A recent survey show that tap water outperforms bottled water, which bodes well for cities and citizens concerned about the environmental impacts of the billion dollar bottled water industry.
"Florida buys more bottled water than any state except Texas and California -- about 576.9 million gallons last year, according to the New York consulting firm Beverage Marketing Corp.
But the bottle has been in hot water since summer, when environmentalists like the Washington-based Earth Policy Institute drew attention to the 1.5 million barrels of oil a year it takes to satisfy U.S. demand.
Beyond the oil used to make the bottles, brands like Evian and Fiji often are shipped thousands of miles before they hit local grocery store shelves, adding to energy costs. Bottled water is often consumed far from the nearest recycling bin, and statistics show more than 85 percent of bottles end up as garbage or litter.
'The environmental impacts are huge,' said Eric Goldstein, a water quality specialist for the Natural Resources Defense Council, based in New York. 'No one should be drinking bottled water and thinking they're doing something good for the planet.'"
FULL STORY: Cities push tap water as 'better than bottled'
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Urban Design for Planners 1: Software Tools
This six-course series explores essential urban design concepts using open source software and equips planners with the tools they need to participate fully in the urban design process.
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Economic & Planning Systems, Inc.
UCLA Lewis Center for Regional Policy Studies
Mpact (formerly Rail~Volution)
Chaddick Institute at DePaul University
City of Piedmont, CA
Great Falls Development Authority, Inc.
HUDs Office of Policy Development and Research