Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Tap Water Vs. Bottled Water

For this weeks blog my Enviornmental Science class an I are to learn the pro's nd con's of bottled water. For this blog I will determine where the tap ater from my home faucet comes from, who regulates the tap water, and some of the concerns and drawbacks from bottled water. There has been some controversy over which is better for you, bottled water or tap water. What most people dont know is that bottled water is tap water, and is less regulated than our city tap water. I personally am a fan of bottled water over tap water specifically because of the taste. Most people would call me crazy because "water is water" but I believe bottled water has a more "clean" taste than tap water does.




The tap water for the city of Riverside come from underground auqafiers, filtered through a percolation which is a naturally occuring water purrification process. This aquafier grows from the runoff from snow and rain that runs from the hillsides down to the aquafier each time there is a storm. According to http://www.riversideca.gov/utilities/pdf/wqar/2011/Water_Collateral_WEB.pdf  Riverside, Ca's water has been rated one of the purest waters in the nation.  A lot of people think that by drinking tap water they will get sick or develope some sort of illness because the water is not as "clean" as bottled water is. According to an Aritcle in the LA Times, Dr. Sarah Janssen did some reaserch into this matter and came to the conclusion that tap water was actually more healthy and beneficial than bottled water, because tap water is more highly regulated. http://articles.latimes.com/2008/oct/13/health/he-nutrition13.

From what I have learned about the water in California, Riverside especially is that all water requirements are met and exceeded. Over 17,000 lab tests are done each year to the water in the aquafiers,all test's after completion are then reported to the Department of Public Health. The water in Riverside is not only regulated by state officials but by federal officials as well. According to the City of Riverside website, the water in Riverside is at such a high standard that you can drink the water from the tap without using a purifier because of the exact amount of chlorine used in the water to kill bacteria. http://www.riversideca.gov/utilities/pdf/wqar/2011/Water_Collateral_WEB.pdf.

In the United States, society is more quick to purchase bottled water because of it's convenience rather than for health benefits. Bottled water can be taken anywhere, if you are on the go and need to quench your thirst there is usually someone selling or offering a bottle of water. The cost of bottled water is astronomicl considering the cost of tp water. Bottled water can cost anywhere from $.80 - $4.00 per gallon whereas tap water costs only pennies a day according to http://www.csgnetwork.com/tapwaterbottledwatercostcalc.html.

Bottled water is regulated by the FDA whereas tap water is regulated by the EPA. Despite what people think bottled water is in fact less helathy than tap water due to the regulations of each water source. Tap water is subject to a more strict regulation than that of the bottled water. The FDA is under staffed under regulated which causes the the water quality of bottled water to be more full of bacteria than that of tap water. For more information on what regulations the FDA and the EPA offer, you can visit the EPA website. http://water.epa.gov/drink/contaminants/index.cfm.





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