Sanford Brown Institute Environmental Protection Agency Discussion

Module 04 Discussion – Tap Water vs. Bottled Water
Many people prefer bottled water and still other people prefer tap.
For this week’s discussion we focus on this same issue. Considering federal regulations,
how is tap water regulated differently than bottled water? Why may FDA regulations be
inadequate to guarantee the quality of bottled water? Do you prefer bottled water to tap
water and why?
Please read and answer the question in a minimum of 100 words. Then
Answer two peers. I will expand the time for the replies
NUTRITION: Bottled VS. Tap
REFERENCE
Crane, C. (2011). NUTRITION: Bottled VS. Tap. Scholastic Choices, 27(3), 10-12.
Which type of water is better? The answer may surprise you
A cool, refreshing swig of water is hard to beat when you are thirsty. When you need a drink of H20, you
have two choices: Fill up a glass from the faucet, or grab a store-bought bottle of water. If you’re like
many people, you probably reach for the bottled water.
A few decades ago, each American drank about one gallon of bottled water per year. Now each of us
drinks about 30 gallons — the equivalent of 200 20-ounce bottles of water a year! What caused the spike
in bottled water’s popularity? It’s healthy, convenient, and available everywhere, from stores and schools
to fast-food restaurants. And it’s cleaner and tastier than tap water, right? After all, bottled-water ads and
labels tout the purity of their products.
The reality is that water from your faucet is as good as bottled. “The United States has one of the best
municipal tap water systems in the world,” says Peter Gleick, a water expert at the nonprofit Pacific
Institute and author of Bottled and Sold: The Story Behind Our Obsession With Bottled Water. “It’s reliable
and cheap, and the quality is superb.”
Here are reasons it is safe and smart to drink water from the tap:
Tap water meets strict standards of cleanliness
The Environmental Protection Agency regulates public water sources, making sure they are free of
contaminants and pose no health risks. The Food and Drug Administration does the same for bottled
water. But the two agencies have different sets of rules for overseeing the two types of drinking water.
Tap water comes from a variety of natural sources, like lakes, rivers, reservoirs, and underground
aquifers. Before it reaches your faucet, the water goes through multiple purification processes. Treatment
removes harmful chemicals, such as pesticides, fertilizers, and other pollutants that may have leached
into the water, as well as disease-causing bacteria.
Cities are required to test the safety of the public water supply hundreds of times a month and to make
water-quality reports available to the public. On the other hand, bottled-water plants aren’t as closely
monitored; it is mostly up to manufacturers to ensure the safety of their products.
Tap water saves you money
Your parents pay a monthly water bill for the water used by your household. Even though tap water costs
your family money, it is relatively inexpensive — less than a penny per glass. Bottled water is not nearly as
cheap: Ounce for ounce, it can cost as much as 2,000 times more than tap water! Most of the hefty price
tag comes from the packaging, shipping, and marketing — not the water itself.
If bottled-water buyers think they are paying for superior-quality water from a pristine source, guess
again. The truth is that many bottled waters are actually repackaged tap water. When a bottle says
“natural spring water,” the water comes from a groundwater source. But, says Gleick, “a significant
amount of bottled water, 45 percent, starts as municipal tap water, sometimes getting additional
processing before it’s bottled.”
Tap water is environmentally friendly
Many people purchase bottled water because it comes in a convenient package they can drink from on
the go. Once their thirst is quenched, the plastic bottle gets tossed. Americans throw away 1,500 plastic
bottles every second. Most end up in landfills, where they can take hundreds of years to break down.
Less than 30 percent of plastic bottles get recycled.
Tap water can be just as portable as bottled water if you invest in a reusable container you can carry with
you and refill from a faucet or drinking fountain. Reusable bottles cut down on waste and reduce the need
to make new plastic ones. Plastic is made from oil, and Earth has a limited supply of this resource.
Tap water passes the teste test
All water — bottled and tap — contains dissolved minerals, like calcium and magnesium, that give it its
taste. Your city’s tap water may taste different from another city’s because of differing amounts of N these
naturally occurring minerals. To create a more neutral flavor, many bottled-water companies adjust the
mineral content of their products. Still, “in blind taste tests, people can’t reliably tell the difference between
tap water and bottled water,” Gleick says.
