Drink More Tap Water

Tap water has it all over bottled water. First, it's significantly cheaper, pennies per gallon as opposed to more than $1. Second, tap water undergoes more -- and more extensive -- testing. Tap water is disinfected, filtered to remove pathogens and tested for E.coli, fecal coliform, bacteria, cryptosporidium, giardia, viruses and most synthetic organic chemicals. There is no requirement that bottled water be disinfected or filtered or that it be tested for those elements. Third, less than 30 percent of plastic bottles are recycled. The rest end up on roadsides, in landfills and in our oceans. It makes sense from financial, health and environmental standpoints to kick the bottle.