Free Environmental Effects Of Bottled Water Essay Sample

Bottled water, one of the signs of modern life of this era. Bottled water is being used in most of the countries of the world due to facilitation of transport, high hygiene standards and therefore it’s being accessible almost anywhere. However, beside the advantages that it has the disadvantages are becoming more and more concerning each day. People have been using the bottled water without known what the dark side of it might be, or what might happen in result of the enormous misuse of the bottles water.
But, what are the plastic bottles made of? Nowadays, most of the bottles are made of a kind of plastic called polyethylene terephthalate (PET or PETE) plastic.
As it’s shown, a recyclable “1” designates it. It is considered that it does not contain BPA. In a global level, PETE is recognized as a recyclable and safe material for packing purposes.

In which aspects the bottled water might be dangerous. There are 3 main concerns:

Human health
Being a waste
Environmental impact
1: Human health: The very first concerning issue is the water or any other drinks inside the bottles.
Though PETE is recognized as safe packing material, but “For over a decade we have known not to heat or microwave plastic, as heating plastic causes the release of xenoestrogens”.
The xenoestrogens, are a type of xenohormones which can act like testosterone, and in fact they are clinically significant as they can imitate the endogenous estrogen’s effects. Therefore, they have been considered as the responsible factor of precocious puberty and reproductive system disorders. Therefore, it is strongly advised not to reuse the PETE bottles, however the plastic bottles marked as 3, 6, and 7, due to presence of Bisphenol A (BPA) are even more dangerous. Scientists suspect that BPA may cause neurological issues in fetuses and children. In general BPA mimics estrogen’s effects, and may cause cancer of the prostate, breast and even brain.
2: Being a waste: Some people may think that bottled water is better than tap water, but it’s not right. In fact the FDA rules for tap water is much more strict than what it has for bottled water. Moreover, approximately 40% of bottle water in the market comes from municipal tap water, and it includes even those labeled as “spring water”. From the other side such a huge amount of bottles produced increases the oil production as it is derived from crude oil. Therefore, production of bottled water is a waste of time and resources, as huge amount of water is being packed and sold for a higher price.
3: Environmental impact: Disregard the type of the plastic used for production of bottled water, we should remember that plastic is a synthetic material which cannot be decomposed by nature and the only solution can be recycling which is still under developed. In general, we can say the bottles:

Produce toxic byproducts (chlorine gas and ash, containing heavy metals)

Take up to 1,000 years to be biodegraded.
leak toxic additives into the groundwater (For example phthalates).

Conclusion:

As you can see, the advantages of bottled water is much less than its disadvantages. Bottled water is being produced and sold in an enormous huge amount without taking into consideration some facts, such as the health tread of the materials used for packing, and the impact of the waste produced by the bottles on the nature. Therefore, it is strongly advised to reduce production and usage of the bottled water to reduce its negative impact on human life and nature.

Work Cited:

"Facts on PET." Facts On Pet. Web. 12 Feb. 2015. <http://www.factsonpet.com/facts-on-pet/>.
Cernovich, Mike. "Plastic Water Bottles Lower Testosterone - Mike Cernovich Presents Danger & Play." Mike Cernovich Presents Danger Play. 18 Nov. 2012. Web. 12 Feb. 2015. <http://www.dangerandplay.com/2012/11/18/mens-health-plastic-water-bottles-lower-testosterone/>.
Hamilton, Jon. "Study: Most Plastics Leach Hormone-Like Chemicals." NPRMarch 02, 2011. NPR, 1 Jan. 2011. Web. 12 Feb. 2015. <http://www.npr.org/2011/03/02/134196209/study-most-plastics-leach-hormone-like-chemicals>.
Jewell, Jim. "So What’s the Big Deal with Plastic Water Bottles?" Flourish. Web. 12 Feb. 2015. <http://www.flourishonline.org/2010/08/so-whats-the-big-deal-with-plastic-water-bottles/>.