Organizations like conservation group WWF have campaigned against bottled water, saying resources are wasted in bottling and transporting water which may be no safer or healthier than tap water while selling for up to a thousand times the price. Although marketers would have us believe that bottled water is healthier water, the reality is this: bottled water is just water.

Unfortunately, that fact isn’t stopping people from buying a lot of it. Estimates variously place worldwide bottled water sales at between $50 and $100 billion each year, with the market expanding at the startling annual rate of 7 percent.

Bottled water is big business. But in terms of sustainability, bottled water is a dry well. It’s costly, and wasteful. Want some solid reasons to kick the bottled water habit? We’ve rounded up three to get you started:

1. Bottled water is not a good value

Take, for instance, Pepsi’s Aquafina or Coca-Cola’s Dasani bottled water. Both are sold in 20 ounce sizes at a minimum of $1 per bottle, which works out to 5 cents an ounce. These two brands are essentially filtered tap water, bottled close to their distribution point. Now consider another widely-sold liquid: gasoline. It has to be pumped out of the ground in the form of crude oil, shipped to a refinery (often halfway across the world), and shipped again to your local filling station.

Right now, the average price per gallon is hovering around $3. There are 128 ounces in a gallon, which puts the current price of gasoline at fraction over 2 cents an ounce. And that’s why there’s no shortage of companies which want to get into the business. In terms of price versus production cost, bottled water puts Big Oil to shame.

2. No healthier than tap water

In the US, for example, in theory, bottled water falls under the regulatory authority of the Food and Drug Administration. In practice, about 70 percent of bottled water never crosses state lines for sale, making it exempt from FDA oversight. So despite marketers’ claims, there really is very little empirical evidence which suggests bottled water is any cleaner or better for you than its tap equivalent.

3. Bottled water means garbage

Bottled water produces up to 1.5 million tons of plastic waste per year. According to Food and Water Watch, that plastic requires up to 47 million gallons of oil per year to produce. And while the plastic used to bottle beverages is of high quality and in demand by recyclers, over 80 percent of plastic bottles are simply thrown away. That is, assuming empty bottles actually make it to a garbage can.

Looking for a better option to quench your thirst while out and about? Buy a stainless steel thermos, and use it. Don’t like the way your local tap water tastes? Inexpensive carbon filters will turn most tap water sparkling fresh at a fraction of bottled water’s cost.

SOURCE: http://www.laestrella.com.pa/mensual/2009/07/16/contenido/122642.asp