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This is a subtopic within Food pages, part of the Planning Areas in the Solutions section of the Knowledge Base

Bottled Water and Climate Change

Contents 1 Environmental Impacts 1.1 Storage and Transportation 1.2 Global Equity 1.3 Waste 1.4 Extraction at the Source – Environmental and Social Implications 2 Benefits of Bottled Water 3 Campuses and Privatization 4 References 5 Bottled Water Campaigns on Campuses and Beyond 5.1 Bottled Water Free Zones

Environmental Impacts

While bottled water labels tend to feature images of pristine natural landscapes, implying purity and cleanliness, ironically, there are a number of negative environmental consequences associated with the production, storage, transportation and consumption of bottled water. In comparison with the energy efficient infrastructure used to distribute tap water, bottled water is highly inefficient. First, there are significant environmental costs involved in the production of bottles themselves. There has been a major increase in the production of plastic over recent years, fuelled in part by the massive increase in consumption of bottled water, as well as other consumer goods. Manufacturing the plastic bottles consumes oil, uses energy and also releases contaminants into the air. Just producing the bottles required to meet the demand for bottled water in the United States alone uses over 17 million barrels of oil yearly, which is enough to fuel over one million cars in a year (Arnold and Larsen 2006^[1]). Furthermore, the production of plastics release chemicals such as ethylene oxide, benzene, and exylene into the air and water supply, which can cause cancer, birth defects, and damage to the nervous system, blood, kidneys, and immune system (Clarke 2007^[2]). These harmful chemicals have damaging effects on ecosystems as well, and health concerns have recently been raised regarding the leaching of chemicals from plastics into food and beverages. Plastic bottle production also causes carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions, a major source of global warming, as well as the release of sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxide, which contributes to acid rain (source?). Each tonne of PET (the plastic used in water bottles) manufactured produces around three tonnes of CO2 (Pacific Institute 2006^[3]). In addition to the non-renewable resources used in manufacturing, water is consumed in the production of plastic bottles, as with most products. The Pacific Institute estimates that for every one-litre bottle of water, three litres were used to produce the bottle (Pacific Institute 2006 ^[3]). The water that is used in production of goods is described as its virtual water content. Therefore, when bottles of water are exported, an issue in and of itself, the amount of water being exported can be seen as including the water actually contained within the bottles as well as the water used to produce the bottles.

Storage and Transportation

The storage and transportation of bottles of water also comes with an environmental cost. Storing the bottles takes up space and also uses energy. In addition, the transportation of water bottles consumes fossil fuels and adds to air pollution and global warming. A large proportion of bottled water is transported long distances, by boats, trains, and trucks, and almost one quarter of all bottled water crosses national borders to reach consumers (Arnold and Larson 2006 ^[1]). In the United States alone, around one billion bottles of water are transported each week (Fishman 2007 ^[4]). In Canada, bottles of water are sold that have been transported from places as far away as France and Fiji, and other bottles are simply bottled tap water transported from different parts of the country.

Global Equity

The unnecessary exchange between countries that are both importers and exporters illustrates the wasted resources used in transporting bottled water. In addition, water is exported from countries with limited supplies of water to those with ample supplies. For example, over one million bottles per day are manufactured for export in Fiji, yet many people who live in Fiji do not have access to safe, reliable drinking water (Fishman 2007 ^[4]). World trade in bottled water therefore has not only environmental consequences in terms of energy used and pollution generated by transportation, but raises issues of global equity as well.

Waste

Further negative environmental impacts occur from the waste created by plastic bottles designed for one time use. The amount of plastic used to bottle water each year worldwide exceeds 2.7 million tonnes (Arnold and Larsen 2006^[1]). The majority of bottles end up in the landfill where they take up a large volume of space and thousands of years to break down. In fact, plastics are the fastest growing form of municipal solid waste (Clarke 2007 ^[2]). Not only do plastics take up valuable space in the landfills, but once buried, they can leach toxic chemicals such as phthalates into the ground, polluting the groundwater (Clarke 2007^[2]). When bottles are incinerated, they release toxic pollutants into the air, including nitrogen, sulphur, and carbon oxides, as well as ash containing heavy metals (Clarke 2007 ^[2]). In the United States, 86 percent of plastic water bottles wind up as litter or in the garbage (Arnold and Larsen 2006 ^[1]). The bottled water and plastics industries together have actively opposed attempted measures in the U.S. to increase the number of bottles recycled through the implementation of deposit fees and taxes on the bottles. In the few states that do have so-called “bottle bills” establishing refundable deposits on bottles, the rate of recycling is much higher. According to the Container Recycling Institute (CRI), there are eleven U.S. states with bottle bills, and together they make up over 50 percent of the total annual recovery of beverage containers, more than the rest of the country combined (Clarke 2007^[2]). In British Columbia, all beverage containers except for milk products are sold with a refundable deposit, and the rate of return is over 81 percent (CRI 2006). Recycling helps reduce waste; however, even those bottles that are returned require yet more energy for transportation and recycling. Bottles returned for recycling need to be shipped from the bottle depot to a recycling plant, and are sometimes even exported. In 2004, nearly 40 percent of PET bottles returned for recycling in the US were exported to places as far away as China (Arnold and Larsen 2006). Furthermore, Pepsi and Coca-Cola, two of the bottled water industry’s biggest players, have failed to live up to promises they made during the 1990s to increase their use of recycled plastic and reduce their use of virgin plastic resin (Clarke 2007 ^[2]). Therefore, in comparison with the delivery system of municipal tap water, bottled water is highly inefficient and wasteful in terms of the production, transportation, and waste management of plastic bottles.

