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Camden plans to ban bottled water
Elizabeth Hopkirk, Evening Standard18.03.08
Camden council is planning to ban bottled water from all its offices because of its damaging effect on the environment.
Instead, jugs of water will be provided in staff canteens and at council meetings and the council will consider reintroducing drinking fountains across the borough to reduce public reliance on bottled water.
Islington council has already banned bottled water from its buildings following the Evening Standard's Water on Tap campaign, which has called on restaurants, bars, clubs and public places to routinely offer customers tap water.
The Camden proposal is one of a raft of eco-measures contained in a report on food, water, biodiversity and green spaces prepared by a team 15 councillors.
It will be voted on by the executive committee at the end of May.
Liberal Democrat councillor Alexis Rowell, who leads the environmental task force, said: "We need to stop transporting bottles of water around the world in this era of concern about climate change.
"It's crazy to take what's essentially tap water, put it in a bottle and transport it hundreds of miles to a consumer. We would do far better to drink tap water."
Reader views (19)
Where's freedom there banning people from drinking bottled water for eco reasons. Fact if there was no bottled water and no cars the world would still suffer from environmental damage factories etc. What about people that dont drink tap water?
- I.Hancock, London
This is a great idea, because if there is another big fire it would be put out much quicker with jugs of water instead of having to mess around with all those fiddly bottle caps.
- L, Sydney, Australia
I look forward to the day when the Evening Standard is ONLY available for free, online. Why should we pay for something which we can get for free. Why should we pay for something which has no environmental impact when it is published online? What about all the paper, the energy used to run the printing plants, not to mention the tens of gas guzzling vans which deliver the paper to the four corners of the south east.
We should buy the Evening Standard in print form because of choice? Convenience? Because nothing in life is free? Because the Evening Standard is an honest business, in an honest industry, just trying to survive like everyone else out there?
Hmmm, can those exact arguments not apply to bottled water too?
No doubt you will not have the courage to publish this. Your one-sided campaign totally misses the point. Bottled water is not as big an issue as you would like to make out. There is a lot more good sentiment towards bottled water than you would want to admit. London's paper? Surely if you were, you would not be running a campaign which threatens the profitability of one of our lifeblood industries - the restaurant trade. Restaurants are not cash cows and water is an important part of their attempts to not make a loss, in the face of huge on-costs of providing fine food and service in London.
And they have always offered tap water and consumers have always made the choice which best suits them.
- Gh, London, London
Ed, London....don't you mean "spawned" not "spurned" 'so many sanctimonious idiots'? If we'd spurned them we'd be a whole lot better off than we are.
- Judith C, London
Anyone who prefers tap water over bottled must have a serious lack of 'taste buds' in their mouth! The difference in taste is obvious, and I cannot stand tap water. If bottled water were to be banned then I'd prefer a fizzy drink over tap water any day. There are far more pressing concerns over saving the environment than bottled water!
- Bob, Enfield, England
If our Councils were serious about the environment they would swap their gas guzzling official cars for zero emission alternatives, not just jump on a band wagon for a bit of free press.
- Roger, London, UK
"It amazes me that people are prepared to drink bottled water at the expense of the environment."
What amazes me is that this country has spurned so many sanctimonious idiots…
- Ed, London
Tap water tastes disgusting and is unhygienic. It's had chemicals added to it and god knows what's in those pipes. I'd frankly rather not drink something that's been through other people's kidneys a hundred times over. The trendy wendies can sneer all they like, I haven't drunk tap water since I was a child and I'm never going back!
- L. Grey, Staines, England
Like Sheila, I will continue to drink bottled water as it is not going to "save the world" as these crazy politicians think it is.
I am 100% for compulsory recycling as that is how everybody can make a big difference to help the environment, however this useless Nu-Labour government is not investing anywhere near enough into recycling facilities all over Britain.
Also maybe if these money-grabbing local councils decided to use some of the millions they extort from us in parking fines to help recycling then we would all get somewhere.
- Daniel Howard, London,UK
It amazes me that people are prepared to drink bottled water at the expense of the environment. If bottled water is really so good for you and therefore helps prolong good health and life expectancy, is it really worth doing just so you can live in a damaged and inhospitable world.
- Andrew, Peterborough, UK
I think this is a brilliant measure, the only time I buy bottled water is when I do not have access to tap water and am in need of a drink. let's hope it catches on!
- Mm, Hampshire
I am delighted the Evening Standard feels it is fulfilling its green credentials by its 'drink tap water' campaign. I find it nauseating that I should be dictated to by politicians, busybodies who have nothing better to do and now a newspaper! I am sure there must be plenty of causes that the Standard could espouse, plenty of stories for your journalists to investigate. It would seem to me that you should turn back to exposing the real wrongs done to people but I guess that is too much like hard work. I shall continue to drink bottled water because it is MY choice
- Sheila, London
Surely bottled water is better than bottled Coke or Juice? Anything in a bottle is environmentally bad by the eco-facist definition. We should all go back to draught beer and wines from pewter mugs that we carry with us. Camden would do better in terms of saving greenhouse emissions by ensuring all its staff live and work within walking or cycling distance. Also, lower the office temperatures and make staff wrap up in woolly clothing in the winter.
- Bob, London
Why must we vacillate between such extremes? One day bottled water is considered a necessary fashion accessory and the next day it's banned. I've always thought bottled water was the biggest scam ever foisted on us, but to ban it is extreme, unfair and a bit totalitarian.
- R M, London, UK
Mr Rowell, if you want to drink tap water that's fine, but don't you dare tell me what I can or can't drink. There's far too much lecturing and hectoring going on for my liking, so butt out.
- The Gene Genie, Croydon
Beer and to a similar extent, spirit & wine production is just as environmentally unfriendly as bottled water yet thankfully the killjoys have ignored this.
- Marc Levine, Harrow, UK
Bottled water's one of the biggest cons going - remember Coca Cola trying to sell us water that came from a tap in South London? I'd like to bet that the previous two posters have some financial interest in the con...
- Abirch, Brighton, UK
A clean bottle of water from a spring or mountain or water that has had cleansing agents added and been contaminated by a pipe system over 100 years old.
I know what I like to drink.
- Mr S. Port, London
Anyone who thinks that Mineral water in a bottle is essentially tap water is totally naive!
The difference between waters is that some are not chemically treated, and some are.
- Chris John, London, England
