- The bottled water industry is booming each year. It has been estimated that 50 billion water bottles are consumed per year and 60% of these bottles are consumed by Americans (Schriever par. 4). The consumption of bottled water is increasing as people in the developed world are becoming preoccupied with healthy lifestyles.
- Fiji Water is one of leaders in the market of bottled water. The company claims that it produces clean water that is healthy and even essential for people’s everyday life. The company also stresses that it is sustainable.
- Production of bottled water can hardly be called sustainable since it is similar to mass production of any other product and it has a significant negative impact on the environment. Production of bottled water results in contamination of air, land and the ocean.
- First, bottled water production requires considerable amount of resources. For instance, bottled water manufacturers spend 17 million barrels of oil annually to produce bottled water (Schriever par. 8). More so, distribution of bottled water requires a fleet of 40,000 18-wheelers weekly (Schriever par. 12). Thus, manufacturers spend vast amounts of natural resources that could be used in different settings.
- Admittedly, bottled water production is also associated with considerable amount of carbon dioxide emissions. Apart from emissions during the production process, delivery and recycling of the bottles also contribute to air contamination.
- Notably, bottled water production takes place in distant areas where no industrial objects (apart from the water plants) are found. Thus, Fiji Water is located in one of the most picturesque places in the world with unique ecosystem. Admittedly, building of a plant is associated with intrusion into the ecosystem. Forests are cut down to build plants and roads. The entire ecosystem suffers from such activities.
- As for particular environmental effect on the land, the bottles are made of PET plastics that do not biodegrade. The bottles break down into smaller pieces in the course of time but this period is quite significant. More importantly, PETs quickly absorb toxins and, hence, hold them in soil and water. This can have numerous negative effects as the soil is contaminated and plants as well as animals can become ill.
- An example of such contamination is the fact that more than 46,000 pieces of floating plastic is found in every square mile of the ocean (Schriever par. 14). More so, it has been estimated that about 10% of the plastic manufactured in the world comes into the ocean. It is necessary to note that considerable part of these bottles end up in the ocean floor and it never degrade there.
- Another problem is vast landfills. It has been estimated that 38 billion bottles end up in landfills each year (Schriever par. 17). Clearly, landfills can be regarded as one of the most burning issues as the amount of waste grows and the need of land for the landfills increases.
- All these negative effects should make people reconsider their fascination with bottled water. It is necessary to note that the water quality as well as its beneficial effects on people’s health have been overestimated. Negative effects of bottled water production outweigh possible positive effects of this water drinking. It is time to make a decision whether people want to keep certain image of a healthy and green individual or they truly want and try to preserve the nature.
Works Cited
Schriever, Norm. “Plastic Water Bottles Causing Flood of Harm to Our Environment.” The Huffington Post. 2013. Web.