Surprise! Study casts favorable light on bottled water 'footprint'

Peer-reviewed Nestle Waters analysis puts some perspective on the effect on the environment, adding support to recent efforts at making the bottles more eco-friendly.

The economic impact of bottled water has been slammed mercilessly in recent times as being very bad for Mother Earth, but a new life-cycle analysis says the reasoning behind the bottled-water naysayers’ assertions is all wet.

Commissioned by Nestlé Waters North America, the peer-reviewed study finds water has the least environmental impact of any beverage: Water represents 41% of a typical consumer’s total beverage consumption but just 12% of his or her climate-change impact.

That’s a useful perspective to add in support of package changes that are being made for the better in bottled water. Bottled water might not be quite the villain it’s being made out to be, and it’s certainly a welcome site in natural disaster-ravaged areas such as Haiti.

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