Bottled Water VS Tap Water

The production of bottled water is a billion dollar industry. But when you compare bottled water vs tap water, is there really a difference?

Bottled Water vs Tap Water - Regulations

When you see bottled water on the store shelves, your assumption is probably that the water has been regulated based on a set of Federal standards. Most of the times, nothing could be farther from the truth.

The tap water that flows through the pipes in your home is regulated by the EPA. The water that you buy from your local grocery store is not. Instead, bottled water is overseen by the FDA which operates under a different set of standards than the EPA.  Because of this, you are much more likely to know what is in the water that you drink from your tap than you are from the water that comes to you in a bottle.

For example, one huge loophole in the FDA rules is that the FDA rules don't apply to bottled water that is packaged and sold within the same state. Therefore, if bottled water is packaged in Florida, and sold in Florida, national FDA rules do not apply. In this case regulation is left up to the state itself. As you might expect, different states have different standards which leads to a wide disparity in the quality of bottled water across state lines. And some states have no regulations is place at all for bottled water.

What About Shelf Life of Bottled Water?

In addition, the FDA has not defined or set any guidelines for the acceptable shelf life for bottled water. This means that in some communities you could have bottled water that has been on the shelves for years. Is this bad? Good? The truth is that no one knows because the FDA has conducted no tests. This is especially worrisome for water sold in plastic bottles which is nearly always the case. How much of the toxic materials from plastic is leaching into the water over the years? Again, nobody knows.

Is Bottled Water Really Tap Water?

In many cases, the source for the bottled water that you buy in the stores is from tap water. Some water bottlers who get their water from municipal tap water will further process, purify, and process the water in their bottling plants. Others will simply use the water as is. Others will actually take their water from local springs.

And, even though many people think otherwise, spring water is not synonymous with clean water. The fact is when evaluating whether your particular bottled water is safer than your tap water, you are completely reliant on the manufacturer's marketing claims. In light of this, some people have decided that they will take control over their own water quality by installing water filters in the sinks in their homes.

Bottled Water VS Tap Water - The Positives of Bottled Water

While undoubtedly there are many negative aspects to drinking bottled water, there are some positive ones as well.

Having heard environmentalists talk about the negative effect of plastic water bottles on the ecosystem, some bottled water manufacturers have begun to promote recycling of their plastic containers. Some claim at least at 25% recycle rate, which is good, but still leaves a way to go.

In addition, if you have picked up a water bottle recently, you have no doubt noticed that they weigh less than they did as little as 5 years ago. By using the amount of plastic in the average water bottle, they reduce their production costs significantly while simultaneously reducing the amount of plastic that they consign to our landfills.

Another widely unmentioned benefit of using bottle water is that when emergencies occur, it is often the only water that you can easily get to the victims. Think of earth quakes, hurricanes, and other natural disasters. Many times the availability of bottled water has ended up saving countless lives.