Contaminants in our "Pure Mtn Spring" Bottled Water? - Part 2
By Dan DeBaunShare
Well it's time for me to touch on some of the other findings from the Environmental Working Group's study on 10 major brands of bottled water. See part 1 of bottled water contaminants here. Being released just this week, I'm hoping we'll see some major news organizations follow-up on these disturbing results.
Altogether, the test found 38 different type of contaminants with a average of 8 in each bottle of water. 4 of the 10 bottles also were contaminated with bacteria. Ugh! So, what sorts of contaminants are we talking about here? How about disinfection byproducts or waste water pollutants like caffeine and Tylenol. There's also your standard array of heavy metals including arsenic, radioactive isotopes, and fertilize residue (nitrate and ammonia). Also found were what the study termed "tentatively identified" industrial chemicals such as solvents, plasticizers, viscosity decreasing agents, and propellants. I wonder where that's coming from?
This is not the first time a study has highlighted some of these contaminants found in our bottled water. What's truly fascinating is that the marketing department would lead you to believe that you're getting water from a spring in the Rockie's or the Catskills...a pristine source undisturbed by the byproducts of our human development. Most of us are not naive enough to believe this hype though; especially since the fine print usually gives it away. That is, if there is a fine print. According to a EWG survey of 228 brands of bottled water, less than half state their source or detail any information regarding treatment. Transparency is a usually a good thing for the consumer, and if we take our health seriously, this sort of information should be a bare minimum requirement for the bottled water industry.
So, where are the controls? Where are the regulations? Why am I paying all this money for bottled water that is similar to tap water, or actually is tap water? Why am I not addressing the fact that using tap water as a reference point for bottled water is troubling in itself? We'll definitely get into that in the future, but here's an EWG stat for you: Of the 36 million bottles of water sold in 2006, only a fifth were recycled. That's alot of bottles ending up in the dumpsters or potentially polluting the very water sources we rely on. It should make us all give the subject of bottled water a little more serious thought.
The Thristy Berkey
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Dan DeBaun
Dan DeBaun is the owner and operator of Big Berkey Water Filters. Prior to Berkey, Dan was an asset manager for a major telecommunications company. He graduated from Rutgers with an undergraduate degree in industrial engineering, followed by an MBA in finance from Rutgers as well. Dan enjoys biohacking, exercising, meditation, beach life, and spending time with family and friends.
~ The Owner of Big Berkey Water Filters
This is what we are needing to know is about a rough in spring water system and what we really need to worry about.