NYT: "Safe" tap water can legally contain dangerous levels of cancer-causing agents

More this week from the New York Times about the safety (or should we say unsafety) of our tap water. Current regulations and laws, including the Safe Drinking Water Act and the Clean Water Act, simply aren't stringent enough to guarantee that the tap water flowing from our faucets is pure, safe and free of toxic chemicals.

The latest in the newspaper's Toxic Waters series highlights the harm that can be caused by so-called legal levels of toxins and contaminants, including arsenic, uranium, lead and bacteria. Exposure to these toxins has been linked to illnesses from the innocuous -- an upset stomach -- to the deadly -- birth defects and cancer. Since 2000, no new chemicals have been added to the list of those that the EPA monitors under the Safe Drinking Water Act.

The 35-year-old federal law regulating tap water is so out of date that the water Americans drink can pose what scientists say are serious health risks — and still be legal.

Only 91 contaminants are regulated by the Safe Drinking Water Act, yet more than 60,000 chemicals are used within the United States, according to Environmental Protection Agency estimates. Government and independent scientists have scrutinized thousands of those chemicals in recent decades, and identified hundreds associated with a risk of cancer and other diseases at small concentrations in drinking water, according to an analysis of government records by The New York Times.

If you receive your water from your local municipality, every year you should receive a Consumer Confidence Report in the mail detailing the so-called safety of that tap water. These reports also are available online for some cities and towns at through the EPA's Web site. These reports include information about any contaminants found in your local drinking water, and oftentimes, you'll read that the contaminants are within safe levels.

But that notion of safety is very misleading, as the New Times investigation details:

For instance, the drinking water standard for arsenic, a naturally occurring chemical used in semiconductor manufacturing and treated wood, is at a level where a community could drink perfectly legal water, and roughly one in every 600 residents would likely develop bladder cancer over their lifetimes, according to studies commissioned by the E.P.A. and analyzed by The Times. Many of those studies can be found in the Resources section of the New York Times.

That level of exposure is roughly equivalent to the risk the community would face if every person received 1,664 X-rays.

Fashion Alert: Primo Water and Rachel Zoe

It seems that Primo Water is becoming a darling with reality television stars.

We told you earlier this week that we spotted a Primo Water dispenser at the home of "Biggest Loser" winner Danny Cahill.

Well, we just got word from the director of operations for Rachel Zoe's company that they just received their Primo Water dispenser. They've set it up in their offices, and report that it looks great and is working great.

Oh my God! Shut up. Oh my God!

Hollywood stylist Rachel Zoe is a fan.

Oh my God!

We'll be keeping our eyes open for next season of the Rachel Zoe Project on Bravo to see if we can spot Primo sharing screen time alongside all those designer labels Zoe chooses for her A-list celebrity clients.

Tainted water supply, water filter blamed for one death, two illnesses at Miami hotel

Fox News is reporting that the luxury Epic Hotel in downtown Miami has been evacuated after one guest died and two others became sick from a bacteria-tainted water supply. And it appears that a water filter that the hotel had installed to remove chlorine from its tap water is to blame:

About 300 guests have been relocated from a luxury Miami hotel after one guest died and at least two others became sick from a bacteria in the water.

Health officials say the guests at the Epic Hotel in downtown Miami were sent to nearby hotels Sunday to prevent further contact with the Legionella bacteria. It can cause potentially deadly pneumonia. It spreads in contaminated mist or vapor, not from person to person.

An investigation last week by county and state officials revealed that the hotel had installed a water filter powerful enough to remove chlorine from its city-supplied water, a move that encouraged bacterial growth.

In an unrelated case, the bacteria killed a man in Gainesville last week. He had contracted the disease from the water supply at Shands Cancer Hospital.

"Biggest Loser" Winner includes Primo Water in Weight Loss Efforts

"Biggest Loser" winner Danny Cahill obviously realizes the importance of pure, great-tasting water to a healthy lifestyle.

Cahill, a land surveyor from Broken Arrow, Okla., lost an astounding 239 pounds to win the latest season of the hit NBC reality show.

Guess what we spotted in Danny's kitchen in one of the episodes leading up to the finale? A Primo Water dispenser.

To win the "Biggest Loser" and drop 239 pounds, Danny had to trade his unhealthy habits for healthy ones. One of the easiest changes people can make at the beginning of any health makeover is to switch from sodas, sugary beverages and caffeinated drinks to water.

But as the contestants on the "Biggest Loser" learned, making healthy choices can be quite difficult when other temptations surround you. Weight loss winners like Danny learn to surround themselves with healthy options -- fruit and veggies to snack on instead of high-calorie sweets and great-tasting Primo Water to drink instead of sodas.

Like diet and exercise, water should play a role in your weight loss plan, according to a Wake Forest University nutritionist:

• Water can decrease your appetite. The next time you feel hungry, drink a glass of water and wait 20 to 30 minutes to see if those hunger pangs subside.
• Water can help you cut calories. Most people drink a lot of calories throughout the day. Consider replacing sodas, sweet tea and juices and zero-calorie water.
• Caffeinated beverages act as a diuretic and can lead to dehydration. By the time you feel thirsty, you're already dehydrated. Though you may consume lots of caffeinated beverages throughout the day, they won't keep you hydrated like water will.

Now, we thought we'd sign off with a few inspiring words from the "Biggest Loser" himself, Danny Cahill.

NYT Investigation Reveals Millions Exposed to Cancer-Causing Agents in Tap Water

A new New York Times investigation uncovered damning evidence that much of the tap water in the United States is unsafe, and that the EPA has failed to punish violators of the Safe Drinking Water Act even in cases where cancer-causing agents such as arsenic and uranium were detected in the water supply.

According to the front-page article published Monday:

"More than 20 percent of the nation’s water treatment systems have violated key provisions of the Safe Drinking Water Act over the last five years, according to a New York Times analysis of federal data.

That law requires communities to deliver safe tap water to local residents. But since 2004, the water provided to more than 49 million people has contained illegal concentrations of chemicals like arsenic or radioactive substances like uranium, as well as dangerous bacteria often found in sewage.

Regulators were informed of each of those violations as they occurred. But regulatory records show that fewer than 6 percent of the water systems that broke the law were ever fined or punished by state or federal officials, including those at the Environmental Protection Agency, which has ultimate responsibility for enforcing standards."

The timing of the NYT report coincides with a Congressional hearing today in which the Senate Environment and Public Works Committee will question high-ranking EPA officials about drinking-water safety laws and their enforcement. According to the NYT, "the EPA is expected to announce a new policy for how it polices the nation’s 54,700 water systems."

