Would you be considered picky if you preferred bottled water over tap water? Well, I guess I’m a picky drinker. Tap water could be considered more convenient, but is that worth sacrificing your taste buds? Bottled water provides a quick and easy source of water for anyone and is safer than tap water.

Tap water often has a metallic taste to it due to the lack of filtration. The Environmental Protection Agency takes specific measures to make sure the water that is used is filtered properly. Methods like source protections, source monitoring, reverse osmosis, ultraviolet light, distillation, micron filtration and ozonation are used to ensure that the water is fresh.

Because of the places drinking water is siphoned from, it can often have unprecedented consequences. Natural springs and aquifers, although largely pure, can be contaminated and become unsafe quickly. 

There are also significant safety risks involved in using tap water In 2014, Michigan’s decision to switch the source of their water supply became detrimental. Residents of Flint suffered from skin rashes, hair loss, and itchy skin all because of inadequate treatment and testing of the water going into residents’ homes.

The savior of all of these people’s crisis was bottled water. Bottled water provided a way for people to avoid lead poisoning. Among the pictures taken during this crisis, one was of a family preparing their meal using a bottle of water.

Plastic emissions are a huge concern for those of us who care about the environment, but what is not being considered is that the plastic emissions are the fault of the user. There are plenty of alternatives to plastic bottles, but they are expensive and often inconvenient. It is not a matter of the plastic being used, but where the plastic is going afterwards. 

Countries like Japan have taken huge recycling efforts and they have some of the lowest emissions in the world. According to a study done in 2004, Japan was able to recycle 50% of their solid waste compared to the U.S with 30%.

Plastic bottles are consistent and, if recycled properly, are not destructive to the environment. Of course this dispute is up to preference, but endangering your tastebuds and possibly your health is not worth the risk.