use only jugs of purchased water at the shore

Shore communities don't generally have very good water. In some South Jersey towns, it's pretty unpleasant.

[BlueToTheBone]

23. There are no public fountains any more.

So people buy water. Another form of privitization

[clyrc]

24. I drink bottled water because my tap water is disgusting

It's disgusting filtered and even with lemon juice added. I feel guilty about it, but I just can't bring myself to drink the awful stuff that comes out of the tap.

[bunnies]

75. Mine too.

Ranges from tasting like chlorine to sulfur. Every once in a while it actually tastes like water but theres no way of knowing when thats going to be. I cook with it and shower with it but I'll be damned if Im going to drink it. When I can turn on the tap & smell it from several feet away... that tells me theres something wrong. All these people complaining about bottled water are free to drink the nasty crap from my sink if they want. But Im sure as hell not.

[LisaL]

97. So is mine.

It tastes like it came from a swamp.

[kiva]

107. Bottle here too.

The tap water is downright nasty.

[wercal]

26. I drink bottled water

My wife has a history of kidney disease and stones, so we got a test kit to measure the amount of solids in our water....she only has one kidney left and can't afford to take chances.

It was off the charts in the bad zone...and even though I am not particularly picky, the taste and smell are not good. We live at the very end of a rural water district; and, I believe that some of this water spends several days in the system, after treatment, before getting to me. And we have the tell-tale signs...rapid calcium build-up under leaky faucets, ruined hot water heater, and the weird one is plastic shaving debris in the faucet screens (I have copper pipes, so this is coming from the main system).

BTW, the company I work for is well know for designing water treatment plants...so I know its 'safe' from a biological standpoint. We just can't risk all those hard minerals (and plastic debris).

I pay 89 cents a gallon.

[dembotoz]

28. i have bought more lately

as water fountains become harder to find
bottled water at times has the lowest pricepoint

[SamKnause]

29. Water

I will be 60 next month.

I have NEVER bought a single bottle of water.

I really do not understand why people purchase water in bottles for everyday use.

As part of an emergency kit, or emergency supplies I understand.

The majority of my family use pitchers that filter water; Brita etc.

Let the flaming begin.

[Bluenorthwest]

59. If you understand the need to have emergency supplies, refusing to have them is not bright

Having no water supply for emergencies is not very clever. Your Brita filter needs the tap to work. Just remember, the water in your toilet's tank is actually potable, so if you are in a no tap water emergency without any supplies on hand you can use that. Also, you can just fill your own jugs for that, but you have to rotated and change them out regularly.

[SamKnause]

70. Water 2

I have an emergency water supply.

I don't use a Brita pitcher.

My family does.

I did not buy any bottled water for my emergency supplies.

I refill milk jugs, 2 liter cola bottles and juice bottles.

I have a cistern.

When the power goes out, I also lose access to water.

I keep large plastic containers filled for flushing the toilet and for drinking water for my animals.

[Zorra]

30. I never drink bottled water, and will never, and have never, drank chlorinated water.

I believe that ingesting the chlorine and the harmful carcinogens produced by the chlorine catalyzed chemical reactions in chlorinated drinking water are responsible for many human illnesses including various cancers, and I often wonder if they are responsible for the mass increase in cases of allergies and autism spectrum syndromes. I won't swim in a swimming pool treated with chlorine. Chlorine is nasty poison and I would never voluntarily get it on my skin or put it in my body.

I have been fortunate to live most of my life where the water in my home comes from a spring or a good well.

Otherwise, I drink inexpensive purified water from a refillable container. Here in the southwest, and everywhere in Mexico, there are self-serve water processing machines that remove any chemicals, bacteria, and viruses from the water, and I generally get my drinking water from them.

