EUROPE'S BOTTLED WATER EXPLOSION


Despite tap water being essentially free, Europeans can't get enough of the expensive bottled variety:

Europeans are drinking more and more bottled water amid preoccupation with weight loss and cravings for emotional experiences like "naturalness"...

This selfishness is not without its costs, however:

Europe's bottled water sector uses close to 1 million tonnes a year of oil-derived polyethylene terephthalate (PET) plastic. Some is recycled. But a lot is dumped in landfills or shipped to China to be dumped in landfills, with PET taking up to 1,000 years to biodegrade.

The environmental footprint of the bottled water industry is made even bigger by export markets - up to 60 percent of brands like Evian and Volvic are shipped out of Europe to chic restaurants round the world.

The bottled water fad is even killing carbon sequestering trees:

In two cases - documented by the BBC in 2005 - in Pedro Paulo Aina in Brazil and Michigan in the US Nestle's exploitation of natural springs saw natural water resources dry up or drop in quality, damaging local tourism and killing trees.

Next time you're thirsty, head for the nearest tap.