Drink tap, use bottle
Water is the liquid of life, and it literally falls out of the sky for free. But the magic of marketing and the madness of men has led to us to spend £2.4 billion a year (WHAT?!) on bottled water in the UK.1
Disposable plastic water bottles have a hugely damaging environmental impact, particularly when it comes to polluting our oceans. Drink tap water for the next two months, save money and reduce waste while rehydrating the natural (and low impact) way.
Health
One of the spells cast by marketing is that bottled water is healthier than tap. That’s a lie. In fact, depending where you are in the world, there are often tighter regulations on the quality of tap water than bottled water.2
What’s more, microplastics have been found in 93% of bottled water brands (although admittedly, the percentage is also high for tap water).3 We don’t know what the health impact of this is yet, but the World Health Organisation recently launched an investigation to find out.
So don’t fall for the lie, health is no reason to buy bottled.
25% - 45% of bottled water comes from the same place as your tap water.5
25% - 45%
Waste
While some plastics can be recycled, less than half of our plastic bottles are collected for recycling. Given that 480bn plastic drinks bottles were sold globally in 2016,4 that creates one huge heap of waste - adding to our fast overflowing landfills and escaping into our oceans.
The problem with plastic pollution is that plastic never ever rots down and disappears. Instead, it breaks down into smaller and smaller pieces, which are then eaten by fish and other sea creatures. This is bad news for those animals but - because microplastics (and the chemicals that bond with them) concentrate as they move up the food chain - it’s even more worrying for us. Plastic fish and chips anyone?
Climate change
Bottled water is 1,000 times more carbon intensive than its tap alternative,6 mainly because of packaging and transport.
And talking of transport, moving bottles of water around the globe adds about 100g CO2 per bottle to the equation.6 Fiji water in the Yorkshire Dales anyone? What?!
17,000 cars could be powered for a year on the oil that is used to produce water bottles in the UK.6
17,000
Taste
When it comes to blind taste testing, even die-hard bottled water advocates prefer the tap variety. Go on, test yourself.
And if you don’t like the taste, just set up a filter system for your home.
Money
£1 buys you 1,000 litres of tap water in the UK. Compare that to the cost of a litre of bottled water and… well, case closed, right?
Watch The Story of Bottled Water to delve a little deeper into this slippery industry.
Global Goals
In September 2017, an historic agreement was signed by UN member nations agreeing to work towards 17 Global Goals for Sustainable Development by 2030, otherwise known as the SDGs.
Achieving these ambitious goals will require action from governments, businesses, NGOs, and individuals alike. We can - and must - all play our part.
By making the 'Tap it' pledge, you are contributing in your own small way to the following SDG targets:
12.5: By 2030, substantially reduce waste generation through prevention, reduction, recycling and reuse
12.8: By 2030, ensure that people everywhere have the relevant information and awareness for sustainable development and lifestyles in harmony with nature
13.3: Improve education, awareness-raising and human and institutional capacity on climate change mitigation, adaptation, impact reduction and early warning
14.1: By 2025, prevent and significantly reduce marine pollution of all kinds, in particular from land-based activities, including marine debris and nutrient pollution
How
Giving up bottled water for a few months (and beyond) is pretty straightforward really:
- Buy yourself a reusable bottle (or, for bonus points, use a bottle you already own, plastic or otherwise).
- Fill it up
- Drink.
If you’re a fan of flavoured water, try putting a slice of lemon, orange or lime in your water bottle at the start of the day. Or, if you’re feeling extra fruity, mix it up with strawberries, mint, watermelon, raspberries or cucumber.
If you’re out and about and need a top up, ask nicely and most cafes, restaurants, pubs, bars will fill it up for you. Keep an eye out for the Refill logo to spot extra friendly water-filling stations, or navigate to one using the Refill App.
One of our favourite reusable water bottles is from GiveMeTap. Buy one of their handy sized metal bottles and not only do you get a convenient and easy-to-clean bottle to drink from, you will also fund five years of clean drinking water for someone in Africa.
Success Stories
2,816
Pledges
in total
22,241kg
CO2
pledged
References
- The Guardian
- The Telegraph
- BBC News
- The Guardian
- UpWorthy
- Berners-Lee, M (2010). How Bad are Bananas?
Images
2, 4 & 6. Do The Green Thing