Ok, maybe I didn’t spend hundreds on bottled water. However, my taxes (of which I had plenty) did help pay for bottled water even though technically I didn’t drink ONE sip of bottled water in 2009. Or the year before that come to think.
You are in the same boat as me.
Even if you kicked the bad non-reusable bottled water habit long ago you’re still most likely supporting other folks’ bottled water addiction.
According to an analysis by EWG partner Corporate Accountability International (CAI), most states are spending hundreds of thousands of dollars on bottled drinking water for state employees. Of course this is not eco-friendly plus doesn’t make great use of our tax dollars. Worst of all, having all that bottled water on hand doesn’t exactly motivate public officials to take a real interest in supporting safe, strong and healthy public water systems – why should they? We’re paying for their bottled water what do they care if the water system is good or bad.
Actually I find this highly ironic since most bottled water is pretty much tap water.
According to Enviroblog it’s not all bad news – some states are breaking the bottled water habit and saving money. Enviroblog, for example, notes that “San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom passed an executive order that phases out city spending on bottled water and invests the recouped funds in the city’s public water system. As a result, the city is saving $500,000 a year simply by not buying bottled water.”
To learn more about bottled water use in your state check out Think Outside the Bottle where community members and public officials can download guides about the issue and learn how to make bottled water go away (as it should).
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