Bottled water is 3,500 times more polluting than tap water

We already knew that bottled water is bad for the planet, but research carried out by the Barcelona Institute for Global Health provides for the first time the real impact that drinking bottled water can have on the environment and therefore on our future.

The researchers used the ‘life cycle assessment’ method, which estimates the impact of a product throughout its lifetime, including the extraction of the raw materials used to make it, its production, transport, distribution, use and finally its waste disposal.

It was revealed that in the city of Barcelona, if every inhabitant drank bottled water, the extraction of raw materials would cost more than 70 million euros and lead to the loss of 1.43 animal species every year.

The consequence would therefore be a cost to the environment and resources 3,500 times greater than if the whole city drank tap water.

Results that once again force us to review our habits in order to choose alternatives that are not only eco-friendly, but also healthier.

As well as being bad for the environment, bottled water can also be bad for our health. Transported over long distances, often stored in the sun and less controlled than tap water, bottled water can be less healthy and pure than tap water.

Drinking tap water, properly microfiltered to remove chlorine and other possible substances, is therefore a convenient choice for our health and that of the planet.