What really happened to our tap water and underground water?
Clean water is one of the most important needs of our bodies. It is a sad fact that something as essential to life as clean drinking water can no longer be granted to us. Unsafe water is not just a third world problem. In fact, safe drinking water is even harder to find specially in industrially developed countries such as the U.S.
According to research articles and news, most tap and well water in the U.S. now are not safe for drinking due to heavy industrial and environmental pollution. We have reached to a point that, all sources of our drinking water, including municipal water systems, wells, lakes, rivers, and even glaciers, contain some level of contamination. Contaminants range from naturally-occurring minerals to man-made chemicals and by-products. While many contaminants are found at levels not enough not to cause immediate discomforts or sicknesses , it is proven that even low-level exposure to many common contaminants will, over time, cause severe illness including liver damage, cancer, and other serious ailments. Even the chemicals commonly used to treat municipal water supplies such as chlorine and fluoride are toxic and are known to have significant adverse effects on the human body.
Tap water may also contain traces of prescription drugs. An investigation by the Associated Press has revealed the presence of a vast array of pharmaceuticals in municipal drinking water including antibiotics, anti-convulsants, mood stabilizers and sex hormones. These drugs were found in the drinking water supplies of at least 41 million Americans and in 24 major metropolitan areas - from Southern California to Northern New Jersey. The AP has mentioned reverse osmosis as a water filtration solution that removes virtually all pharmaceutical contaminants.
Can we depend on bottled water then?
The fact is that bottled water sold in the United States is not always filtered and not necessarily cleaner or safer than most tap water, according to a four-year scientific study recently made public by the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC).
The NRDC's study included testing of more than 1,000 bottles of 103 brands of bottled water. While most of the tested waters were found to be of high quality, some brands were significantly contaminated.
About one-third of the waters tested contained levels of contamination including synthetic organic chemicals, bacteria, and arsenic (at least one sample exceeded allowable limits under either state or bottled water industry standards or guidelines). In fact, about a quarter of all bottled water is actually bottled tap water, according to government and industry estimates (some estimates go as high as 40 percent). details
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A good water filter is the best and maybe the only solution nowadays. You can install and maintain the filters yourself and can ensure and feel safe about the water which you and your family drink. Just make sure the filter you choose removes the most spectrum of contaminants. Usually a professional filtration system worth invest-in is a 4 to 5 stage water purifier system. Each stage will remove certain types of contaminants, and all stages combined should protect you from just about every contaminant. A reverse osmosis water filter with activated carbon pre-filters, plus an ultraviolet light, are what we believe to be the most thorough and cost effective way to purify drinking water. Such a system will pay for itself within half a year and can last 10-15 years with easy annual filter changes.
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How America's Bottled Water Addiction fuels high Gas Prices
Most water companies use polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastics to bottle their products. The manufacturing process of PET bottles requires a combination of natural gas and petroleum. It takes more than 17 million barrels of oil annually to create enough plastic to meet American's demand for bottled water. That is enough to fuel more than one million cars in the USA for 1 full year.
Another problem is the transportation costs of bottled water. Water is very heavy and it takes a lot of fuel to transport millions of tons of drinking water every day. When the time comes to recycle these plastic bottles, even more oil is needed as recycling plants require large amounts of fuel and clean water to operate. So even the recycling of plastic bottles becomes a major depletion of the Earth's precious natural resources.
Research from the Beverage Marketing Corp estimates that the average American consumption of bottled water has jumped from 1.6 gallons per person a year in 1976 to over 30.2 gallons a year in 2007. It's no coincidence that our gas prices have increased so dramatically along with our consumption of bottled water.
The truth is we can all make a difference in the world simply by making a small change in our lifestyle and reducing our dependence on bottled water. Filtering your own pure water at home and using a re-usable water bottle is a small step that can make a big difference for the environment.
Celebrities Making a Difference
Academy Award winning actress Gwyneth Paltrow cares about the environment and is a strong advocate of green products, including the benefits of drinking reverse osmosis water. You can visit her fun and informative blog Goop.com to learn about products that she recommends which are both eco-friendly and useful.
Some more facts on water pollution:
There are 35,000 pesticides containing 600 chemical compounds. Yet municipal water systems are only required to test for six. Many of these chemicals are known to cause birth defects, nerve damage, sterility and cancer.
The General Accounting Office reports that 20% of the nation's 65,000 community systems are unable to meet minimum standards set by the Safe Drinking Water Act.
More than 700 organic chemicals have been identified in drinking water, and some of them are suspected cancer causing agents.
A recent government study found that more than 25% of all large U.S. public water systems contain traces of one or more toxic substances. ... Public water systems do not test for the carcinogens and other dangerous chemicals that are being found.
The World Desperately Needs Clean Water
According to the WHO and UNICEF, dirty drinking water kills 2.2 million people per year, over 1.5 million of whom are children under the age of five (WHO, 2000). Unfortunately, this means that contaminated drinking water is in a tight competition with diseases like AIDS and cancer to be the biggest killer of human beings on Earth. This is a tragedy because many of the world's water problems can be solved with education and technology.
Agua Muisne is a non-profit organization that believes firmly in helping impoverished communities develop the knowledge and infrastructure to maintain their own water purification solutions and deliver clean drinking water to their people. Learn more about the important work they are doing here.
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