Note: The following outlines the screening team’s concerns with bottled water:
- Transportation – of water to factories and distribution.
- Ownership – Lack of access to safe drinking water, privatizing of water sources, etc.
- Impact on the poor – The poor can be more dependent on city and county water systems; improvements in this infrastructure are not keeping pace with what is needed; poor more impacted by the declining systems as have fewer economic choices.
Baseline standards
- Clear public statement of water source
- Clear statement of who owns and/or receives fees for water from source
- No claims of special properties of water
- Use most environmentally friendly containers, packaging with explanation of choices
- Participate in local community campaigns to increase safety of municipal water supplies
- Test water products regularly for contamination and bacteria
- Recyclable packaging – glass or plastic made from recycled materials
Preferences
- No bottled water companies
Resources
- www.cleanwateraction.org
- http://www.foodandwaterwatch.org
- Water filters: A lot of companies just sell a general purpose filter, when that filter might not get rid of the contaminants in your home's water. Best practice: (Sweetwater) tests your water and then creates a filter to match your specific contaminants. At the very least, a company should be upfront about how you should buy a filter to match your water report, and not overpromise! Also, any company that takes back its filters for recycling is a good one.
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