It's certainly time for something to change. The current regulations need to be overhauled, but more importantly, they need to be enforced. Americans are being told that their drinking water is safe, when in reality millions of people every year are being exposed to harmful bacteria and contaminants that have been linked to illnesses and deadly diseases.

Violations have occurred in every state, and while some problems were fixed quickly, others were longer term. Consider these statistics from the Times investigation, a followup to this summer's Toxic Waters series:

"Scientific research indicates that as many as 19 million Americans may become ill each year due to just the parasites, viruses and bacteria in drinking water. Certain types of cancer — such as breast and prostate cancer — have risen over the past 30 years, and research indicates they are likely tied to pollutants like those found in drinking water.

More than three million Americans have been exposed since 2005 to drinking water with illegal concentrations of arsenic and radioactive elements, both of which have been linked to cancer at small doses.

Federal regulators fined or punished fewer than 8 percent of water systems that violated the arsenic and radioactive standards. The E.P.A., in a statement, said that in a majority of situations, state regulators used informal methods — like providing technical assistance — to help systems that had violated the rules.But many systems remained out of compliance, even after aid was offered, according to E.P.A. data. And for over a quarter of systems that violated the arsenic or radioactivity standards, there is no record that they were ever contacted by a regulator, even after they sent in paperwork revealing their violations."

Is the bottled water industry dead? $16 billion in annual sales says no

The blog Triple Pundit has a really thought-provoking article about the future of the bottled water industry.

One salient point that the author makes is that the so-called "refill revolution" is still in its nascent phase. While campaigns such as Break Free have raised awareness of plastic bottle waste and converted people from single-serve bottled water to alternative such as water coolers, tap and filters, the bottled water industry is still billions of dollars strong.

Sales of reusable aluminum and stainless steal water bottles are up. Companies like Sigg and Klean Kanteen have grown tremendously over the past few years; Nalgene has experienced slower sales due to the BPA scare. Sigg increased production by more than 90 percent last year and expects it to increase to be about seven million this year (though a recent scandal regarding lack of transparency could change that).

But the bottled water industry is enormous, estimated at about $16 billion, and reusable water bottles are a mere drop in the bucket. It would take a mass exodus of people using refillable water bottles to take away the significant market share of the bottled water industry.

Those of us who are concerned about the environment and plastic bottle waste should let this reality motivate us to do more to cut into the bottled water industry's profit: It would take a mass exodus of people using refillable water bottles to take away the significant market share of the bottled water industry.

If you haven't already signed the Break Free pledge, do it now. Then, encourage your friends, family and coworkers to do the same. But don't just take the pledge. Live it.

Remember:

The benefits of using reusable water bottles far outweigh the costs. Among these benefits are: energy savings and reduced emissions (processing, packaging, distribution) and reduced waste (less plastic in landfills equals less pollution).

Boil water advisory lifted in Portland, Oregon

A boil water advisory issued Saturday after E.Coli was found in one of the city's water reservoirs has been lifted in Portland, Ore., and surrounding towns.

According to the Portland Water Bureau, routine water samples collected Wednesday indicated the presence of E. coli, and a test conducted Friday confirmed contamination.

It's interesting that the boil-water advisory wasn't issued until Saturday. Wonder how many people who get their water from this particular reservoir were sickened by ingestion of the contaminated tap water? Probably quite a few more than during a normal week since people were home for the Thanksgiving holiday and consuming meals and beverages made from the tainted tap water.

Though the Water Bureau notes that E.Coli in water supplies generally doesn't cause serious illness, it's not completely harmless either.

“If there are health effects from drinking water contamination, we expect them to be diarrhea and belly ache,” Dr. Paul Lewis, Deputy Health Officer for Clackamas, Multnomah, and Washington counties said in a press release. “Although we are hopeful that the contaminated water will not affect peoples’ health, diarrhea can be a bigger problem for young children and people who have weakened immune systems. It is also important to note that the E. coli bacteria that is detected on the monitoring test may not be the same as the more notorious E. coli O157:H7, a cause of serious bacterial diarrhea.”

Water cooler at Indian nuclear plant sabotaged

This is one of those strange but true stories, definitely worthy of some water cooler discussion:

Workers at a nuclear plant in Indian were tested last week for radiation poisoning after a water cooler at the plant was sabotaged with tritium.

Here the strange, but true, details as reported by Bloomberg:

Radioactive material found in drinking water at an Indian nuclear facility was not stolen and the site is secure, the chief of the monopoly atomic energy producer said.

“There is no question of theft” of radioactive material, Shreyans Kumar Jain, chairman of the Nuclear Power Corp. of India Ltd., told reporters in Mumbai today. A person inside the company most likely obtained the material from samples of heavy water that inspectors regularly take at the facility, he said.

Workers at the Kaiga nuclear plant in the southern state of Karnataka were tested last week after tritium, a radioactive form of hydrogen, contaminated a water cooler. Two of 50 people who drank the water were being monitored by doctors for low levels of radiation and are expected to recover, while the remaining were confirmed normal, Jain said.

“If the exposure is within or close to the limit, it’s true that it will be flushed out in two to four days and it won’t have any long-term effects,” Prabhat Munshi, a professor at the Indian Institute of Technology in Kanpur, said by telephone today. “A serious injury can occur only if the exposure is several times above the limit.”

India’s top intelligence agencies are investigating the incident, including motives such as grievances or mischief, Jain said. Security is being increased across state-owned Nuclear Power’s facilities, he said.

The water cooler, which was located outside the reactor building, has been isolated and shut down.

Lessons of waste, redemption on the Plastiki

Next month, a yacht built entirely from reclaimed PET plastic bottles will set sail on an 11,000-mile voyage from San Francisco to Australia. We've written about the Plastiki before, and this week USA Today has a fascinating article about the high-profile trans-Pacific voyage.

Of course, crossing the Pacific is a secondary goal of eco-adventurer David de Rothschild and the crew of the Plastiki. The real point of this voyage to raise awareness about plastic waste and to force a sea change in the way consumers and manufacturers deal with such waste.

The Plastiki's voyage, which will be chronicled online by the crew and which and is already garnering worldwide media attention, will focus attention on one of the most damning environmental threats: how plastic is choking the planet. The Plastiki's message is one of reduce, reuse and recycle. It takes solid aim at the throwaway nature of our society.

Their point: If the world continues to create 260 million tons of plastic products each year, it's critical to find ways to reuse the non-biodegradable material.

The vessel itself is a clever example of how plastic can be reused. At the same time, the ship is a study in excess; thousands of plastic bottles comprise the pontoons that will keep the Plastiki afloat. And in that imagery, we have cautionary tale of how many plastic bottles are needlessly produced and consumed every year. And then there is the recycling message. The Plastiki will sail through the Pacific's Great Garbage Patch, "a massive, floating plastic junkyard in the middle of the ocean that is the direct result of mankind's polluting ways," as USA Today describes it.

