Bottled water is something that I drink daily. I have at least 8 bottles every day, and most days I drink many more. So, when posed with the question, "Would you buy less bottled water if you knew the facts about its production and impact on the environment, and why?", I am forced to think about my own consumption of bottled water. In general, I like to think of myself as a pretty environmentally conscious person. I avoid using harmful chemicals in my home, and use natural alternatives whenever possible. I plant flowers around my home to help the declining bee population. I have reduced the amount of waste that my household produces, and I make sure to recycle whatever I can. I even refrain from eating meat because of the meat industry's negative environmental impact, …show more content…
The presence of chlorine, fluoride, and heavy metals in tap water is scary. The lead-contaminated water crisis in Flint, Michigan made my fears of consuming tap water much worse. It has been over two years, and the people of Flint are still without safe water. This beings said, I feel safer consuming bottled water than I do consuming tap water. However, I do look for safer alternative to bottled water if they are available. For instance, there is a safe, tested, natural spring about 30 minutes away from my home. If I am close, I will fill up a few jugs of water and drink that instead of bottled water. Or if I am at someone's home that has a high quality home water filtering system, I do not mind drinking the water. I have even looked into a filtering system for my own home, but most are just not affordable. On the rare occasion that I do find one that seems affordable, the filtering is not up to my standards. Springs are not always close by, tap water tastes bad and contains harmful chemicals, and filtering systems are expensive. So, bottled water is my default choice for these reasons.