Is Bottled Water Really Better?

... or are we wasting our money and ruining the

environment?
By Lauren Tarshis

E
very year, Americans tap water often beats them. Policy Institute (EPI), 2.7
buy around 30 billion Plus, its likely that the water million tons of plastic are
bottles of water. Stack flowing from your tap has used to make plastic water
those up, and the plastic tower been more thoroughly tested bottles every year. Most of this
would stretch from Earth to than what you are guzzling plastic is made from crude
the moon13 times. from a bottle. Thats because oilabout 17 million barrels
Why do we love our most cities are required to of oil for bottles purchased in
bottled water so much? regularly test tap water to the United States alone. That
For one thing, its make sure it doesnt contain amount of oil could power
convenient: Just grab a bottle dangerous germs or chemicals. about I million cars for a year,
and go, then toss it out when Bottled-water companies dont according to the EPI.
youre done. Its healthy too, have to test as rigorously. The other environmental
compared with sugary sodas. concern is with what happens
And its safer and better-tasting The Plastic Problem to those bottles later. They
than tap water ... or is it? are not biodegradable,
The main criticism of bottled
and though they can be
water doesnt concern the
The Truth About Tap quality of the water, though,
recycled, only about 30

In fact, between 25 and 40 or the fact that

percent of all bottled water is Americans
tap water. Many top-selling are paying
brands, such as Dasani and for water
Aquafina, sell tap water that they could
has been run through a filter. get for free. It
laurent/iStockphoto.com/HIP

But even waters bottled from concerns those

springs and streams arent plastic bottles.
necessarily better than the According
water you can get from your to a report
kitchen sink. In taste tests, by the Earth

Is Bottled Water Really Better? page 1

May be photocopied for classroom use. 2015 by Lucy Calkins and Colleagues from the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project from Units of Study for Teaching Reading (Heinemann: Portsmouth, NH).
 Shutterstock/HIP
percent of them are. The rest with their lunches. Last If they were to drink from the
wind up in landfills, where January, the town of Concord, tap or from local supplies, they
they will sit for hundreds Massachusetts, banned the could get seriously sick or even
of years, leaching harmful sale of single-serving bottled die. For them, bottled water
chemicals into the ground and water. Other towns as well as isnt a convenience. Its a life-
contaminatingget thisthe some college campuses are or-death necessity.
water supply. doing the same. In the U.S., banning
These mountains of bottled water could increase
trashed plastic bottles have Dirty Water the consumption of sugary
inspired a growing number of beverages, like soda or sweet
Not everyone can simply reject
communities to take action. At teas, which are contributing
bottled water. Around the
Cherry Tree Elementary School to Americas problem with
world, 780 million people do
in Indiana, for example, obesity. On the other hand,
not have access to safe water.
kids get reusable water cups reusable water bottles are

Is Bottled Water Really Better? page 2

May be photocopied for classroom use. 2015 by Lucy Calkins and Colleagues from the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project from Units of Study for Teaching Reading (Heinemann: Portsmouth, NH).
 What Do You Think?
Should your community ban bottled water? Use evidence from the article to support each side of this
debate. Write the information on the lines below.

YES NO
It causes many problems. It has its place.
1.The majority of water bottles end up in 1.
landfills.

2. 2.

3. 3.

EXAMINE POINTS ON BOTH SIDES OF THE DEBATEAS WELL AS YOUR OWN BELIEFSand decide
whether your community should ban bottled water. State your opinion in one sentence below. This
can become the thesis statement for an argument essay on this topic.

widely available. Maybe more From Is Bottled Water Really

Better? by Lauren Tarshis. Published
Americans would start using in Scholastic Scope, April 2013.
them if bottled water wasnt Copyright 2013 by Scholastic Inc.
magnetcreative/iStockphoto.com/HIP

Used by permission. Scholastics

an option. copyrighted material shall not
What do you think? be republished, re-transmitted,
broadcast, downloaded, modified or
Should bottled water get the
adapted (rewritten), manipulated,
boot? reproduced or otherwise distributed
and/or exploited in anyway without
the prior written permission of
Scholastic, Inc.

Is Bottled Water Really Better? page 3

May be photocopied for classroom use. 2015 by Lucy Calkins and Colleagues from the Teachers College Reading and Writing Project from Units of Study for Teaching Reading (Heinemann: Portsmouth, NH).