We'll be watching along with the world, as the Plastiki undertakes it three-month voyage/environmental mission. Many eyes will be on the strange-looking boat. But in this post "Balloon Boy" climate, many people may view de Rothschild's adventure as a nothing more than an attention-grabbing, publicity stunt when really they should be heeding his message:

[Said] Jo Royle, who signed on to skipper Plastiki after a sailing trip through Antarctica revealed garbage in that icy paradise: "David can help people see we're all environmentalists and should make do with less."

Royle has just nailed Plastiki's mission. Much like [Thor] Heyerdahl's bold Kon-Tiki voyage made people rethink historical tenets, so de Rothschild has a chance to capture hearts and headlines with his crusade to reassess the way we deal with plastic waste.

"Our boat is just one giant floating water bottle," he says.

This simple image, de Rothschild adds, could be enough to shift people's attitudes toward recycling and the environment.

How can a Primo Water dispenser improve your life?

3 R Friday at Over Coffee

We love 3 R Friday at the blog Over Coffee because it offers practical tips for easily incorporating the 3 Rs - reduce, reuse and recycle - into your life.

Here's are a few recent easy tips to help you "darken your shade of green:"

Reduce: Reduce the number of plastic bags that are used during trips to pumpkin patches by taking a washable, reusable bag with you.
(I know that pumpkin patch field trip time is over but maybe we can all remember this one for next year)

Reuse: Reuse glass jars for Thanksgiving left-overs.
(This way you don't have to fret about your guest not bringing back your Tupperware containers)

Recycle: Whenever possible, purchase items made from recycled materials.
(Paper towels, tooth brushes, tissue, wrapping paper, reusable bags, boxes. The list can go on and on and on)

Bottled Water is for the dogs

Here's another one for the Hall of Shame.

A company in Japan is marketing a line of bottled water for dogs called "Pet Sweat."


First of all, what were they thinking when they named this product? Pet Sweat - ick! And what a colossal waste of money and natural resources. This one is worse than the Hello Kitty water bottles.

What's even more disturbing is that the ill-conceived, horribly named Pet Sweat isn't the only bottled water being marketed to pet owners.

As blogger Dogtopia points out, "Pet Sweat could take the lead from American manufacturers of bottled water for dogs, with names such as Fortifido, Hero Dog Water, Woof Water, PetRefresh, Aqua Dog, and Dog Whisperer Fortified Water for Dogs. Yet, 99% of dogs surveyed said they would still prefer to drink water out of the toilet."

Please don't buy these products for your pet. If you're worried about your pooch getting thirsty, carry a collapsible bowl along on your walks and fill it from a reusable water bottle.

Boil Water Advisory issued in Michigan

Photo by ralph hunden, licensed under Creative Commons

These things are becoming an almost daily occurrence.

Officials in Mesick, Mich., have warned residents to boil tap water before consuming it after coliform bacteria was found in the water. Its detection indicates the likely presence of other harmful bacteria in the community's tap water.

Environmentalists fight to keep pollutants out of Tennessee's Clinch River

A water quality fight is raging in Tennessee involving environmental activists, the Tennessee Valley Authority and the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation. Here are the details from The Associated Press:

Environmental activists are trying to stop the Tennessee Valley Authority from starting a daily 1 million gallon discharge of water that contains mercury, selenium and other pollutants into the [Clinch River.]

Representatives of Earthjustice and other groups told reporters Thursday they are challenging a Clean Water Act permit issued by the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation. They said technology is available to avoid the potentially toxic discharges.

The discharges into the Clinch River stem from new smokestack scrubbers that reduce air emissions at the plant where TVA is still engaged in a $1 billion ash cleanup from a December spill.

The activists asked the Tennessee Water Quality Control Board in a filing Thursday to reverse TDEC's Oct. 16 approval of the discharge permit.

TVA said in a statement released by spokeswoman Barbara Martocci that although "metals are present in the discharged water, state and federal agencies have determined that there is no reasonable potential for these materials to cause an exceedance of any water quality criteria."

Lisa Widawsky, an attorney for Environmental Integrity Project in Washington, D.C., said in a statement that the state agency ignored its responsibility to enforce the Clean Water Act when it approved "new discharges of toxic heavy metals, to the tune of 1 million gallons a day, into the same river devastated by the Kingston coal ash spill."

More water bottles recycled in 2008, but drinking bottled water is still a bad idea

The International Bottled Water Association issued a press release this week reporting that recycling rates for half liter plastic water bottles rose from 23.4 percent to 30.9 percent in 2008, according to two new studies by the National Association for PET Container Resources (NAPCOR): the 2008 Post Consumer PET Bottle Bale Composition Analysis and 2008 Report on PET Water Bottle Recycling.

“This big improvement in bottled water container recycling over the 30% mark, while encouraging, reminds us that still more needs to be done,” Association spokesman Tom Lauria
said in a press release.

We couldn't agree more.

While we're pleased that American consumers are more aggressively recycling bottled water containers, we'd like to see them trash bottled water all together. Recycling is the only option for dealing with the glut of single-serving water bottles already sitting on store shelves, in vending machines and in your refrigerators.

But let's not forget the other spokes of the three Rs - reduce, reuse and recycle.

Recycling was the way most of us are introduced to the green mindset. And it's a great way to deal with an existing waste problem. But individually and as citizens of the world, we need to put more emphasis on the other Rs - reducing and reusing. There's no reason to buy water in individual bottle servings when there are other equally convenient and affordable sources of water. And when we buy packaged goods, we need to seek out those in reusable and renewable packaging.

As consumers, we can speak very loudly with our dollars. If we don't spend money on one-time-use products and packaging, companies will stop offering them for sale and stop consuming precious resources to make them.

Photo by orphanjanes, licensed under Creative Commons

Battle over Delaware bottle bill continues

Delaware this summer dodged a repeal of its bottle bill, which requires a refundable deposit on purchases of bottled beverages. But this issue is far from dead in Delaware.

Governor Jack Markell in June vetoed legislation that would have repealed the state's bottle bill. Those who were pushing for the repeal argued that the bottle bill was flawed and was hampering curbside recycling efforts. Now activists in favor of keeping and strengthening the bottle have more work to do in convincing Delaware state legislators not to override the governor's veto and to support a revamped bottle bill to be introduced in January.

One of the common criticisms of bottle bills is that they discourage curbside recycling. Proponents of the repeal hauled out that same tired excuse in Delaware, even though numerous studies show that they actually increase recycling. Also, curbside recycling is not as widely available in Delaware as the bill implied, according to the online Bottle Bill Resource Guide.

