- Old Timer on CMC Celeb: Isaac Goldberg: "This interview is going to the first of many skeletons in the closet f..."
- Who Dat? on CMC Celeb: Isaac Goldberg: "Goldberg plays a smooth 2nd base, and has mastered the swinging bunt...."
- A Mitch on Photo Essay: Swim and Track Meets: "good lines, maybe try some canted framing to make the races feel more ..."
- Kimberly M. on CMC Celeb: Isaac Goldberg: "The ex-Navy Seal is the best part of the Washington Program. <3..."
- Adam Smillie on CMC Celeb: Isaac Goldberg: "Isaac Goldberg, you're me hero......"
And the winner is…TAP WATER!
Last night at Snack, the Environmental Crusaders held an event for their Tap Water Campaign. Everyone hates the stuff that comes out of the tap at CMC (cloudy with a funny taste), so many students revert to the environmentally harmful bottled stuff.
The Crusaders ran a taste test– providing both bottled water and filtered tap water for students to sample. Club member Joe Swartley ‘11 reports, “We got a surprising number of people to stop by, and most of them found the filtered tap water to be tastier than the bottled water. ”
Okay, so this wasn’t exactly scientific, but still great news if some people were convinced to start using a filter.
The Crusaders hope to hold more events at Snack in the future– stay posted for their next move.
Not convinced of the ridiculousness of bottled water? Check out this video from water experts libertarian comedian magicians Penn & Teller:
More posts by Emily »
Emily Meinhardt
Emily Meinhardt is the managing editor of the Forum. Hailing from the Midwest, she "studies" Government and Art History. But really, she loves news so much that she just stares at Google Reader all day long. Fun fact: she actually enjoys nagging writers and editing html -- or she just doesn't want to work on thesis. One or the other.
15 Comments
2009-03-30
20:48:47
The FDA announced last year that they found small traces of fecal matter in American filtered bottled water. We should only drink tap water or non-American water (e.g. FIJI water, Acqua Pana, etc.).
2009-03-30
23:32:07
of all forum articles featuring 'Bullshit!' clips. Hopefully it becomes a trend.
2009-03-30
23:39:35
Madison,
Why are you endorsing corporate greed at the expense of a sustainable future? ALL bottled water, including non-American bottled water, is environmentally destructive (it's a senseless waste of petroleum, it creates more garbage, etc). The only time one should drink bottled water is when one is in a developing country or any area where the tap water is not safe. Otherwise, one is helping deprive current and future generations of a healthy planet in exchange for the convenince of not having to carry a nalgene. Have you learned nothing from Wall-E?
2009-03-31
01:48:08
Charlie,
I sincerely hope you're kidding.
Part of the reason I drink bottled water is that I know it tends to be a lot easier to sue a company than it is to sue a municipality. The bottled water companies have a greater incentive to keep my water pure. Water privatization can end up being cheaper than government run water.
Here's how one report on water privatization puts those costs.
An August 2002 General Accountability Office (GAO)
report (U.S. General Accounting Office, 2002) on drinking
water and wastewater utilities indicated that 29 percent
and 41 percent, respectively, were not generating enough
revenue from user rates and other local revenue sources
to cover their full cost of service. Roughly one-third of
the utilities deferred maintenance because of insufficient
funding, had 20 percent or more of their pipelines nearing
the end of their useful life, and lacked the basic plans for
managing their capital assets. From http://www.reason.com/blog/show/126931.html
For those interested in this topic, there's much, much more, but basically, I'm opposed to the state running the water supply. Bottled water keeps them honest.
2009-03-31
03:33:01
It doesn't make any sense to buy bottled water from an economic standpoint. I still do it because I'm lazy, it's cheap ($0.20/bottle or less in bulk), portable and disposable, and I just don't care, but there's really no argument to doing it because it's the most cost-effective option. Free (or approaching free) beats $0.20 or whatever the cost of bottled water.
As for suing the bottlers, that's a very weak point. And the statistics you offer bear no relevance to the argument. Especially if you take the question local and look at Claremont's water facilities. The important question is: what is the probability that you will ever have cause to sue a municipality for water product liability? What is the probability that tap water will make you sick, especially if you filter it? It's hard to quantify, but it certainly isn't enough to justify the premium you pay on bottled water. You're basically paying insurance on your water supply by buying bottled water... insurance with a ridiculously high premium.
Of course, if you think you stand a solid chance of dying from tap water, then bottled water is worth the price, just like health insurance is worth the price if it will save your life. But if you think tap water is going to kill you, I'm selling UFO and cell phone radiation insurance.
2009-03-31
02:36:05
Charles (both of you),
Would you be averse as well, then, to simply buying a water filter from a privatized water filtration production company and reusing that with with the aforementioned Nalgene, or are there studies invalidating that possibility as well?
2009-03-31
02:36:59
Eugh it's late and I got sloppy, sorry. I meant water filTER not water filtration, obviously.
2009-03-31
02:55:51
Nalgene tests their waterbottles on rabbits, or at least they did. Also, if you add boiling water to Nalgenes, I've heard they become carcinogenic.
