Echonetdaily reports on Tweed Shire initiative to discourage consumption of bottled water
Council water-unit officer Elizabeth Seidl said in the article that ‘Australia’s annual consumption of bottled water exceeds 600 million litres, even though Australians are able to drink some of the best tap water in the world.
Ms Seidl said the safety of the Tweed’s tap water ‘is equal to the best bottled water and better than most’.
She also said bottled water caused major environmental problems with discarded bottles creating ‘massive amounts of landfill and litter on our streets and beaches’.
‘Significant resources are also needed to bottle, transport and refrigerate water, especially if that water is imported from overseas,’ she said.
‘The manufacture of plastic water bottles squanders a non-renewable resource, oil, and the road and air miles generated by transporting bottled water are a significant generator of greenhouse gases.
‘The refrigeration needed for bottled water also causes emissions and bottled spring water can sometimes put unsustainable pressure on natural aquifers,’ she said.
But Mr Parker claims ‘the argument by a council representative that the Tweed region has great quality tap water and therefore they don’t need it in vending machines shows a misunderstanding by the council of consumer behaviour and the impact of obesity and chronic disease.
For all the reasons given above, it is clearly preferable to drink Unbottled water, unless it is fresh from your creek,river or filtered rainwater. Tweed Shire Council has made great efforts to provide residents with drinkable water, especially from the highest quality water treatment/filtration plant at Bray Park. However questions need to be asked about the additives (currently present or proposed) such as Chlorine, Flouride, and others even more harmful.
Also because of the deteriorated state of the pipes and the distances it travels,water monitoring will likely show a significant difference in quality at Bray Park, Murwillumbah and Tweed heads.
Much can still be done to improve what comes out of the tap.