We've never really understood this particular objection to bottle bills. The crux seems to be that if consumers can't recycle bottles and cans at the curbside, then they won't bother with recycling at all. While it's certainly more convenient to be able to throw all your recyclables into one container, it requires very little extra effort to sort and separate recyclables. In fact, many municipalities require residents to do that. Those of us who recycle already separate our trash from our recyclables.

It may take a while to get into the habit of sorting refundable containers from recyclables, but to argue that is an onerous task is ridiculous.

Don't we sort our laundry? And our groceries, storing the perishables in the refrigerator and freezer and the rest in the pantry? So, what's the big deal about sorting recyclables? Do it long enough, and it will become habit -- just one of those things we do.

For more on bottle bills, check out this link on Break Free 411.

Single-serve packaging is an eco-travesty

New data compiled by the Container Recycling Institute shows how recycling rates for #1 PET plastic bottles stacks up against those of other beverage containers.

Or rather, how many plastic water, soda and juice bottles wind up as waste instead of being recycled.

The number is staggering: more than 40 billion annually.


Only soda and beer cans have a worse record -- more than 50 billion annually are trashed, compared with more than 20 billion glass bottles.

What these numbers tell us is that American consumers need to do a better job not only at recycling but also reducing our consumption of plastic bottles, cans and glass bottles. We need to break free from single-serve packaging in all its forms. We're paying a huge environmental cost for the convenience of single-serve packaging.

Switch from bottled water to Primo Water in 5-gallon reusable bottles. Buy sodas in 2 liter bottles or replace them with healthier iced tea or lemonade you make at home. Purchase larger bottles of wine and growlers of beer. Pack snacks in reusable containers rather than buying convenience packs. Serve the kids water instead of juice boxes and pouches, or fill their cups with juice from a larger container. Freeze leftovers in reusable containers and take those for lunch instead of prepackaged frozen meals, which are often high in sodium and calories.

What are ways that you're recycling and reusing in your own life? We'd love to hear your innovative ideas for reducing, reusing and recycling.

Champagne Living blog praises Primo Water dispensers

Zippy, our blogging buddy over at Champagne Living, enjoys the good stuff.

She's an expert on living a lavish lifestyle for less. So, we're thrilled that she gave the Primo Water dispenser the Champagne Living seal of approval.

Why does she love Primo Water? Let us count the ways:

• Primo Water coolers are stylish
• Primo Water coolers help reduce waste
• Primo Water offers easy-to-use bottom-loading coolers
  
• Primo Water tastes great, much better than tap
  

But don't take our word for it. Here's a snippet of what Zippy had to say in her glowing review:

Both Mr. S and I drink a LOT of water. Coming from New England (where we had wonderful natural water) to Florida (where my town water tastes like someone's science experiment) - I found us buying cases of bottled water - 2 cases or more a week. Even though the mansion is "green" (meaning all bottles, etc. get recycled), the impact of using all of these bottles on the environment is just gauche.

We considered a water cooler, but lifting those 5 gallon bottles is a NIGHTMARE. We'd had one in the past and although having an indoor pool is nice, cook got a little upset that we had installed the pool in the kitchen. She found herself having to put on flippers to wade around in the water that was spilled from attempting to flip the bottles upside down.

When Primo Water Coolers approached me about putting one of their new coolers in at the mansion, I was ecstatic. You see, I had done my homework and Primo Water Coolers offer BOTTOM LOADERS. That meant there'd be NO indoor pool for cook to do laps in while she was trying to maneuver around the kitchen...

Oh, and Mr. S. is the PICKIEST water drinker in the world. I swear, he'd send me all over creation to find the ONE water that he likes. HE LOVES PRIMO (making my job so much easier). When they claim "taste perfection" - they got it RIGHT.

And here's the best part. Champagne Living is giving away a free Primo Water dispenser to one lucky reader of her blog. Follow this link to the entry form, and then get a bonus entry by taking the Break Free Pledge and vowing to reduce your consumption of bottled water.

Choosing a Reusable Water Bottle

For all the knocks against single-serve bottled water, it is convenient. That's probably why millions of consumers are still knocking back bottled water, despite the environmental cost of this habit.

Today, there's no excuse for not ditching bottled water. Reusable water bottles to suit every style, lifestyle and budget are widely available.

Here are a few that we like for one reason or another: price, design, size, functionality:

Bean Canteen

We love the groovy look of the Bean Canteen from L.L. Bean, and the sport cap makes for easy on-the-go sipping.

This stainless steel bottle holds 18 ounces and sells for $19.95. It's safe for water, juices and sports drinks.






Kid Kanteen Sippy

It's never too early to become a good steward of the environment.

The toddler-sized kid kanteen sippy from klean kanteen is available in a range of colors. At 12 ounces, it's perfectly sized for little sippers, and the sippy top ensures that moms and dads won't have to waste their energy cleaning up messes.

This stainless steel bottle sells for $17.95 on klean kanteen's Web site.




Klean Kanteen Wide Bottle

Conventional wisdom says adults should drink 64 ounces of water a day. Though there's some debate about how much water we need, it's a fact that most people don't drink enough water daily.

This big bottle solves that problem. Just fill it up in the morning and you're sure to stay hydrated throughout the day.

The klean kanteen wide bottle holds 64 ounces and sells for $32.95





Customizable Sigg

How hip are you?

Reusable water bottles have become fashion statements, and not only because going green is the right thing to do.

The reusable water bottle you carry says a lot about your personality.

While there are literally thousands -- maybe even millions -- of water bottles from which to choose , you can make a more individual statement with a customizable Sigg bottle from Cafe Press.What do you think of ours?

Prices vary, depending on the style and size you choose.

What do you think of ours?

Hello Kitty Retro

Speaking of Sigg, we also like the Sigg Hello Kitty Retro 20-ounce aluminum bottle.

Last week, we wrote about the introduction of Hello Kitty bottled water at 7 Eleven stores in Japan. But this is a Hello Kitty water bottle we can support.

The cost is $21.99






Nalgene Grip-n-Gulp


Here's another one for the preschool set.

The Nalgene Grip-n-Gulp, which is made from #7 plastic, is priced right at $9.25.

According to Nalgene, it's "tough enough to survive being thrown form a moving minivan, spill proof enough to compel parents to blame the rug stains on the dog, and odor proof enough to allow leftover milk to go undetected under the couch for months."



Nalgene On the Go

For adults, there's the Nalgene On the Go.

This 24-ounce, #7 plastic bottle is available in a variety of cool colors. But that's not why we like it. It's the one-handed, flip-top cap that we like. No fumbling with bottle tops when you just gotta have a drink.

The price is nice, too, at $11.99.





Laken Prisma Bottle

It's all about the design with the Laken Prisma Bottle with the Grolsch top.

