Plastic Water Bottles Are the Worst. Here’s Why:
I’m not really sure when it was decided that drinking water from a plastic bottle is superior to tap water, but it’s high time a few myths concerning bottled water are clarified. Honestly, bottled water is way more expensive and surprisingly less regulated than tap water. Check out this video by the Story of Stuff Project, it will blow your mind! Also, you can find more info about the Story of Bottled Water here.
So here’s what you need to know about bottled water:
Plastic water bottles leach chemicals
Not many people are aware, but the chemicals in your plastic water bottle leach into the water you’re drinking, meaning that natural spring water is not so natural. One chemical in particular that seems to be in so many plastics these days is BPA, which is a known hormone disruptor. Don’t be fooled by the new BPA free plastics; BPS, a just as harmful toxin, often replaces it.
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Get 10% off your first zero waste order and all the latest Tiny Yellow Bungalow news!Bottled water is expensive
Bottled water is extremely expensive in comparison to tap water, not to mention that a percentage of the price of your bottled water is the price of its marketing and advertising. Yes, you are paying more for the cost of branding.
The safety standards for bottled water are lower
This often comes as a surprise to people, because we’ve been misled to believe that bottled water is clean and tap water is dirty. In reality, the safety standards for bottled water are lower than the EPA tap water standards. And if you are at all concerned about the cleanliness of your tap water, you can purchase an in home water filter or filtration system.
Plastic water bottles are usually downcycled
I had this idea in my head long ago that when we throw our plastic bottles into the recycling bin, they get taken to a recycling facility to be melted down and recreated into another plastic bottle. False! Recycling facilities usually downcycle plastic bottles into a new lower quality product like carpet. Meaning the recycling circuit ends; it’s not a constant loop of plastic bottles. So we are continually creating more plastic trash. Check out this awesome guest post all about Wishful Recycling and how we can be better at recycling!
A reusable stainless steel or glass water bottle is just as convenient
I realize a lot of people buy bottled water because of its convenience. However, what’s just as convenient is bringing your very own reusable water bottle and filling it as needed throughout the day. I take my water bottle everywhere with me!
Clean Tap Water
I know a lot of people are concerned about the cleanliness of their city’s tap water. But in reality, it is probably not any dirtier than what you buy bottled. (Unless you use well water, in which case, you should test your well yearly to check for toxins.) However, if you worry of its safety, you can easily filter your home tap water. My family uses an active charcoal water filter, which you can find in our shop! We’ve got a Regular Size and a To Go Size filter in our online eco shop. For a while, we were using those Brita filtration systems but again that’s a lot of plastic. The water filters that we use and sell in the shop are completely plastic free and biodegradable. A total zero waste win!! It’s basically a piece of active charcoal that you leave in your kitchen carafe or reusable water bottle and it naturally filters the water.
The woman who created these filters asked the water filter companies what is inside the chunk of plastic that makes those water filtration systems work. The companies affirmed that activated charcoal works as the main ingredients in these filters. So she eliminated the plastic part but kept the essential cleaning charcoal. Once you drop the charcoal into your water, it naturally bonds to toxins. You can just leave it in your water bottle all day; it’s very simple! The filter lasts for four months and is biodegradable. I am so happy to share such a wonderfully sustainable clean water product. I hunted for months to find a good zero waste alternative. Let me know if you have any other questions about activated charcoal water filterss.
You might also enjoy these blog posts from Tiny Yellow Bungalow!
beginner’s guide to zero waste
room by room guide to a zero waste home
I wrote my undergraduate honors thesis about bottled water! So true!
Love this breakdown. So crazy to learn that the standards for bottled water are often lower. What?!?!?!
I think that tap water is really much safer than bottled water .I also think that investing in a water purifying system is much better than buying bottled water everyday.Thanks for sharing this article.
I agree! Safer to drink and better for the environment, winning all around 🙂
I totally agree with all the things that you said. I also chose tap water over bottled water because it is very expensive and can cause damage to the environment and to health of people. I think that having a water filter in home is a great idea to avoid bottled water.Thanks for sharing this article.
Love the design on the bottle