Extraction at the Source – Environmental and Social Implications

Finally, the actual withdrawal of water for bottling can have a negative impact on the environment. Bottled water can either come from above ground sources such as springs, rivers streams, or glaciers, from aquifers under the ground, or from municipal tap water systems, and companies are not necessarily required to identify the source on the label. Water-bottling plants can negatively affect both surface water flows and impact the sustainability of underground aquifers (Gleick 2004 ^[5]). In addition, where water bottlers use tap water, it can increase the strain on the municipal system. There have been several class-action law suits against Nestlé, both alleging that advertisements and labels are misleading and charging the company with the depletion of water sources (Clarke 2007^[2]). Furthermore, according to the “doctrine of prior appropriation”, applied in parts of the U.S., the first person to remove water from a stream or underground aquifer and use it for a specific purpose has senior water rights which must be satisfied before any other water rights are filled, and these rights can be sold or transferred (Clarke 2007 ^[2]). According to this doctrine, if a bottled water company acquires senior water rights they are entitled to their share of water even during a drought and at the expense of local farmers and towns. In other parts of the U.S., the “rule of capture” declares groundwater to be the private property of the landowner, and there have been cases where bottling plants have pumped so much groundwater that neighbouring wells have dried out (Clarke 2007^[2]). Under this law, affected homeowners have no recourse against the company. Therefore, water takings and withdrawals can have severe effects on the environment, as well as those people depending on the local water systems.

Benefits of Bottled Water

Consumers and the bottled water industry have argued that bottled water is healthier then juice or pop and that bottles are fully recyclable. Also, there are some campuses in BC where there are often boil water advisories, and tap water is not always a reliable option.

Campuses and Privatization

There is strong marketing on younger generations, including young adults and even children, in order to ensure committed lifetime consumers. The existence of school exclusivity contracts is a prime example of this marketing tactic, in addition to exemplifying growing corporate control over public space. Exclusive beverage agreements give companies “exclusive rights to sell a product or a service on a school or district grounds and to exclude competitors” (Clarke 2007^[2]). Both Pepsi and Coca-Cola have signed deals with numerous school boards in Canada, as well as with post-secondary institutions. In 1995, the University of British Columbia was the first university in Canada to sign an exclusivity contract, and since then, virtually all post-secondary institutions in the country have signed deals with either Pepsi or Coca-Cola (Clarke 2007^[2]). Following the signing of these types of contracts, obstructed access to water fountains and removal or disablement of water fountains has been documented (Clarke 2007^[2]). UNBC has an exclusive beverage contract with Pepsi, which prohibits the school from releasing any information related to the sale of bottled water or other Pepsi products, even to students for research purposes (personal communication with UNBC purchasing department staff, 2008).
Finally, consumption of bottled water has been linked to the privatization of municipal water supplies. By cultivating distrust in public water supplies (ironic, given the proportion of bottled water sourced from municipal tap water), the bottled water industry undermines confidence in tap water systems and spreads the perception that publicly run municipal systems are unreliable and unsafe. Furthermore, “cultivating consumers’ willingness to pay more for a litre of bottled water than they pay for a litre of gas helps set the stage for public acceptance of the privatization of water services” (Clarke 2007, 107^[2]). Private corporations can claim that because consumers are willing to pay for bottled water for its perceived benefits, they would also be willing to pay for privatized water services to obtain “cleaner and safer” drinking water. Rather than creating a privatized system where people who cannot afford rising water prices face having their water supply cut off, or an unequal two-tiered system in which the wealthy can purchase bottled water, while those who cannot afford it are stuck with deteriorating water systems, the water spent on bottled water could be used instead to improve public water utilities. According to the World Wildlife Fund, the amount of money spent on bottled water each year would be enough to supply water through municipal tap systems to 2000 cities with a population of 4 million people each (Clarke 2007^[2]). Therefore, through its attempts to undermine public water systems, the bottled water industry could be seen as setting the stage for the privatization of water supplies.