There's something so old-school about this bottle's look. And the Grolsch top reminds us of a bottle of pure maple syrup. Crazy, right?

The price is up there: $33.95 for the 1 liter aluminum bottle at ReusableBags.com.



thinksport Thermal Bottle

The thinksport Thermal Bottle is a much cooler version of a Thermos. (No offense to the good folks at Thermos.)

With its attached top, the .75 liter stainless steel bottle is perfect for the gym, biking or when you're on the go.

It sells for $19.95 at ReusableBags.com.





Gaiam Love Bird Bottle

This is what's in my gym bag at the moment.

The design of the Gaiam Love Bird Bottle is a bit reminiscent of Woodstock. Peace, love, break free. That has a nice ring, doesn't it?

Seriously, though, this 25-ounce bottle fits perfectly in the car cupholder as well as on the elliptical machine. The mouth is the same size as a plastic water bottle, which makes sipping easy and not messy.

And the price was right: $12.99 at Target.

Educated Yourself: How safe is your tap water?

Find out what the EPA says about the safety of tap water in your area.

Photo by jenny downing, licensed under Creative Commons

Bottled water's role in pollution

NorthJersey.com has an informative article that talks about how bottled water is a huge pollutant.

While we don't agree writer's conclusion that drinking tap water is the only option that consumers who want to green their lifestyle have, the article makes some great points about how environmentally irresponsible bottled water consumption is:

• An estimated 17 million barrels of oil were used to make plastic water bottles in 2006, producing 2.5 million tons of carbon dioxide.
• Energy is also consumed to fill, transport, refrigerate, and dispose of all these bottles.
• Worldwide bottling of water uses about 2.7 million tons of plastic each year.
  

Wordless Wednesday: Rampant Consumption

Photo by klynslis, licensed under Creative Commons

Presence of chlorides raises questions about tap water safety in Missouri

The Missourian reports today that chloride has been detected in water supply wells that supply drinking water to residents of Columbia, Mo.

What does that mean, exactly?

While the chlorides themselves aren't harmful, according to city officials, their presence in the water supply means that treated wastewater is finding its way back into the city's water supplies. That is raising concerns that "other potentially harmful contaminants, such as pharmaceuticals and other household chemicals, could stay circulating in the water supply," according to the newspaper.

It's interesting to note that despite these problems, Columbia's water is "safe" by EPA standards. The city is not currently in violation of any EPA standards for clean water or water quality, though it has been in the past.

The problem could get worse if the city follows through on its plans to place a new well near four others where chloride levels are at their highest

Wisconsin school with toxic water switches to water coolers to keep kids safe

Numerous recent media reports, including this one from TMJ4 in Milwaukee, have uncovered toxic drinking water at schools.

After potentially harmful arsenic was detected in the school's well water, well in excess of EPA standards, Lakeview Elementary school switched from tap to water coolers to keep kids safe.

Those coolers are fun for students, but more importantly, they're the only source of clean water at Lakeview.

Arsenic has been linked to bladder and lung cancer and diabetes. But until 2006, the EPA didn't regulate school's water systems for arsenic, according to TMJ4's report.

Want the convenience of pure, hot or cold water in your home?

Could it be any easier?

Deadly E.Coli detected in Oklahoma restaurant's tap water

After one man died and hundreds of others became ill after drinking E.coli tainted well water at an Oklahoma restaurant, the state is urging others with wells to switch to bottled water or municipal tap water.

The Tulsa World newspaper reported that the Department of Environmental Quality and the Oklahoma Department of Agriculture, Food and Forestry have said that residents of Locust Grove, Okla., who rely on well water should take precautions to avoid ingesting the deadly bacteria.

Judge issues $1.26 billion judgment against PepsiCo in bottled water lawsuit

Did you hear about the harried PepsiCo secretary who failed to pass along important legal documents relating to a bottled water lawsuit to her boss?

Her oversight may cost the company $1.26 billion -- and we're betting the secretary's job -- after a judge issued a default judgment in that amount to two men who filed suit alleging that PepsiCo stole their idea for bottling water. The judge issued the summary judgment last month when PepsiCo failed to appear in court. PepsiCo is appealing the ruling.

Here, in a nutshell is what happened:

Charles Joyce, of Juneau, Wis., and James Voigt, of Cleveland, Wis., sued PepsiCo in April, asking for a jury trial and damages of more than $75,000. Their lawyer, David Van Dyke, told The Associated Press the two had worked together and came up with the idea to bottle purified water in individual servings.

Joyce's and Voigt's lawsuit accuses PepsiCo of misusing trade secrets. It also names Wis-Pak Inc. and Carolina Canners Inc., companies that make and distribute PepsiCo products, and Thomas M. Hiles, then the executive vice-president of Carolina Canners.

The pair claim they entered written confidentiality agreements about a new beverage they were calling "U.P." with executives of Wis-Pak and Carolina Canners in 1981. The executives violated the agreements and gave the information to PepsiCo, which eventually rolled out a bottled water brand - Aquafina - about a dozen years later, Joyce and Voigt claim.

PepsiCo said part of the problem was it was served the lawsuit in North Carolina, where it is incorporated, instead of Purchase, N.Y., where it is based. Later, a secretary who received letters relating to the case failed to act on them.

Spokesman Joe Jacuzzi said PepsiCo wants to fight the claims but acknowledges it failed to respond because of "an internal process issue."

PepsiCo says it never knew anything about the case. Here's what it told the court on Oct. 13 when it asked the court to abandon the judgment.

-June 11: Stith&Stith, PepsiCo's law firm in North Carolina, is "allegedly" served with the complaint but the company gets no word.

-Sept. 15: Stith&Stith forwards a letter about the case to Tom Tamoney in PepsiCo's legal department, but his secretary, Kathy Henry, "was so busy preparing for a board meeting she did not deliver it to anyone" or tell anyone about it or enter it into a log that tracks such things, according to PepsiCo's court filing.

Despite the default judgment, it's likely that PepsiCo will get its day in court to defend against the $1.26 billion lawsuit, according to a law professor interviewed by The Associated Press.

"I'd be surprised if they didn't set it aside," said Myron Moskovitz, a law professor at Golden Gate University in San Francisco. "But there's going to be some red faces in court."

Hello Kitty shilling for bottled water

Bottled water is a trend whose trendiness has long passed. Or so we thought, until we saw these horrible, horrible Hello Kitty water bottles, which apparently are available exclusively at 7 Eleven stores in Japan.



We hope that Japanese consumers and Hello Kitty collectors are smart enough to not buy these wasteful water bottles.

Bottled water versus tap

We've been lurking around the Web today, eavesdropping on arguments between bottled water proponents and environmentalists who've are pushing the tap water agenda.

