Congress Questions Quality of Bottled Water
I can distinctly remember the freedom of drinking water from the hose outside on a hot summer day during the 1980’s. I can also remember the uncomfortable feeling of squeezing my head under a faucet to quench a late night thirst. Here we are a decade and a half later and over half of all Americans (54 percent) drink bottled water mainly because it is perceived to be a safer and healthier alternative to faucet water. But Congress was recently introduced to two new studies that questioned the regulation of bottled water and if it was indeed safer than faucet water.
The Environmental Working Group stated that out of 188 bottle water companies they surveyed, only 2 were able to provide documentation regarding the source, treatment and quality of the water they were selling. The environmental working group also found a variety of chemical contaminants in every bottled water brand they analyzed for a report they published in October 2008. Although suppliers of tap water are required to notify customers within 24 hours if contaminants are found in the water, this is not a requirement for bottled water companies. Why is this?
The EPA (Environmental Protective Agency) is responsible for testing tap water and have been providing detailed reports regarding the water source and any contaminants found in our household faucet water since 1999. So who is responsible for the testing and treatment of bottled water? Since bottled water is classified as a food, the Food and Drug Administration is responsible for inspecting the bottled water most of us drink everyday. Siobhan DeLancey, a spokeswoman for the F.D.A., said “We do monitor and inspect the bottled water, the same as we do food,… I don’t think that they should think it’s totally unregulated”. After the congressional meeting, it was reported that 13 letters were sent to specific companies requesting more information regarding the source of their water and how it gets tested.
It’s funny how completely ignorant I was to the debate between bottled and faucet water. I am one of the 54% of Americans that drink bottled water exclusively because I perceived it to be healthier for me. I believed that faucet water contained too much “lead” (not really sure where I got this inclination from) and that drinking faucet water would cause me to become ill. But if faucet water is so safe, I wonder why companies like Brita are doing so well with their water filters? This is definitely something I will be paying more attention to because to be quite honest, buying bottled water can be a bit expensive and last time I checked, America was not a 3rd world country.
If I’m not mistaken there were also some reports about how much dangerous chemicals are found in the plastic used for our bottled water. I’ll be looking into this as well before I form my opinion.
Do you still drink from the faucet or are you convinced that bottled water is the safest choice?
credit: tom.arthur
(source: The New York Times)
Written by Ernesto MartinezRelated posts:
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