17 million barrels of oil were used to manufacture, fill, and transport bottled water.

Did you know about bottled water?

Seventy-four percent of Americans drink bottled water, and one in five drinks only bottled water.

Worldwide, consumers spent $100 billion on bottled water in 2005.

Each year more than 4 billion pounds of PET plastic bottles end up in landfills or as roadside litter

Last year in the US, 17 million barrels of oil were used to manufacture, fill, and transport bottled water. That's enough to fuel 1 million cars for 1 year (in the US). This is a significant source of global warming pollution – furthermore, it's becoming a have and have not issue.

As water resources shift with global climate change, water is going to become an even more precious resource than it is currently. Right now, we have more than 1.1 billion people who lack access to enough clean, safe water to meet their daily needs.

The Think Outside the Bottle campaign is asking people to pledge to opt for tap water over bottled, and to support the efforts of local officials who are working for stronger public water systems. We are asking people to sign because:

water is a human right and not a commodity to be bought and sold for profit;

bottled water corporations are changing the very way we think about water and undermining people's confidence in public water systems;

up to 40% of bottled water in the US and Canada is sourced from municipal tap water;

some bottlers have run over communities' concerns and the environment when they extract water and build bottling plants to get local spring and ground water;

bottled water travels many miles from the source, results in the burning of massive amounts of fossil fuels, and contributes to the billions of plastic bottles ending up in our landfills;

worldwide there is a need for investments in public water systems to ensure equal access to water, a key ingredient for prosperity and health for all people; and
solutions to ensuring water as a fundamental human right require people acting together and standing up for public water systems.


To sign the pledge to stick with tap water and show corporations and public officials that you value it, click here.