Check out the the spirited debate over at Fake Plastic Fish regarding the new documentary Tapped.

Some of the most pointed comments are from the author of arduous blog and Tom Lauria of the International Bottled Water Association.

Declining soda and bottled water sales hurt Coke's third quarter 2009 profits

Coca-Cola recorded only a slight profit for the third quarter, as it reported that North American sales of sodas and its Dasani-brand bottled water dipped 4 percent for the quarter.

As a result, Coke has increased its spending on advertising, marketing and packaging in North America, while also growing its business in emerging markets such as China and India.

Declining sales of Dasani, fueled by consumer backlash against bottled water for economic and environmental reasons, were a big drag on Coke's profits for the quarter.

According to coverage by the Wall Street Journal, "sales of Dasani brand water in North America were down by more than 19 percent. Sales of multipacks of Dasani, a popular packaging for water, were down even more."

What's In Your Tap Water?

Local governments are quick to assure the public that our drinking water is safe.

But how safe is it really?

If you want to see for yourself what contaminants are present in your tap water, check out this nifty Drinking Water Scorecard from the University of Cincinnatti.

Do you know what's in your drinking water? Did you know the drinking water quality, or the amount of contaminants, varies around the country? Click on your city below to investigate how your drinking water ranks versus other cities.

The chart below is for the Greensboro-High Point-Winston-Salem metro area, where Primo Water is based. (Sorry for the quality. You can access the chart here.)


While contaminant levels in our local water meet all EPA standards, the levels of lead, chlorine and chlorine byproducts are particularly concerning.

Lead can impact children's mental and physical development and can contribute to kidney and blood pressure problems in adults. Chlorine byproducts have been linked to an increased risk for cancer.

But, according ot the EPA, our drinking water is safe.

Penn State environmental group calls for campus bottled water ban

An environmental group at Penn State is speaking out against bottled water.

Members of Environment, Ecology and Education in the College of Education "called on the university to end its contract with Aquafina, noting that the stuff in the bottle is not better than what comes out of the tap, costs too much and creates unwanted plastic waste," according to the Pocono Record.

The group asked students to sign a petition against bottled water and to rethink their own consumption of it.

We agree with their message that bottled water is a wasteful from an environmental standpoint. But we don't agree that drinking tap water is the only solution. Tap water has its own set of problems -- water quality being prime among them.

Saying that drinking tap water is the only alternative to bottled water is akin to abstinence-only sex education.

While the either-or message will resonate with some people, who will switch to tap water, there will be others who don't like the tap option. And they'll hop right back into bed with bottled water because they don't realize there's another alternative -- a water dispenser.

Did you hear the one about bottled water?

From comedian Lizz Winstead:

"We buy bottled water every single day without thinking about it. Why? Because drinking tap water is more dangerous than doing Jell-O shots off of Courtney Love, that's why."



Funny and unfortunately probably true.

Blog Action Day: Climate Change

Today is Blog Action Day, and more than 11,000 bloggers worldwide are participating by posting about the same topic -- climate change.




Day in and day out, the purpose of this blog is to highlight how one seemingly harmless habit -- drinking bottled water -- is having a huge impact on the environment. Americans' choice to consume bottled water leads to the consumption of 17 million barrels of oil annually. We throw away billions of plastic water bottles every year in landfills. Most bottled water is trucked across the country, compounding the environmental impact.

In so many ways, every time you lift a bottle of water to your lips, you're contributing to climate change.

What's the big deal about climate change? The Center for American Progress has a great article on all the things that are being affected by climate change/global warning. There's a long list of things that we'll lose if we don't take steps NOW to control climate change. And consider these facts and figures from the Pew Center on Global Climate Change.

We know that climate change is a complicated issue that can be overwhelming. With a problem as large in scope as climate change, it often feels like there's little that we as individuals can do to make a difference. But we're not powerless. Small changes do matter because they lead to bigger ones. And when individual changes are aggregated, they make a huge difference.

When 30 billion plastic water bottles end up in landfills every year, one family's choice to stop drinking bottled water doesn't really seem that significant. What does it matter that 1,000 fewer water bottles are consumed and thrown away as a result of that family's choice. 1,000 bottles seems is so small in the context of the billions that are consumed and throw away annually.

But that family, fortunately, is not alone in making a change. Every 45 seconds, someone in America switches from bottled water to a water cooler for their home. That saves 400 million bottles from the nation's landfills each year. That's almost half a billion bottles of water, and that's significant.

Small changes do add up, whether it's pledging to break free from bottled water, powering down your electronics when you're not using them, turning off the lights when you leave a room, buying a hybrid car, taking reusable bags to the store, choosing cloth diapers over disposable ones, buying organic produce, consolidating errands, walking or biking to work, replacing the light bulbs in your house with energy efficient ones...

The list of small changes we all can make goes on and on and on.

If we all make climate change a priority, we can make climate change a reality.

Did tap water at N.C. Marine base cause men to develop breast cancer?

Michael Partin was 39 years old when he was diagnosed with breast cancer, a disease that affects only 2,000 men in the U.S. every year. Partin believes that his rare cancer was caused by his exposure to contaminated tap water as an infant at Camp Lejeune Marine base in North Carolina.

At least 40 former U.S. Marines or sons of Marines who lived at Camp Lejeune have been diagnosed with breast cancer.

According to CNN:

Partin said that during his mother's pregnancy, the family was exposed to high levels of tetrachloroethylene, trichloroethylene, dichloroethylene, benzene and vinyl chloride in the tap water at the military base.

For three decades, from the 1960s to the 1980s, Camp Lejeune's drinking water was contaminated with carcinogens, specifically "industrial solvents dumped by the Marines and a dry-cleaning business, investigators say," according to the St. Petersburg Times, which wrote about Partin earlier this summer. More than 1 million people living and working at Camp Lejeune were exposed to the contaminated tap water.

It's quite likely that during the time they were drinking this contaminated water, the Marines, their families and base employees were told by the government that the tap water was safe. Clearly, such official assurances are not always true.

In two independent studies, the government found no link between the tap water contamination and the men's breast cancer, and experts have warned that showing cause and effect may be difficult. Meanwhile, North Carolina senators Richard Burr and Kay Hagan are backing a bill that would require the Department of Veterans Affairs to cover the medical costs of Marines and their families who were exposed to the contaminated water.

Disturbing Fact: Americans consume 1,500 bottles of water every second

And we throw away 1,200 of them.

MSLK, a New York design agency, is artfully raising consciousness about plastic waste with Watershed, an art installation in New York.

Watershed is essentially a curtain of 1,500 empty plastic water bottles. The number is signficant because every second, Americans consume 1,500 bottles of water.

