Bottled water or tap water?

The practice of banning bottled water baffles the consumers as they are left wondering if it is safer than tap water. According to Dr. Sarah Janssen, a science fellow with the Natural Resources Defense Council in San Francisco, which conducted a study on bottled water in 1999, “Bottled water isn’t any safer or purer than what comes out of the tap.”

Janssen added, “In fact, it’s less well-regulated and you are more likely to know what’s in tap water.” Bottled water can be glacial water, spring water, well water, purified water or water obtained from public water supply, i.e. tap water.

If tap water has too much chlorine or looks discolored, it does not mean that it is not safe to drink, said Benjamin Grumbles, assistant administrator for water with the Environmental Protection Agency.

Generally, tap water supply in the country is at par with the EPA’s drinking water standards. That said, since different states are faced with different types of contaminants, the national standards don’t guard against every contaminant that might enter public water supplies.

Even if the safe standards for tap water are met, the old pipes supplying this water pose serious threats. They contaminate water with copper and lead.

Moreover, there are certain contaminants which even the water treatment plants can’t take out. These include medication that enters the water cycle through human excreta or drugs that are flushed down the drains.

This makes bottled water a safer option but since it is also obtained from the same sources as tap water is, it is bound to be contaminated with the same things.

As per the FDA, private bottlers are required to test for contaminants only once a week, once a year or once every four years. This depends on the contaminant present. An annual Consumer Confidence Report has to be submitted by tap water suppliers, stating their sources of water and the contaminants found. But this is not the case with bottled-water makers.

Bottled water is free from lead contamination caused in residential pipes. But it may contain other harmful chemicals that leach out of plastic bottles. These bottles are made of PTT or polyethylene terephthalate which can cause birth defects.

Grumbles says that single-serve bottles are more expensive than gasoline. If you ask him, tap water is “one of the best bargains American consumers can find.”