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Plastic Water Bottles
I did some quick internet research on this topic a few years ago. I'm no expert, I did not cite peer reviewed scientific literature, and the exact numbers are probably out of date, but you get the idea. If you are not satisfied with the quality of your drinking water, consider investing in a water filter system instead of in more single use water bottles. Several people in our family use a Berkey water filter system. This system is expensive up front, but it pays off in the long run.
- In 2015, Americans bought about 1.7 billion half-liter (16.9 oz) bottles of water every week, but we only recycle about 31% of plastic bottles.
- The recommended eight glasses of water a day, at U.S. tap rates equals about $0.49 per year; that same amount of bottled water is about $1,400.
- In the United States, 24% of bottled water sold is either Pepsi’s Aquafina (13% of the market) or Coke’s Dasani (11% of the market). Both brands are bottled, purified municipal water.
- Harmful, hormone-disrupting phthalates can leach into bottled water after as little as 10 weeks of storage, or much faster when bottles are left in the sun (like in the car), and plastic leached into water has been linked to reproductive problems and cancer.
- In the U.S., the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulates public water, requires multiple daily tests for bacteria and makes results available to the public. The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates bottled water, only requires weekly testing and does not share its findings with the EPA or the public.
- Plastics place a significant burden on landfills, yield persistent litter along our nation’s waterways and coasts, and harm wildlife that ingest or become lodged in plastic debris.
Sources:
https://www.banthebottle.net/bottled-water-facts/, https://www.fastcompany.com/59971/message-bottle https://www.forbes.com/sites/trevornace/2017/07/26/million-plastic-bottles-minute-91-not-recycled/#707b4548292c, http://www.statisticbrain.com/bottled-water-statistics/, http://www.huffingtonpost.com/norm-schriever/post_5218_b_3613577.html, http://www.recyclingtoday.com/article/2015-plastic-bottle-recycling-rate/, http://news.nationalgeographic.com/2016/04/160420-bottled-water-sales-record-high-despite-environmental-opposition/, https://marinedebris.noaa.gov/discover-issue/impacts, https://ecologycenter.org/plastics/ptf/report3/