More creative recycling of water bottles

While it's no Plastiki, you have to applaud Micah Weiss's ingenuity in building a pontoon boat from hundreds of discarded water bottles.



He documents the process at Project rRaft and provides detailed instructions for other eco-minded do-it-yourselfers at Instructables.

Adventurer to Sail the Pacific in Catamaran Built from Thousands of Plastic Bottles

Always looking to highlight ingenious do-it-yourselfers and creative solutions to problems, the editors at ReadyMade magazine this month tackle the glut of plastic bottles that wind up in landfills every year.

They managed to find some people who are doing some creative, crafty and redeeming things with PET water bottles. We thought we'd highlight a few in the coming days and weeks since the ReadyMade article isn't available online.

Adventurer and environmental storyteller David de Rothschild, is using thousands of bottles to build a catamaran that he plans to sail across the Pacific. The 60-foot Plastiki is an amazing vessel, made completely from reclaimed plastic bottles. You can learn more about the Plastiki and follow de Rothschild's voyage here. (He should be setting sail later this year, following ocean tests of the vessel this month.) He'll also be tweeting the journey.

de Rothschild talks about the Plastiki and his expedition in this YouTube video.

Wordless Wednesday: A Good Walk Spoiled

Photo by bardsworld, licensed under Creative Commons

New York To Require Deposits on Bottled Water

Later this month, New York will begin requiring a 5-cent deposit on bottled water. New Yorkers already have to pay a deposit when they purchase sodas, carbonated beverages, wine coolers and beer. That deposit is refundable if they return the empty bottles and cans to a local store for recycling.

Consumer sentiments about the new law are mixed. Some resident believe the deposits will have a positive environmental impact because they will discourage people from trashing their empty water bottles. But others are bemoaning the fact that the new law will raise the price of a case of water by more than $2.

New York state, where some 2.5 billion bottles of water are sold annually, is one of only 11 states that requires deposits on bottled and canned beverages. It is one of only six states requiring deposits on bottled water. Connecticut just began requiring a 5-cent deposit on bottled water on Oct. 1.

Bottle bills usually dramatically improve recycling rates in the states where they are enacted. So, it's likely that New Yorkers will stop contributing to the steady stream of bottled water waste that winds up in landfills.

State officials are projecting an increase in recycling, according to an article on MPNnow.com:

“Water is about 25 percent of the overall beverage market,” said Laura Haight, senior environmental associate for the New York Public Interest Research Group. “With the expansion, we’re capturing about 90 percent of the beverages we believe should have deposits on them.”

Earlier state laws required deposits on soda and other carbonated beverages, wine coolers and beer, with a study showing they raised aluminum can recycling from less than 20 percent to more than 80 percent.

Writer endorses tabletop water coolers

Home improvement writer June Koppang endorses tabletop water coolers as an eco-friendly alternative to bottled water.

I think it might be a good idea to buy a tabletop water cooler. It will save you money and it is eco friendly. There are too many plastic water bottles in the landfill, and with a water cooler you can help cut down the number of bottles that are thrown away. You can buy your water in bigger amounts, so you can cut down on the number of bottles that you throw away...

I found the Primo Pioneer Tabletop Water Cooler that sells for $99.99. This tabletop water cooler dispenses both cold and hot water. It will hold the standard size bottles (3-5 gallon) which are not included. There is a safety tap for the hot water so that it is safe around a child. There is spill proof loading and there is no plastic taste. The base is 16.38" H x 11.63" W x 11.75" D, and it comes in white. This tabletop cooler will save a lot of extra plastic bottles from landing in the land fill. I think this tabletop cooler would be a great asset to have in your home or in your office.

Thanks, June, for taking up the cause!

E.Coli Found in Pennsylvania Town's Water

Residents of Barton, Pa., have been warned to boil their tap water before drinking it after the deadly bacteria e.coli was found in the water supply.

It's unclear at this point what caused the contamination, but excessive runoff from rain or a breakdown of the town's water treatment system are likely culprits.

Here's more information from the town's boil water advisory, as published in The Morning Times newspaper:

Fecal and e.coli are bacteria whose presence indicates that the water may be contaminated with human or animal waste. Microbes in these wastes can cause diarrhea, cramps, nausea, headaches or other symptoms. They may pose a special health risk for infants, young children and people with severely compromised immune systems,” the statement explains.

The town's water supply is being treated with increased levels of chlorine to eradicate the e.coli, but it may be a week before it's "safe" for residents to drink their tap water again.

Minnesota town fined for water quality violations

The town of Motley, Minn., has been fined $17,500 by the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency for water quality violations, according to newspaper reports.

The plant was tagged with 46 violations over a 2 1/2-year period from July 2006-December 2008
for "treating twice its permitted levels of total suspended solids and substances that contribute to biological oxygen demand, which resulted in plant overloading and algae problems."

Stories like this really make you question how safe tap water is.

Better Homes & Gardens Blogger Breaks Free from Bottled Water

Better Homes & Gardens editor and blogger Amanda Hyde took the Break Free pledge, and she's happy that she did.

Amanda writes about how she kicked her bottled water addiction with the help of a Primo Water dispenser for her home and a pair of reusable Nalgene bottles.

She reports that she's saving money while also saving the environment.

Following the arrival of the water cooler, I went to Lowe’s to purchase the 5-gallon bottle and I picked up two Nalgene water bottles. For the past 2-1/2 weeks, I’ve been filling my water bottles with Primo Water before work, after a workout, and whenever I’m thirsty. It’s taken a little time to get used to preparing my own water bottles, but I’ve honestly come to love this product! It’s so easy to use and the water is refreshing and great-tasting. Plus, the stylish dispenser looks great in my kitchen!

I’m also thrilled about the money I'm saving! I used to spend $10 each week for 12 bottled waters. It only cost me $14 to purchase Primo’s 5-gallon bottle and it will only cost $6.00 to refill it when the time comes.

Great job, Amanda!

Are you ready to Break Free, too?

California County Bans Bottled Water and Water Coolers

It's tap water only for government employees in Sonoma County, California.

Elected officials there have banned bottled water and water coolers from county government buildings out of budget and environmental concerns. The move will save the local government $70,000 annually, according to local press coverage.

As in most places, Sonoma County has a glut of plastic bottles in its landfills. Only about 20 percent of plastic bottles are recycled; the rest are trashed, according to the newspaper.

While water dispensers are an environmentally responsible alternative to bottled water, Sonoma County supervisers voted to get rid of them, too, to save $45,000 annually, in cooler rental and water fees.

New laws taking effect Oct. 1 to impact bottled water drinkers

New laws taking effect today in several states will have an impact on bottled water drinkers.

