bottled vs.tap: - Virginia Water Environment Association

vs.Bottled Versus Tap:A Stroll on the Boardwalk Tellsthe Tale of the Better Tasting DrinkWhile many in the water industryunderstand the differencesbetween bottled and tapwater, most notably costs, bottledwater still garners an extensive share ofthe bottled drink market. There are a varietyof reasons for this, but other than convenience,those of us in the drinking waterindustry find these reasons incredibly frustrating,especially when people claim bottledwater tastes better. While some hard watersin the Midwest or groundwaters in Floridacan have taste issues, here in Virginia, weare blessed with high-quality source watersand, as a result, great tasting drinking water.However, go to any grocery or conveniencestore and you will see a wide variety of typesand sizes of bottled water for sale.As part of the 2012 Virginia VA wwa andVWEA Joint Annual Meeting (WaterJAM),volunteers for both associations partnered tohost the First Annual Water Taste Test/Educa-tion Booth one late summer Sunday afternoonon the Virginia Beach Boardwalk. This boothincluded both a water taste-testing tent and awastewater education tent, hosted by HRSD.The water taste-testing tent offeredpeople strolling along the boardwalk anopportunity to taste samples of bottled water(Deer Park) and tap water side-by-side. Thetap water was delivered through our veryown water bar – which looked mysteriouslylike a beer tap (courtesy of the Blacksburg-Christiansburg Water Authority). JonathanNewcomb, Blacksburg-Christiansburg WaterAuthority, and Mala Burton, City of Hopewell,managed the water bar and ensured thatrefreshing, cold tap water continued to flowthroughout the event. It was an open tastetest as we had too many people to conductblind taste tests effectively. However, thisallowed participants to watch us take theirpersonal samples from both the Deer Parkcontainers and the water bar.Beachgoers, runners, and other touristsand residents stopped by to sample thetwo waters and render their verdict. BeckyMitchell, City of Virginia Beach, and AmeliaDelphos, unpaid child worker, did an excellentjob in dispensing the water, educatingthe participants and keeping track of theirpreferred water. In addition, Paul Delphos,Black & Veatch, and Jim Ewing, Woolpert,Inc. helped set up the tents and providedboth active and moral support throughoutthe event.In addition to the taste test itself, afive-gallon bucket was on display next toa 2.5 gallon Deer Park water container.This helped demonstrate the cost differencebetween bottled water and tap water.The water in the five gallon bucket costapproximately $0.02 while the 2.5 gallonDeer Park containers were purchased for$2.99 at a local grocery store earlier thatmorning – approximately 275 times more2012 WaterJAMTap Versus Bottled Water Cost ComparisonWater Actual Cost $/kgal5 gallons of tap $0.022 $4.402.5 gallons of Deer Park $2.99 $1,2002012 WaterJAM water taste test/education booth. Jonathan and Mala distribute tap water, NOT beer.Under the shadow of King Neptune, Becky andAmelia distribute water to beachgoers.14 The Conduit – Fall 2012