07-28-2007, 04:04 PM
US drinking water standards and monitoring requirements are strict, and generally stricter than standards on bottled water. There have been quite a few studies of this issue, and the findings have generally indicated that most tap water is of similar or sometimes higher quality than bottled waters (this is particularly true here in the SF Bay Area where most cities have excellent tap water quality and no need whatsoever to drink bottled water). The problem with bottled water is that the bottling process itself is subject to sanitation and contamination issues. Hence, we get occasional reports of things like benzene, coliform bacteria and various other organic chemicals and metals (not to mention phthalates leached out of the bottles) showing up in bottled waters. NRDC did a study a few years ago that showed many bottled waters to have some degree of contamination, some quite serious.
This is not to say that ALL municipal water is of higher quality than bottled water, and there have been some significant issues with some small and poorly regulated local supplies in the US, but it is pretty rare to have unsafe municipal drinking water sources. As for aesthetic considerations (odor, taste), there are some areas of the country where the natural water quality has issues, but these can in most cases be dealt with easily by simple home filtration.
This is not to say that ALL municipal water is of higher quality than bottled water, and there have been some significant issues with some small and poorly regulated local supplies in the US, but it is pretty rare to have unsafe municipal drinking water sources. As for aesthetic considerations (odor, taste), there are some areas of the country where the natural water quality has issues, but these can in most cases be dealt with easily by simple home filtration.