Bottled water is purer than tap
The perception of bottled water as inherently purer than tap is largely unsupported. US tap water is tested far more frequently than bottled water, and a significant portion of bottled water originates from municipal tap water supplies.
What we know
In the United States, tap water is regulated by the Environmental Protection Agency under the Safe Drinking Water Act, while bottled water is regulated as a packaged food by the FDA under the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act. By federal law, FDA standards for bottled water must be at least as stringent as EPA standards for tap water, and in some cases they are stricter (for example, bottled water has a lead limit of 5 parts per billion versus 15 ppb for tap, reflecting that tap water may acquire lead from household pipes).
However, testing frequency differs substantially. The EPA requires large municipal water systems to test for coliform bacteria more than 100 times per month; the FDA requires bottled water manufacturers to test only once per week. Additionally, up to 70 percent of bottled water sold within a single state is exempt from federal FDA standards because interstate commerce regulations do not apply, and many states do not maintain equivalent oversight.
An NRDC four-year review of the bottled water industry published in 1999 found that about 25 percent of bottled water is actually tap water in a bottle, sometimes with further treatment and sometimes not. More recent analyses estimate the figure may be as high as 64 percent. A significant share of tested bottled water brands in the NRDC study contained chemicals at levels exceeding state health limits in at least one sample.
Bottled water does have genuine advantages in specific circumstances, such as during natural disasters, water main breaks, or boil advisories when tap water safety is compromised. For routine use in areas with functioning, regulated municipal water systems, bottled water offers no proven systematic purity advantage and creates significant plastic waste.
Common claims
- Bottled water is always cleaner and safer than tap.False. Tap is tested more frequently; both can contain contaminants.
- Bottled water comes from pristine natural springs.Partly false. Up to 64% of bottled water is sourced from municipal tap supplies.
- Bottled water is better during emergencies.True. Bottled water is a reliable alternative when tap safety is compromised.