[Bluenorthwest]

42. A wateria is just a local bottler, you use recyled containers, but that water is tap water

processed for profit. For under 200 you can put a RO system in your own home. Those machines? Well, I'd rather guzzle chlorinated water than use them. A wateria store can be better, but you have to know the people do upkeep, nothing is worse than filthy filtering systems and all it takes is time to make them ineffective and then infested. Not saying never use them, but I'd sure not be using random coin op systems if my reason for doing so was health.
Ice and water systems are often really not so clean....

[ProdigalJunkMail]

35. well, we don't do bottled water

but we do filtered water. it tastes better compared to the stuff straight out of the faucet. the fridge has a filter and there is good filtered ice and water in the office.

we MIGHT buy bottled water on long drives if we forget or don't pack enough...nice to have the option over sodas...

sP

[SoCalDem]

36. I blame local media who went on a water-rampage

a while back by sending out teams to take swabs of water fountains in schools, public spaces & then sacred the beeeejeeeebus out of enough germaphobes to help bolster companies' forays into "safe water".."personal water".

For a while there was almost a daily "water/germ scare" on tv. It was not long afterward that public fountains started to disappear. Probably not the whole story, but not all that long ago, people started being "afraid" of public water sources..

In my home town. on almost every corner there was a nice public water fountain, and all the stores/schools had them all over the place. It was a public service...and it was free to anyone who happened to be thirsty

[Stuart G]

91. In our area..we get water from Lake Michigan.

Evanston Illinois purifies it sells it to the suburbs around it, where I live..
Chicago does the same thing. The water is fine. There is enough and it is pure enough for me...
We are very lucky in this regard

[jeff47]

40. There's more to a beverage than biological safety.

Such as "taste". Some people consider that just a tad important.

[Buzz Clik]

61. Ah, yes. The refreshing taste of plasticizers. Phthalates give each drink a sense of "ahhhhhh."

Last edited Wed May 29, 2013, 07:43 PM - Edit history (1)

[jeff47]

95. Well, my tapwater smells like insecticide.

You're welcome to as much as you'd like to drink.

[Buzz Clik]

105. Good grief! City water?

[jeff47]

116. Yep (nt)

[Ed Suspicious]

45. My family of four and my parents and in-laws all only very rarely partake in bottled water.

Somebody must be drinking an awful lot to make up for that.

[flamingdem]

46. Tap water tastes like crap and filters don't remove flouride

Your mileage may vary.

[Buzz Clik]

62. You want to remove fluoride from your water?

[MattBaggins]

90. Precious bodily fluids and all

[flamingdem]

114. It's added into our water system, it wasn't previously

Yes I know it is naturally occurring... are we discussing the same issue?

[Bluenorthwest]

47. There should be a bucket and one dipper for everyone. All this modern 'I want my own cup'

fear of virus is absurd, even in a contagion ward, one dipper, one bucket filled from the nearest toilet is good enough for anyone who is not a right wing scam artist. There is also often perfectly good water simply running down the gutter which is just one straw away from being a refreshing beverage for someone who cares about the planet!

[Inkfreak]

98. I only drink fresh morning dew. Or snow. Weather depending. n/t

[BrotherIvan]

49. Our tap water tastes nasty but bottled water is too wasteful to be an answer

All that plastic going into landfills is terrible, not to mention the draining of water supplies from specific sources by corporations. I ordered the Zen Water system from Amazon and we love it. I even got one for my friend who would come over and fill all her water bottles because she said it tastes like Fiji water. It's very inexpensive and easy to maintain, though a lot of their claims may be hooey, for the taste alone it's worth it. I tried all the pitcher filtration systems and they were so overpriced and did nothing. If I didn't rent, I would think of installing something to the water supply itself. But for now, refillable water bottles for when I'm on the road and a pitcher of filtered water in the fridge and we're good to go.

[wtmusic]

64. Consider reverse osmosis if you just want pure, pure water

Our water tests purer than Sparkletts or any countertop unit. Makes up to 30 gallons/day for water bottles and cooking.

About 5 PPM of other stuff gets by, the rest is pure H20. It was $600 but we've had it for 10 years.

