The newest eco-fad to hit campus is the crusade against bottle water. Organizations and community groups (we use community loosely) such as the Council of Canadians, Students for Sustainability and NB Media Coop, among others, are more than ready to battle the real and imaginary problems with bottled water. These groups argue that bottled water is a threat to the environment and human rights but they are not justified in these beliefs.
It is not our intention to suggest that bottled water helps the environment. We do, in fact, recognize the damage it does. What we take issue with is treating bottled water as a category in itself as an ecological villain. Ask yourself what the difference is between bottled water, Pepsi or even alcohols. Which of the previously listed does the least environmental damage? If you choose bottled water you choose correctly.
So what makes bottled water stand out amongst all these frivolous products? Make no mistake – alcohol is far more damaging in environmental and social cost then bottled water will ever be. Yet it gets not even a whimper from these groups? We assume too many enjoy their Champagne.
The next point is the freedom to access water, or as some would label it, the “Human Right” to water. This can be reclassified as the limited restriction on consumption of water. By limiting a person’s ability to choose you are limiting a person’s fundamental right to choose. The human right to water is not about enhancing the access to water, but about restricting choices. It is about restricting the sale of water as an essential commodity and privatization of water. Yet most essential goods (food, oil, wood) are sold with little or no government intervention. This is not to say the government does not have a role to play, however, surely water is no more important than food or heating oil.
The result of banning bottled water would be the restriction of the use of water with little environmental benefit. Water is an essential product, but it does not require a human right to acknowledge that. Bottled water is not our most wasteful use of water, and it is undeserving of our full attention as an ecological threat and human rights abuse.
When those favouring the bottle water ban put down their flute of champagne we may listen.
(Correction: In the print edition of this article on Oct 27, 2009 we incorrectly credited the story to Mitch Messon, the correct byline should have read Mitch Messom, we apologize for any inconvenience.)
