In citing the “Top Three Reasons to Avoid Bottled Water,” Harvard University’s Office for Sustainability makes this succinct statement: “The entire life cycle of bottled water uses fossil fuels, contributes to global warming, and causes pollution.”
The numbers attached to that message are even starker.
According to Earth-policy.org, more than 17 million barrels of oil are required to produce enough plastic water bottles to meet the country’s annual demand for bottled water. Additionally, bottled water is about 3,000 percent more expensive per gallon than tap water and is, according to foodandwaterwatch.org, generally no cleaner, safer or healthier than tap water. In fact, federal government standards for safety testing and monitoring of municipal drinking water exceed that imposed on the producers of bottled water.
In an effort to educate residents about the sustainability and benefits of tap water, the city of Beverly Hills has recently launched the #ReThinkBHTap campaign.
The city ensures that its tap water is safe and healthy for residents to drink by undergoing a rigorous monitoring process to verify that tap water meets or exceeds applicable water quality standards. Each year, the city releases a Water Quality Report that examines this process, outlining any constituents found in its water such as chemicals, microscopic organisms and radioactive materials (many of which are naturally occurring). Historically, the city has met all U.S. EPA and State drinking water health standards each year, as reported in the annual Consumer Confidence Report. This year’s Consumer Confidence Report is currently being prepared and will be available by July 1, 2021.
“Our Public Works Department puts in an enormous amount of effort to ensure we continue to deliver clean tap water so that our community as well as the environment remains healthy for the future,” said Beverly Hills Mayor Bob Wunderlich.
“It’s imperative we do all that we can to utilize this valuable resource in a sustainable manner so that our planet can continue to thrive.”
The city will host a variety of educational presentations, workshops, social media campaigns and more to explain the benefits of tap water and dispel any myths. To learn more and view the City’s Water Quality Report from previous years, visit beverlyhills.org/bhtap.