[BrotherIvan]

65. I would love to get one of those

Is it connected to the water main or is it a stand alone filter? We move quite a bit and rent, so I haven't wanted to invest in something too permanent.

[wtmusic]

68. It does take some installation.

It's a 5-gal tank that sits under the sink, with supply coming from a tee on the cold water line. Similar to this:



http://www.envirotechproducts.com/omni-water-filters/ro2000_filter.htm

If I went back to renting I'd probably get one anyway, it's too useful and I think cheaper in the long run.

[BrotherIvan]

71. Thanks for the info

I'm going to check it out.

Now, you wouldn't happen to know one that makes it taste like Perrier?

[wtmusic]

72. It's not for everyone.

The guy who installed it occasionally gets complaints that the water doesn't have enough flavor (typically minerals).

I understand that, but my biggest concern is getting all the cancer-causing crap out.

Good luck

[pipi_k]

52. The only time

I ever buy bottled water is when I'm out and get thirsty but don't want juice or soda.

Otherwise, I drink tap water which is pumped up from my well and filtered through a Brita water bottle.

Tastes way better than city water that's loaded with chemicals and chlorine.

[Zoeisright]

76. I drink bottled water because I love the carbonation

and because a glass of water isn't safe with my cats around. They either drink out of it or knock it over. And ice cubes only make it more tempting.

[datasuspect]

79. i like beer

it makes me a jolly good fellow

[we can do it]

80. Because people are fucking stupid. The same idiots are always broke.

They somehow think buying plastic bottled tap water is better than regular tap water. Carry a reusable bottle, it's not that hard.

[Capt. Obvious]

84. I drink from the tap

It's a losing battle in my house though. I'm the only one.

[Inkfreak]

99. Me too

My wife MUST have Poland Spring bottles. I'll drink from the tap. I think our water tastes very good up here in Oswego, NY. The town of Mexico, just a few miles away was voted best water in NY. If I remember correctly there is even a sign as you enter town. I do buy some on occasion when I am on the road tho. Convenience of that is nice because I hate soda and a lot of those sugary drinks.

[cbdo2007]

87. Another aspect of our "fear" society

Fear everything. Buy this because you fear that. It is all psychological - tap water in a bottle tastes better and is safer than tap water from the faucet just because of the bottle.

[RebelOne]

92. I have known that for a long, long time.

I have a Pur water purifying pitcher. My tap water is disgusting, so I bought the Pur pitcher. And now my water is a lot better testing.

[LisaL]

96. While they claim tap water is safe, mine tastes like it came from a swamp.

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

101. If I want to spend my money on water that doesn't taste like was pumped out of the bilge

I think that is my choice.

[DesertFlower]

103. never bought it. i have my own well

and a reverse osmosis system. our last house had city water and we had reverse osmosis there too. i bring my water everywhere with me -- even into restaurants. phoenix water tastes awful.

[Honeycombe8]

106. I never buy the stuff. I have a Brita filter pitcher in my fridge.

If I'm out and about and stop to get a beverage, I usu. get a diet coke either in bottle or fountain drink. At work we have a filtered water big machine. It's free. Then I get canned Diet Cokes in the vending machine.

[FreeJoe]

108. There is something wrong...

...when it is often cheaper to buy a soda than to buy a bottle of water the same size.

Or when you go to a gas station and they charge more for water than for gasoline.

[xenoturkey]

117. As somewhat of an authority on the issue...

I worked in the beverage industry for a long time. Soda sales are stagnant or marginally growing, water is shooting through the roof. The goal of a corporation is to make money and its really not that surprising that they are moving to water cause it if it makes more money, hey thats the goal.

Not saying its right or environmentally friendly. I do like seeing the bottles now that have waaaaay less plastic than they used to have.

Anyway I mostly did work in BWS but have done some work with one of the two major soft drinks companies. Just my thoughts.

BTW- Long long long time lurker (Since 2003!) I just rarely feel a need to comment. Maybe I should more. Hope you are all having a good day / night .

*edited for spelling error*