2009-03-31
04:56:33
Charles- A) the link you provided does not link to those stats, its just an interview entitled "Bottled Water: The New Slippery Slope"
B) I'm not opposed to privatized water in principle (if the transition costs are not too high and the private water companies can actually manage water resources more efficiently). Those are two big ifs in my opinion and the terribly conducted privatization fiascos we seen in the US in recent years makes me worry that water privatization will end up being in the public interest (most likely state and municipal govs strapped for cash during this recession will sell water supplies at way under their true). Consider what happened with California Energy Deregulation and Enron, as well as the many, many cases of botched privatization plans involving public roads. Also, many water privatization schemes in the developing world have proven to be huge disasters. However, I have no theoretical objection to privatizing water, I just think prudence dictates we avoid privatizing.
C) Private tap water is defensible, but bottled water isn't. The distinction is quite important because you can have the market accountability you want with private water companies without resorting to bottled water. Bottled water has a terrible environmental impact, it costs more than tap water, and it is no more safe/pure/clean than good tap water, especially if the tap water is filtered.
2009-03-31
08:03:08
Charlie - It sounds like you are against bottled water regardless of any arguement. I believe you are an opponent of bottled water simply to be against something, which is sometimes admirable, but you need to get your facts straight. 1. Charles J. has a legitimate point that our public water infrastructure is failing; as an example, I recommend you look at any State's consumer confidence reports. For example, the most recent data for Florida's public water systems shows 19.4% of the systems had serious violations in 2005 and 15.5% has violations in 2006. (http://www.dep.state.fl.us/water/drinkingwater/info.htm#general). Generally, when a public system fails the recommended alternative is bottled water. 2. Consumers should have a choice in what they drink. Seems like you would prefer a water drinker consume contaminated water from a public system instead of drinking bottled water, which is simply ludacris. Take the time to Google "PWS failures" or "water boil adviseries" and you will see the staggering number of PWS problems across US. 3. You should educate yourself on the bottled water treatment and food safety measures, then compare to public water. Typically, bottled water is from a groundwater source that must meet all food requirements (stainless steel, UV disinfection, microfiltration), whereas public water is from surface water sources, wrought with bacteria that must be chemically treated (chlorine) to make a consumable product. 4. The last point I'll make is to address your claim of filling our land fills. Again, check the data, bottled water plastics account for about 0.0002 % of landfill wastes. If you want to reduce landfills of non-biodegradable products, you should focus your efforts on disposable diapirs, which represents a significant land fill volume. I would speculate that you are afraid to take on mothers who choose to use disposable diapirs, probably b/c it would be more difficult. But, as they say, "proof is in the pudding" and I would argue that your positions are generally scientifically invalid and undefensible. 5. With all that said, I support improving our PWS infrastructure, and further believe everyone needs fresh drinking water. I am going on a mission trip to Nigeria this summer to get fresh water for poverty stricken communities, how are you helping solve these problems? I would suggest that your complaints about bottled water are such as it is simply an easy emotional arguement versus a valid (scientifically supported) "problem". Walk the walk, improve fresh drinking water for everyine.
2009-03-31
14:25:01
What Mike A said about the infrastructure question is undeniably true. If the government were to exit the market on water, it is likely that some of those infrastructure problems wouldn't persist. Why would they? Every wasted drop would be wasted money for a private company.
Mr. Sprague, the link I put up links to a pdf, which is from where I cited.
I would also point out that in Third World countries public ownership of water hasn't been a net positive as water is used as a political weapon. Fortunately, there are efforts afoot to privatize it even in the Third World. (http://www.reason.com/news/show/32902.html) (http://www.reason.com/news/printer/34992.html)
But hey, it's not all bad. Part of the good news (at least for me) is that government owned water means that in a lot of countries Coca-Cola sales increase. (I happen to be a share holder.) In turn, Coca-cola sales give a good assessment of whether or not the regime is stable. http://www.economist.com/world/mideast-africa/displaystory.cfm?story_id=11670946
2009-03-31
14:49:19
Also, there's very little evidence that recycling is beneficial for the environment. Might I point to another Bullsh-t episode? http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-1444391672891013193
2009-03-31
19:56:57
Privatization of water? Come down to earth my friend.
2009-04-01
19:58:39
Brita, guys. Brita is the way to go. Cheap, environmentally friendly and tastes good. I gave up on bottled water long ago and ordinary tap water just doesn't cut it.
2009-04-01
21:43:41
I think many of you are missing the point: water connoisseurs like myself drink bottled water for the taste of water. We would not spend money on untasty, tap-water tasting water like Poland Springs or Dasani, but we don't mind paying for water that tastes good. For example, for those who prefer harder tasting water-- that's water with more Mg for ordinary folks-- you would go for Evian or the even harder Contrex. If you prefer a milder but not too soft water, you may go for Le Bleu. If you like carbonated water, you might like Perrier (I prefer San Pellegrino.) My personal preference of water is Fiji or Panna. Choosing to drink bottled water is very much like choosing to drink bottled apple juice. Sure you can help the environment buy buying apples and making your own juice but some times the bottled martinelli stuff tastes better. Also, Nalgene bottles changes the taste of water.