However, some bottled waters only differ from tap water in the fact that they are distributed in bottles rather than through pipes. In fact there are more standards regulating tap water in Europe and the US than those applied to the bottled water industry. We must clean up and properly protect these waters at source, and not just at the treatment works, so that we can all rest easy in drinking from the tap. The study acknowledges that while bottled water has the advantage of being generally safer in areas where tap water may be contaminated, boiling or filtering local water renders it safe at a much lower cost for people on a low income. It may contain small amounts of minerals but so does tap water from many public municipal water supplies.
Some consumers prefer bottled water to tap water for taste reasons.
WWF argues that water companies have an important responsibility to ensure that they consistently produce water that is not only safe but also pleasant to drink. The study also found that every year 1.5 million tons of plastic are used to bottle water. Toxic chemicals can be released into the environment during the manufacture and disposal of the bottles. Furthermore, a quarter of the 89 billion litres of water bottled worldwide annually are consumed outside their country of origin. Emissions of the green house gas carbon dioxide, caused by transporting bottled water within and between countries, contribute to the global problem of climate change.