References

1. ↑ ^{1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3} Arnold, Emily, and Janet Larsen. 2006. Bottled Water: Pouring Resources Down the Drain. Washington DC: Earth Policy Institute.
2. ↑ ^{2.00 2.01 2.02 2.03 2.04 2.05 2.06 2.07 2.08 2.09 2.10 2.11 2.12 2.13} Clarke, Tony. 2007. Inside the Bottle: Exposing the Bottled Water Industry. Ottawa: Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives.
3. ↑ ^{3.0 3.1} Pacific Institute. 2006. Bottled Water and Energy: A Fact Sheet. http://www.pacinst.org/topics/water_and_sustainability/bottled_water/bottled_water_and_energy.html (Accessed 27 March 2008.)
4. ↑ ^{4.0 4.1} Fishman, Charles. 2007. Message in a Bottle. Fast Company. http://www.fastcompany.com/magazine/117/features-message-in-a-bottle.html (Accessed 27 March 2008).
5. ↑ Gleick, Peter. 2004. The World’s Water 2004-2005: The Biennial Report on Freshwater Resources. Washington DC: Island Press.

Bottled Water Campaigns on Campuses and Beyond

The Polaris Institute united with the Canadian Federation of Students and the Sierra Youth Coalition launched the campus bottled water free zones campaign for World Water Day (WWD) March 22nd, 2008.

“WWD was chosen as a key public event for the campaign launch because the day has become increasingly commercialized. Faced with rising opposition, the bottled water industry has attempted to use WWD to promote their social responsibility campaigns and wash away their image as major private water-takers promoting environmentally destructive products. By participating in the official launch of this campaign, Canadian students helped to bring WWD back to its roots. Students are rejecting the privatization of one of our most precious resources by turning back to the tap.”

All across Canadian campuses, students, staff and faculty are saying no to bottled water and calling for their campuses to become bottle free zones. Memorial University in Newfoundland, Thompson Rivers University in B.C., the University of Ottawa and the University of Guelph are just a few of the campuses that now have what students call "bottle free zones." (Crawford, 2006)

Actions against bottled water are not only taking place on campuses but also in municipalities and within churches. The United Church of Canada is urging its 590,000 members to stop purchasing bottled water, calling water a “sacred gift for all life.” Also, London, Ontario and the B.C. city of Nelson voted in favour of banning bottled water in all city offices, parks and other recreational areas. Charlottetown also decided to stop buying bottled water in 2007. (Crawford, 2006) Thus there is a rising concern being shown by Canadian citizens of bottled water and its environmental and social consequences.

Statistics Canada stated that “nearly one-third of all Canadian households are choosing bottled water over tap water and the data indicates those numbers are on the rise.” Gordon Dewis, a research analyst for the federal agency, said that “16 per cent of households preferred bottled water in 1994. That rose to 22 per cent in 1999 and then to 30 per cent in 2006.”

Bottled Water Free Zones

Many campus groups in Canada have discouraged or banned the use of bottled water, including:

• University of Ottawa, Ontario
  • Department of Geography
  • Women’s Resource Centre
  • Student Federation of the University of Ottawa’s office and meetings
  • Institute of the Environment
  • Department of Biology
  • Physical Resource Services
  • 1848, undergraduate campus pub
  • Café Nostalgica, graduate pub
  • Oxfam University of Ottawa
  • Green Campus

• University of PEI
  • Environmental and Sustainability Society
  • Institute of Island Studies

• Concordia, Quebec
  • TAPthirst
  • QPIRG Concordia
  • Sustainable Concordia

• Memorial University, Newfoundland
  • MUN Students for Sustainability Coalition

• Brock University, Ontario
  • OPIRG-Brock

• Guelph University, Ontario
  • College of Biological Science-Student Council
  • Graduate Engineering Society
  • NDP Youth, Guelph
  • Engineers Without Borders, (EWB)
  • Ontario Public Interest Research Group, (OPIRG- Guelph)
  • The Peak, magazine on campus
  • Guelph student for the ethical treatment of animals (GSETA)
  • Guelph Engineering Society (undergraduate student club)
  • Ecohouse (Campus residence)
  • Environmental Sciences Student Executive
  • CFRU 93.3 FM, campus radio station
  • Muslim Students Association

• Sir Sandford Fleming College, Ontario
  • Sustainability Office, Frost campus

• Waterloo University, Ontario
  • University of Waterloo Sustainability Project
  • Waterloo Public Interest Group

• Trent University, Ontario
  • Trent Central Students’ Association office

• Ryerson University, Ontario
  • Working Students’ Centre, Ryerson Students’ union
  • Women's Centre
  • Community Food Room
  • RyePRIDE
  • RyeACCESS

• University of Winnipeg
  • University of Winnipeg Students' Association's Soma Café
  • Ecological Males and Females In Action (EcoMAFIA)

• University of Manitoba
  • University of Manitoba Students’ Union office

• Langara College, BC
  • Langara College Students’ Association office

• Queen’s University, Ontario
  • Tea Room

• Thompson Rivers University, BC
  • Tru Eco Committee

• George Brown College, Ontario
  • Student association and faculty environmental group are considering a resolution to become zones later this month