Blog Action Day - Stop Being 'evian'!

'evian' in reverse is spelt 'naive', which sometimes lead me to suspect if the bottled water manufacturer is really thinking about consumers that way.

Perhaps so, given that the bottled water market is an unnecessary one, one that is fueled by consumers' irrational demand for wanting to pay for a healthier, chic drink to soda.

Unfortunately the problems caused by the demands for bottled water exhibit itself as a strain on the world, manifesting itself as a net contributor to global warming. If you think about it, transporting water from some Swiss mountain range a continent away and shipping to you as drinking water that has no material differences in terms of quality, is just a blatant waste of resources.

The energy costs of involved in storing, bottling, and transporting the water though, is substantial, especially when compared in relation to the negligible benefits it brings you compared to typical tap water.

Generally, there fundamentally nothing wrong with the water from the tap, as often is the case in most countries around the globe. In fact, in comparison, tap water usually have to pass even more stringent water quality tests, in addition to that, usually comes fortified with elements like fluoride, which helps in preventing tooth decay.

The increase in demand for bottled water has increased the drink industry's ravenous hunger for plastic, like the polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles that we are commonly use for soda drink bottles.

While recycling these bottles is a viable alternative, statistics are showing that our recycling efforts have not been stepping up with our consumption demands. In the end, a sizable amount of these single use bottles often end up polluting the lakes, rivers and seas of the world.

Some people I've met had strenuous objections to drinking tap water, citing reasons that it tasted awful compared to the refreshing taste of bottled water. I shall not argue on whether if these perceptions are just psychological, but instead I'll like you to think about it in a rational, economically-inclined way: paying for a bottle of water that costs 4-8 times more expensive than a litre of petrol, really sounds like extreme lunacy.

It's thus no wonder why companies can call us 'naive' and still be able to get away with it.