THE peak body for the bottled water industry in Canada, the Canadian Bottled Water Association (CBWA), has called on the Canadian Government to ban drinking of tap water. The CBWA has claimed that bottled water is more environmentally friendly than tap water. Installation of a number of taps in each home or drinking fountains at each enterprise is less environmentally friendly than bottled water. CBWA also noted that the bottled water industry’s job creation record is steady as domestic demand for bottled water has been growing and a ban on drinking tap water will lead to further growth in direct employment within the industry.
The CBWA has also noted that chlorine is used to disinfect tap water which can produce small amounts of chemicals that may cause cancer. A study conducted by 70 scientists in Montreal found that bottled water was very pure as most people already believe.
Bottled water is not expected to be free from microorganisms but the level observed in this study was surprisingly small. Since bottled water carries a price tag, most people already believe that bottled water is purer and safer than most tap water.
