Bottled water consumption continues to rise worldwide

Al Miller watches his wife Eva drink bottled water on a daily basis.

"We'll buy three to five cases a week," said the Florence resident. "She likes the taste of it better than tap water. But to me, water is water; she doesn't think so."

Alicia Moore keeps a bottle of water on her desk almost constantly.

"I was always told bottled water was better for you," said the Sheffield resident. "I don't know if that's true, but bottled water is basically all that I drink.

"I guess it comes down to the convenience as much as anything."

She said her boyfriend will not drink anything but bottled water.

"There's no telling how many cases (of water) he drinks a week," Moore said.

Bottled water sales continue to rise, not just in the United States but worldwide. And as the sale and popularity of the product increases, so does the debate about the benefits of bottled water versus tap water.

"I'm still amazed that people pay for water (to drink)," said Dr. Kerry Gatlin, head of the University of North Alabama School of Business. "It's not a bit better or safer, it's just convenient; basically, we're paying for the convenience."

Research backs him up. According to recent studies, bottled water is really not any healthier for the consumer than tap water.

"But it can be 10,000 times more expensive," said Emily Arnold, a researcher for the Washington D.C.-based nonprofit group, Earth Policy Institute.

According to the Beverage Marketing Corp., in 2007, total U.S. category volume of bottled water surpassed 8.8 billion gallons, a 6.9 percent advance over 2006's volume level. That translates to over 29 gallons per person, which means U.S. residents drink more bottled water annually than any other beverage, other than carbonated soft drinks.

And just as different as the opinions about bottle versus tap water taste, so too are the regulations.

The Environmental Protection Agency regulates the tap water industry while the Food and Drug Administration oversees bottled water companies, according to the International Bottled Water Association.

"We have to jump through a bunch of hoops," said Doug Clement, manager of the Russellville Water Department. "We do all we can to make sure the water is protected and treated. The last thing anyone wants to do is put out bad water."

Clement said his department is constantly sampling, testing and checking the water that leaves the plant to be distributed to the public.

"I guarantee that everything that can be done to make the water safe is done," Clement said.

John Sanders, vice president of Bottle Water for Life, which is opening Cold Valley Water in Rogersville, said industry standards and government regulations are tight on the bottled water industry.

He said the requirements are similar, but the methods are different.

"Municipal water is treated by chemicals; bottled water products come from a variety of sources - artesian wells or springs. No chemical methods are used and no chlorination is in the water," Sanders said.

Sanders said bottled water producers don't encounter the materials that municipalities do.

"Our water is all natural," he said.

Even though it is all natural, bottled water producers still put their product through a series of filtration systems.

"We filter it as it enters the building, and then it goes through an ultraviolet light, then another filtration system and then ozone is added to it, which makes it purer," said Dean Smith, owner of Alvin's Spring Water, which is bottled near Collinwood, Tenn. His company gets its water from Mill Springs.

He said the water is tested every 15 minutes to ensure purity.

Smith said a sample of the water is sent every day to the FDA, and the Tennessee Agricultural Department comes monthly and tests the water.

"Municipal water has to be cleaned up to become drinkable; we don't have to do that," Smith said. "But we are regulated. In fact, we may be more regulated than municipal water."

He said convenience and safety are the two biggest reasons the popularity of bottled water has grown.

"Some of the municipal water doesn't have a great taste. I don't even use tap water to make coffee any more," Smith said. "For years, I drank municipal water, but I got hooked on spring water, and that's all I drink now."

But not everyone dislikes the taste of municipal. For years, Sheffield Utilities has had a reputation for good-tasting water.

"We have one plant, one supply and that's the (Tennessee) river," said Alan Hughes, general manger of Sheffield Utilities. "We have a good supply of water, and it's a fairly clean source of water."

Hughes said his department is proud of its reputation for tasty water.

"The technique we use is the same one we've been using since we started in 1904," he said. "I would think we have learned to make it pretty good over the years. We filter it, add chlorine and fluorine, and that's it.

"I drink water out of the tap all the time. I just prefer it, and that's all I use."

Officials with the International Bottled Water Association said it really isn't a competition between bottle and tap water but a matter of preference.

"We don't see it as a bottled water versus tap water issue," said Jill Culora, communications manager for the IBWA, of Alexandria, Va.

"It's a matter of taste. A lot of people have gotten turned off on tap water because it can have a taste of chlorine and they just prefer the taste of bottled water. It's all in what the consumer wants and likes."

Tom Smith can be reached at 740-5757 or tom.smith@TimesDaily.com.