Beginning today, residents of Connecticut will have to pay a 5 cent deposit on every bottle of water they buy. This extends the state's existing bottle bill, which requires consumers to pay a refundable deposit on beverage purchases.

Bottle bills, while they do generate revenues for states, also are aimed at improving recycling rates. Customers receive a refund only when they return their empty bottles to the store, where they are collected and recycled. By the end of the year, six states will require deposits on bottled water.

Here in North Carolina, Primo Water's home state, it's now illegal to throw plastic bottles and containers in the trash. We applaud the state's efforts to encourage mandatory recycling on plastic bottles, but we realize that enforcing this law will be difficult and perhaps even unpopular.

But it is so necessary. DigTriad reports that four of every five plastic containers are thrown away instead of recycled. According to the N.C. Division of Pollution Prevention and Environmental Assistance, only 18 percent of plastic bottles used in the state are recycled. That's the height of environmental irresponsibility.

According to the city of Greensboro, if every plastic bottle used in the state were recycled, that would keep more than 2.4 billion plastic bottles from landfills annually.

The new law sends the message to residents that we can't keep throwing plastic into our landfills. Because of the number of plastic bottles that are trashed annually -- billions -- we're already facing huge environmental consequences for this wasteful behavior. The new law makes those consequences more immediate. Throw away plastic containers in North Carolina instead of recycling them and face a potential fine.

Actually, North Carolina residents don't have to worry about being fined for tossing an empty bottle in the trash instead of the recycling ban. But state inspectors will be looking for trash haulers who dump loads of plastic and other banned materials in landfills.

Here's more on enforcement of the new plastic bottle ban from Earth911:

It’s not going to be a Big Brother law, but the best way to be in compliance with the law is to recycle plastic bottles,” says Scott Mouw, environmental supervisor for the North Carolina Department of the Environment and Natural Resources. “Everyone wants to do the right thing, and the right thing is to recycle.”

While we don't believe that garbage cops should target individuals, we do hope that this new law will encourage more people to recycle plastics. Many municipalities in the state offer curbside recycling, making it so easy for residents to recycle. We'd also love to see more restaurants and public venues offer recycling bins alongside trash cans.

Of course, laws like this would be moot if more people would take the pledge and Break Free from bottled water and reduce their overall consumption of plastic bottles and containers.

Primo Water Ranks As One of North Carolina's Fastest-Growing Companies

Primo Water was honored recently as the Triad's fastest-growing privately held company.

Winston-Salem based Primo topped the Business Journal of the Greater Triad's Fast 50 list, a ranking of private companies based on revenue growth between 2006 and 2008.

Despite the recession, Primo Water's business continued to grow as consumer backlash against single-serve bottled water increased. In growing numbers, consumers who are concerned about the environment and their health are switching from bottled water to coolers for their homes. These convenient dispensers house reusable 3- and 5-gallon bottles that are recycled at the end of life cycle, unlike most single-serve water bottles.

Primo Water understands the behavioral trends driving sales of bottled water. Most consumers want a convenient source for cold, delicious water, which they can't get from a tap. Primo dispensers offer a Zero Waste alternative to single-serve bottles, while at the same time delivering convenient access to pure, healthy and delicious cold or hot water at the push of a button.

A Primo Water dispenser also makes sense for budget-minded consumers. Owning a cooler saves homeowners an average of $200 a year versus renting.

This shift in consumer sentiment and buying habits presents a tremendous market opportunity for Primo and its retail customers going forward. Only a small percentage of households currently own their own water coolers, but that number is growing significantly each year.

Primo Water has redefined the water dispenser and elevated it to a must-have item for every home with the introduction of stylish bottom-loading coolers. Its innovative in-store exchange program allows consumers to exchange their empty 3-gallon and 5-gallon water bottles for full ones at grocery and home improvement stores nationwide.

Primo Water, founded in 2004, first became eligible for the Fast 50 list last year. Primo ranked third then and rose to the top position this year, ahead of such growth companies as Samet Corp., New Breed Logistics, ArcaTech Systems and Varrow Inc.

Accounting firm Smith Leonard of High Point ranked the Fast 50 companies using a formula that factors in both dollar and percentage growth from 2006 to 2008. The formula is weighted to sustained growth and is equitable to companies of all sizes.

Bottled water versus tap water

The president of the International Bottled Water Association and the director of the Environmental Working Group's California office squared off recently over whether tap water or bottled water is safer.

The interview of EWG's Renee Sharp and IBWA's Joe , broadcast on KPBS, was in response to Congressional debate earlier this summer calling for stricter regulation and additional labeling of bottled water.

Obviously both of these speakers have agendas, but theirs is a pretty thorough discussion of the safety different regulations governing bottled and tap water.

The transcript of their interview, broadcast on KPBS, is available here.

Kids Exposed to Unsafe Drinking Water at School

Through our confidence in the government and because of aggressive marketing efforts by tap water advocates we've been hoodwinked into believing that our drinking water is safe.

But evidence mounts and mounts and mounts to show otherwise.

The latest news to bubble up about tap water may in fact be the most disturbing.

Following on the heels of the New York Times Toxic Waters series, which revealed that one in 10 Americans have been exposed to drinking water that contains dangerous chemicals, the Associated Press reports that the drinking water at schools is contaminated with unsafe levels of lead, pesticides and dozens of other toxins.

This applies to public schools and private schools, those with wells and those with municipal water.

The contamination is most apparent at schools with wells, which represent 8 to 11 percent of the nation's schools. Roughly one of every five schools with its own water supply violated the Safe Drinking Water Act in the past decade, according to data from the Environmental Protection Agency analyzed by the AP.

Among the report's other findings:

• Water in about 100 school districts and 2,250 schools breached federal safety standards

• Those schools and districts racked up more than 5,550 separate violations. In 2008, the EPA recorded 577 violations, up from 59 in 1998 — an increase that officials attribute mainly to tougher rules.

• California, which has the most schools of any state, also recorded the most violations with 612, followed by Ohio(451), Maine (417), Connecticut (318) and Indiana (289).

• Nearly half the violators in California were repeat offenders. One elementary school in Tulare County, in the farm country of the Central Valley, broke safe-water laws 20 times.

• The most frequently cited contaminant was coliform bacteria, followed by lead and copper, arsenic and nitrates.

As the AP reporters point out, the stakes are particularly high when these types of contaminants and toxins are found in school water supplies. Children do not have the same tolerance for these contaminants as do adults, so the threat to their health is amplified.

The contaminants are especially dangerous to children, who drink more water per pound than adults and are more vulnerable to the effects of many hazardous substances.

"There's a different risk for kids," said Cynthia Dougherty, head of the EPA's Office of Groundwater and Drinking Water.

Still, the EPA does not have the authority to require testing for all schools and can only provide guidance on environmental practices.