Annie Leonard Tells the Story of Bottled Water

By Julie Schwietert On March 24, 2010 · 10 Comments

Photo: J.C. Rojas

Just in time for World Water Week, Annie Leonard–known for her popular YouTube video, “The Story of Stuff”– tells “The Story of Bottled Water.”

This week is World Water Week, a time when environmentalists encourage us to become more conscious of and conscientious about our water usage.

For those of us living in the “developed” world, water is seemingly so abundant and accessible that we’re inclined not to worry about this particular natural resource.

But as Annie Leonard explains in her new video, “The Story of Bottled Water,” our water usage–and, in particular, our use of bottled water–affects people all over the world:

Community Connection:

Want to learn more about your own water usage and how you can use water more conscientiously? UNICEF has some useful resources on its TAP Project website, and here on Matador we have lots of ways you can learn more about water usage:

The Facts About Water

What’s Your Water Footprint?

40 Shocking Facts About Water

About The Author

Julie Schwietert

Julie Schwietert Collazo is a writer, editor, researcher, and translator currently in New York, formerly of Mexico City and San Juan. She is Matador's managing editor and is the lead faculty member of MatadorU's travel writing program.

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jake

I agree it seems foolish to be spending so much on bottled water, not to mention the environmental costs, but there are some problems. I currently live in DC, and most certainly the tap water here would win no taste tests. The water here is heavily chlorinated due to the high levels of pollution and microorganisms in the potomac and anacostia rivers. Additionally, looking at reports of water quality, DC water tested above the limit for Haloacetic acids, and had high concentrations of other harmful chemicals. Authorities should take more stringent measures in ensuring our water is free of such chemicals and contaminants.

Julie Schwietert

Jake-

I totally agree with you. And yes, the Anacostia is definitely one polluted river. I just drove past it the other day, took a look at the banks, and thought “Every bad thing I’ve heard about this river appears to be true.” The US government, at least, has definitely not taken a leadership role with respect to protecting our water.

joshua johnson

Thank you so much for posting this…we need to be grateful every time we turn on the tap or crack a bottle of water…so basic to first world folks but free flowing water is a luxury that should not be taken for granted.
http://milesofabbie.com Abbie

I love Annie Leonard! I think she just came out with a book, too. And if you want to read more about water, Nat Geo’s most recent issue is the water issue or something like that!
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Joanna

i totally agree – around the city or outdoors, I carry around a Nalgene water bottle with me 97% of the time – if I’m really desperate, and there are no available drinking fountains around, I usually still won’t buy bottled water, maybe juice in glass bottles – so i can reuse the glass bottles.

we complain on how expensive the gasoline for our cars is but if you think about it, we pay close to $1 a litre (I’m in Canada) for fuel, and at least $1 for 500ml of bottled water, making it $2 for a litre, while a litre of water from the tap will cost me pennies. I have a $8 non-bpa nalgene bottle that I use day in and day out that I got 2 years ago – so that definitely drops my cost way down.

that’s unfortunate that in washington DC own water quality is crappy – kinda of shows u how the government doesn’t care about the environment. I wonder how many of those government types drink bottled water vs tap water. water capitalism
http://www.expatheather.com Heather

Alright I’ve gotta stick up for bottled water, because in some places it’s the only healthy alternative. We use bottled water here in Fall River because the tap water has high levels of flouride, although we don’t throw out the bottles. We buy one-gallon jugs and refill them weekly at a pay per gallon tank (30 cents per gallon). When we go out, we pour some of that water into a Nalgene.

I was also quite happy to get Nestle Pure Life bottled water delivered in Lahore, because they used 5-gallon reusable jugs and the truck would come and swap our empty ones for full ones every week. This created no waste and gave us safe drinking water – and believe me the tap water in Lahore is only good for showers and dishes!
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Annie Leonard Tells the Story of Bottled Water

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