Another thing that affects tap water’s taste is leftover — but harmless — amounts of chlorine added to
public water systems to kill microbes. Some bottled-water manufacturers use ultraviolet light or a blast of
oxygen instead of chlorine to disinfect their water. These methods work just as well and don’t leave
behind a chemical taste. There’s an easy fix to make your tap water taste fresher, though. Attach a filter
to . your faucet, refrigerator water-dispenser supply, or a special pitcher to remove residual chlorine.
Tap water is a healthy choice
Your body is 70 percent water. It’s necessary to replenish the fluids you lose every day to keep your body
functioning properly. Of all the drink choices you can make, water is the best. It’s calorie-free and doesn’t
contain caffeine, which can further dehydrate you.
So no matter whether the water you gulp comes from the tap or a prepackaged bottle, you can rest
assured that you are doing something healthy for your body. Just remember that a sip from a water
fountain, a reusable container, or a cup filled from a faucet is just as good for you as one from a storebought bottle. It’s also easier on your wallet and the planet.
SAT/ACT WORDS
Pristine: in original condition, unspoiled
Portable: easily carried or moved
Residual: remaining at the end of a process
TEST YOURSELF
Are these statements true or false? Answers are in the Teacher’s Edition.
1 Nearly 80 percent of plastic bottles get recycled. True False
• 2 Most people can’t tell the difference between the tastes of tap and bottled water. True False
• 3 Ounce for ounce, bottled water can cost as much as 2,000 times more than tap water. True False
• 4 The Environmental Protection Agency regulates both tap and bottled water. True False
DISCUSSION QUESTIONS
California has passed a law requiring bottled-water companies to provide information about the source of
their water on their labels, as well as water-quality reports upon request. Do you think a similar law should
be passed that includes all bottled water sold in the United States? Why or why not?
The reality is that water from your faucet is as good as bottled.
Drinking from fountains and using drinking glasses helps the environment.
~~~~~~~~
By Cody Crane
S Brown
34 minutes ago, at 3:14 PM
NEW
I really do not have a preference when it comes to bottled water or tap water, and I never thought to
think which is better for you. They both taste the exact same. Bottled water is regulated by the FDA and
tap water by the EPA (Environmental Protection Agency). The EPA has more strict restrictions when it
comes to the aspect of inspection. FDA is less strict when it comes to information, they do not have to
test their water as often and they do not have to release any reports or results to others. In terms of
safety bottled water and tap water are comparable. The FDA oversees bottled water while the EPA
regulates tap water. Both the FDA and EPA have similar standards when it comes to making sure
everyone is safe. Tap water seems to be the better option because it is less expensive, more
environmentally friendly, and less likely to contain microplastics. If you prefer tap water you may want
to look into getting a water purifier, it gives that additional benefit that it is completely pure and better
quality than both bottles water and unfiltered tap water. I prefer both bottled water and tap water, even
though bottles water is easier to just grab and drink when you are on the go. I use tap water when I have
run out of bottled water, my children drink tap water as well when we run out of bottled water. I have
never realized a difference between either. I just prefer to have ice when I drink my tap water. Drinking
tap water also helps the environment as we are not using plastic water bottles which harms the
environment.
Reply
Karen L
20 hours ago, at 7:40 PM
NEW
Bottled Water is regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), while tap water is regulated by
the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Federal law mandates, however, that the FDA’s regulation
of bottled water must be no less stringent than the EPA’s regulation of tap water, and vice versa.
FDA’s testing requirements are looser than the EPA’s, the quality of bottled water is actually monitored
less frequently than the quality of tap water. In addition, many bottled water companies actually just sell
a purified version of the same tap water that’s delivered to homes around the country.
I prefer bottled water. Where I live now our water is hard, and a brownish color. If I boil it is fine but just
drinking it out of the sink is not okay. Where my mom and sister live the water is better there so I drink
the filtered water there.

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