Alternative Sources of Potable Water

Water Providers

Well owners or potential well owners that can opt to connect to a water utility should do so. Water utilities are highly regulated providers of water and must meet National Drinking Water Standards. For this reason they routinely monitor water quality, must provide annual water quality reports and report any water quality problems to their customers, as shown on Figure 16 of the City of Tucson’s 2006 Annual Water Quality Report.

Community water utilities charge a monthly water delivery fee which primarily covers the costs of pumping, treatment and delivery—with additional fees charged for CAP water. Presently, water is being delivered at bargain prices by many water utilities in Arizona. In Tucson, for example, 8,000 gallons of water cost about $30 (including sewage treatment costs) or about 0.4cents/gallon. However, connection fees for water and sewage are significant. For example, in Pima county new home owners must pay water equity fees and sewage connection fees around $7,000 per hook-up.

Figure 16: City of Tucson Water 2006 Water Quality Report

Bottled Water

There are numerous types and sources of bottled water. Common bottled waters include mineral water (with more than 250 mg/L TDS), purified water (which has been treated to reduce TDS levels), and sparkling water (which is naturally or artificially carbonated), among others. For a more complete list, see the National Sanitation Foundation (NSF) website.

Bottled water is regulated as a packaged food product by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) and state governments. Self-imposed standards on bottled water are also required by members of the International Bottled Water Association (IBWA). The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is not directly involved in the regulation of bottled water. However, if the bottled water suppliers use water from community water systems, the water utility must meet EPA standards. If other water sources are used, such as springs and wells, bottled water may be filtered, but the levels of minerals and contaminants may vary. Also, water disinfection is usually necessary, and packaging is done according to FDA food guidelines.

Large surveys conducted both in the U.S. and worldwide have shown that, in general, bottled water is no safer than tap water. Concerns about the safety of mineral bottled water has prompted the World Health Organization (WHO) to work on the development of an international code of bottled water quality that would require the disclosure of the source, mineral content, and treatment of all bottled water.

One advantage of drinking bottled water is its portability and the fact that, unlike tap water, it requires no residual disinfection during storage or delivery to the consumer. Therefore, there is no unpleasant chlorine taste or smell. However, bottled water should be consumed quickly, not stored for months, as plastic bottles may degrade over time and contaminate the water with plastic residues.